Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

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markesc
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Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by markesc » October 10th, 2017, 3:12 pm

Do not go if you have high expectations for fall color right now

There are a few trees starting to turn, but it's atleast 7-14 days away.

A few things I learned:

1) There's a "tripod fee" of $5 :lol: + $14.95 reg entrance fee
2) There's a parking fee $1.60/hour :lol: <---- although, I found a loophole: there are some parking spots above if you don't mind walking a small distance.
3) None of the $$ and additional acres went towards real/actual expansion of the gardens, just more buildings and a "cultural center..." ( I was really hoping more acres = more stuff to see/photograph/more space to spread out and more moments for peace and quiet <--- ha.).
4) They don't actually limit the number of people entering, so be there by 10am as it only gets busier!!! (hopefully the rain will help?)
5) On top of the regular number of visitors, they also have tour groups going of not ten, not twenty, but 30+ people PER GROUP!

Despite that, I did enjoy the place, had some good conversation with some people not from around here, but I just have different expectations moving forward... (bring headphones?!)
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The best tree is right at the entrance by the parking area:
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Guy
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Re: Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by Guy » October 10th, 2017, 4:36 pm

markesc wrote:Do not go if you have high expectations for fall color right now

There are a few trees starting to turn, but it's atleast 7-14 days away.

A few things I learned:

1) There's a "tripod fee" of $5 :lol: + $14.95 reg entrance fee
Really!! Time for one of these ;)

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hiking log & photos.
Ad monte summa aut mors

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Bosterson
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Location: Portland

Re: Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by Bosterson » October 10th, 2017, 5:46 pm

The tripod fee is only for non members. I see it more as a disincentive against people clogging all the paths with tripods so you can't actually walk anywhere.
#pnw #bestlife #bitingflies #favoriteyellowcap #neverdispleased

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markesc
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Re: Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by markesc » October 11th, 2017, 8:29 am

Bosterson wrote:The tripod fee is only for non members. I see it more as a disincentive against people clogging all the paths with tripods so you can't actually walk anywhere.
$33,500,000 spent on the expansion. Zero $ went towards more gardens. So, $5 for my tripod let alone $135 for a "membership" so I can give more money to a "non profit" organization that's clearly demonstrated a lack of priorities? Not happening. I read the ADA compliance arguement, and again, still I'm unconvinced that the old parking above with dedicated handicap spots wasn't sufficient enough. The expansion was clearly more so a commercialization/$$$ grab effort than a gardens expansion effort, but they sprinkled in some "ADA" compliance aspect to make it sound better. :lol:

If it was the case that they actually took the time and imagination to limit the number of people in there at any one given amount of time, then I could see things headed in the right direction. Since there's every effort instead to extract as much money as possible and zero limitations on the number of people, I see the preponderance of evidence points more towards the cash grab portion of the meter. I'd LOVE to see their books/tax schedules :lol:

For me personally: 99% of photography is about eliminating distractions. Whether it's in your compositions, or your surroundings, that is what it's all about. Crowds/noise/people bumping into eachother/environment are all distractions that reduce or eliminate the path to creativity, which then increases the amount of time you must spend in an uncomfortable place to then get to a place mentally to where you can then create decent photographs. This is a different approach than simply having ones mind on: "go to place, set up tripod, shoot photo I saw in brochure" <--- anyone can do that. I'm talking about trying to get to a place that is more challenging mentally and photographically speaking, which, again, leads us back to the point of the gardens, which were created why? So people can go there and enjoy noise/distractions, or people can go there to enjoy relaxing, and eliminating distractions through the exercise of an aesthetically pleasing environment?

bb12creek
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Re: Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by bb12creek » October 11th, 2017, 10:47 am

Its a non profit 501 (c)(3), which means you can absolutely see their tax returns if you want to. Salaries of top execs should also be available as they have a budget exceeding $50,000.

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romann
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Re: Portland Japanese Gardens 10-10-17

Post by romann » October 11th, 2017, 10:19 pm

Found it, though doesn't quite seems right. 59% of revenue came from investment income? :lol: Much of the rest under "program services" I though it's admission fees, but on tax form (page 9) it's listed as "rental income". It lists no salary expenses for 2015, though exec salaries (page 7) came from "related organizations". Hoped to find treepod fees but no luck...

Great photos, as always!

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