Hiking With Jeanne In Northern California

“Coming from the southern part of Iran, a mostly hot, humid and desert type climate, I wasn’t used to the culture of “hiking”. That is until I met Jeanne! One day when passing by her office at a company we both worked, she asked if I was interested in hiking with her in the Marin Headlands North of the Golden Gate Bridge. I didn’t have any plans that weekend, so I thought why not? On my first hike, I climbed 8 miles to top of the Mount Tamalpais and after that I was hooked. Experiencing the beauty, the views, hiking became my favorite new habit! Whenever we had a free weekend, we chose a new trail to explore the wonder and beauty of the San Francisco Bay Area. Jeanne is faster and more in shape than me, so usually she takes the lead and walks in front. As I am always trying to take photo of people for my "Looking With …" project (A photoblog that takes in the sights with fellow humans from around the world.), I realized Walking behind Jeanne falls in the same theme. So I started to take her photos during our hikes. It’s been a gift to combine my passion for photography with my new-found passion of actively discovering nature and magnificent trails through hiking and through the experience of others. This thematic series has meant a lot to me.” -Fatemeh Farajmandi