DC Cherry Blossoms
With only 1-2 weekends per year to see the famed DC cherry blossom bloom, a pretty hectic day was in the making if I wanted to get to view this spectacle. A 5:30am wakeup in Pittsburgh and 4 hour morning drive got me and some friends to the tidal basin around 9am, just in time for a day of cherry blossom fun.
The Washington Monument
Our first stop for the day was next to the Washington Monument on the National Mall Lawn. The cherry blossom groves surrounding the monument provide a perfect introduction to the DC blossoms. After a walk around the Washington Monument, we continued onto the main show: the tidal basin
MLK
The first main tidal-basin monument with cherry trees is the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. With a group of fully bloomed trees, the white monument and dark granite provided a perfect photography foreground. Using the walking paths as leading lines created a nice composition with a perfect pink hue covering the background. While the area does get packed, especially during this time of year, a longer exposure can ‘smoothen’ some of the motion for a more artistic look.
Jefferson
Walking towards the Jefferson Memorial brings you through the festival center. In addition to food and music venues, the national park service had a pop-up ranger station with lines to complete the limited edition Cherry Blossom Junior Ranger. The Jefferson Memorial, though under construction when we went, is home to some of the densest cherry blossom trees. Nearby, was the famous cherry tree ‘stumpy’ which we got to see just weeks before it was taken down to make way for new water barriers in the basin. Walking by the Jefferson Memorial gets you to a nice view of the US Capitol and mostly completes the tidal basin circle.
Along the Tidal Basin: Watching the sunset along the tidal basin is the premier cherry blossom experience. I chose a spot between the MLK and FDR Memorials, though there are no real bad spots. As the sun became low in the horizon, I was able to capture orange glows peeking between the cherry blossoms. Closer to sunset, I was able to focus on the Washington Monument, getting the expansive view of both the monument and the tidal basin that I was hoping for. A beautiful pink sky complimented the foreground elements. After sunset, the walk back to the car allowed me to explore possible night photo angles while preparing for the late 4 hour drive back to Pittsburgh.
Sunset Images