Hello again! Today’s story was shot in Auburn, California in March, 2016. This was the first but definitely not the last time visiting this small city. There are many bridges in Northern Cali but Forresthill Bridge stood out because it is the 4th highest bridge in the U.S., so I made sure to visit the next chance that I got. This bridge is nearly 100 miles away from my house at the time, so I had to give myself 2 days to plan it all out. With some careful research of the area and a list of items that I needed to pack, I first drove to Rocklin in the afternoon, hung out with my Dad, spent the night, and woke up around 4a.m to start driving to Auburn.

To me, scouting a new and unfamiliar area is fun for me because sometimes I feel like a kid doing a treasure hunt, and the prize is the photograph that you had planned to capture in your head over and over again. Once I reached the bridge, I drove back and forth on it a few times to see what side I should park my car on. With the extra time I had to spare, I waited in my car for a little while because it was cold and to also figure out where the sun will be facing when it was time to execute my shot.

I had about 30-35 minutes until sunrise- I started hiking towards my destination. What I did not expect to see but not surprised at the same time, were the signs on both ends of the bridge with a suicide hotline and a prevention barrier to avoid any future attempts. After walking past this, I followed a common pathway that led right under the bridge- which brought me to the first location of my photos! I hiked down even lower to get a full capture of the bridge. Turns out that this last photo happened to be my favorite. I couldn’t stay too long because it was already getting warm and insects began flying everywhere, so I made the hike back to my car and took the scenic drive back home to enjoy views a little more.

When I arrived back at my Dad’s house, he was able to take a look at my photos and I received some good feedback from him…This was the first time I learned the photographer’s definition, “Rule of Thirds.” This was one of the last trips I took that he was able to critique my photos before he passed away.

Thank you Pops for always making me feel good that I was following in your footsteps. Love and miss you always.