06/01/2026
June’s photo of the month is one of Carson’s most popular images — Reflection Lake in Mount Rainier National Park, captured by Carson in July 2023 during our whirlwind road trip to visit all the National Parks in Washington State.
As usual for our vacations, we didn’t waste a single ounce of daylight. We had stopped at this same location the evening before, but the wind kept the lake from producing the reflection Carson was hoping for. Carson strongly suggested — maybe “insisted” is the better word — that we come back before sunrise because the water would likely be calm. Thankfully, we listened.
We arrived before daylight and had the entire place to ourselves… except for the INSANE amount of MASSIVE mosquitoes buzzing everywhere. That’s why Carson has his hood up in the photo. Despite the mosquitoes, the morning couldn’t have been more perfect. The weather was beautiful, the sunrise was incredible, and the water was completely still, creating the most breathtaking reflection. It’s so perfect that you can literally turn the image upside down and almost nothing changes… except the trees seem to grow from the sky.
At the time, we had no idea we would have less than a year left with Carson. Looking back now, I truly believe God was working out all of these details to give Carson this moment — and to give us this memory to cherish forever along with the incredible gift of photography he shared with all of us.
Reflection Lake feels like the perfect image for June… halfway through 2026, it’s a reminder to pause and reflect on what truly matters in life.
If I remember correctly, Carson created this final image by combining three separate shots so he could keep the foreground, middle, and background all perfectly in focus before stitching them together in his editing software. He was completely self-taught, which still amazes me. It’s incredible what someone can learn when they put in the effort — especially when paired with a true God-given talent.
Because of the calendar’s aspect ratio, we unfortunately had to crop out the wildflowers from Carson’s original image, but I wanted to share the full version here so everyone could enjoy it exactly as he captured it.
We get asked frequently if his images are for sale. Yes, they are. All proceeds go directly to the Carson Hughes Foundation. You can visit his website:
CarsonHughesPhotography.com
If you live local, there is a tab on the website for local orders.
