Pacific Bonsai Museum

Living in the PNW my love of nature is endless. During 2022 I volunteered as a Docent at the Pacific Bonsai Museum in Federal Way, WA. Having been a bonsai admirer for years since I was a child, this was a thrill to get to share my knowledge to visitors of the museum.

Having built relationships at the museum I was given the incredible opportunity of photographing the board and staff of the museum in April 2022.

The day came and, with no snow in the forecast, it dumped snow. We planned on shooting outdoors, utilizing one of the bonsai trees as a background piece, peeking in on the edge of the painted backdrop. Due to weather, this was not possible. However, one of the bonsai trees had already started blooming for the Spring, therefore the team brought it under cover for protection from the harsh cold elements. This worked perfectly for me and we proceeded with utilizing that tree, setting the tree up in the museum’s traditional Tokonama.

This shoot was a dream of mine since moving to the PNW, and it provided everything I had hoped. Including other challenges, such as the backlight of the Tokonama was a harsh orange, which was a challenge to balance out even with utilizing colored gels on my lighting.

The team at the Pacific Bonsai Museum was seamless to work alongside, and expressed great gratitude for my time. It was an easy win-win for both sides.

I look forward to continuing my Docent volunteer duties in 2023.