As one of the area’s most well-known landscape photographers capturing the Olympic Peninsula, Ross Hamilton spent a lifetime looking for the right light and moments to capture.
To friends, he encapsulated a guiding light.
“He and his family, going generations back, have meant so much to the community,” said Judy Reandeau Stipe, executive director of Sequim Museum and Arts.
“He was on the original charter board that got the museum nonprofit incorporated, and he was a bright and shining light for the things he did for the museum and the community. I personally loved him. He was just there for anyone who needed him.”
Hamilton died at the age of 83 on Feb. 10 in his Sequim home.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 28 at Dungeness Community Church, 45 Eberle Lane in Sequim.
His family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Port Angeles Symphony, Sequim Museum and Arts, and/or Dungeness Community Church.
His local photography can be seen across the peninsula, including the Lodge at Sherwood Village and inside the Sequim Museum and Arts where large negatives of the Olympic Mountains hang over the entrance.
Hamilton said in 2015 he could still vividly picture the first time he saw the Olympic Mountains.
“I came over the top of the hill in Shelton and saw those mountains and said, ‘Yes, this is where I belong,’” he said.
In a 2023 interview, he said that he thought of the Olympic Mountains as priceless jewels, and that he thoroughly enjoyed sharing their beauty with people so that they might better appreciate where they live.
Life as a photographer “has been such a rewarding adventure,” Hamilton said.
“It’s a beautiful world, and it was such a privilege to record it in a way that showed what it really is.”
Claus Naehrig, who was friends with Hamilton through church, said while on hikes, Hamilton could describe all the details of the Olympic Mountains.
“It was just a joy to have someone who knew the ins and outs of the Olympics,” he said. “They were instilled in his mind.”
Hamilton was also known for sharing the beauty of the area through his annual calendars “The Olympic Peninsula” for two-plus decades, and he published the book “The Olympics, a Wilderness Trilogy.”
Describing his process, Hamilton said he would deliberately use a limited amount of film to carefully create compositions by waiting for just the right moment to push the shutter button.
“At the top of my game it took me about a half hour to take a picture,” he said.
He spent the summer of 1966 studying under Ansel Adams in Yosemite National Park, which he called the “happiest summer of his life.”
“That’s where my education really took off,” Hamilton said. “I was exposed to his world and I’ve never looked back.”
Sequim Gazette file photo by Emily Matthiessen/ Photographer Ross Hamilton, pictured in 2023, reflects on his years of capturing the beauty of the Olympic Peninsula prior to a presentation at the Lodge at Sherwood Village. Several of his photos are displayed throughout the building.
Hamilton comes to Sequim
Hamilton’s family coming to Sequim dates back to his great-grandfather William settling in the area in the 1880s. His father Oliver was Sequim’s mayor at one point, too. However, Hamilton grew up in Burbank, California. He received his first camera at age 9 from his parents but said in interviews he didn’t seriously pursue photography until the 1970s. He didn’t become a full-time photographer until the 1990s, he said.
After graduating from UCLA with a Master’s in marketing, Hamilton followed his parents to Sequim in 1969.
He worked retail while building his photography business, first at the People’s Store in Port Angeles and then about 20 years between Southwoods and Frick’s.
Tim Richards, pastor of Dungeness Community Church where Hamilton was an elder for many decades, said Hamilton was his boss as an assistant manager at Southwoods.
After expressing an interest in photography, Hamilton taught Richards how to use a camera, and they went backpacking together and developed a great friendship.
“I admired his artistry,” Richards said.
“He was also a kind, patient, steady kind of friend, not just to me, but everyone he interfaced with.”
In January, the church honored Hamilton as Elder Emeritus for his years of service.
“Ross was a guiding influential voice in DCC for 40 years,” Richards said.
“For a majority of the church’s history, Ross has been that steady, wise influence.”
Friends at the church echoed kind words about Hamilton.
Mark Holloway, a church elder who has known him for 20-plus years, said he was a kind man who had a lot of wisdom, was patient, and thoughtful about how to address things.
“He always seems to ask the right questions,” he said.
File photo by Ross Hamilton This photo by Ross Hamilton features Hurricane Ridge Road in the winter. It was used in Hamilton’s “The Olympic Peninsula” calendar.
Hamilton was also faithful and persistent in doing what he committed to do.
He continued to host meetings for the church’s Community Engagement Team at his home until a few weeks ago, Holloway said.
Fellow church-goer Brenda Williamson said Hamilton was a wonderful person and example for everyone. Asked what stood out, she said “just the way God made him. He was such a gentleman, and so kind. It was just a pleasure to know him.”
Another church-goer Anita Kreitle said she has fond memories of going with him and friends to the Port Angeles Symphony and on hikes.
In 2017, she and a small group went to Yosemite National Park, and Hamilton subtly recommended they wear a raincoat because they might get wet despite it being a sunny day at Bridalveil Falls. They got soaked, she said.
“I have sweet memories of a man who lived well,” Kreitle said. “He was truly a man of integrity and very humble.”
File photo courtesy of Hamilton family/ Kathy Barnes and Ross Hamilton exchanged vows on July 1, 2018 in Sequim. Hamilton had been a bachelor his entire life and reconnected with Barnes, his childhood friend.
Love and vision
While still putting out calendars and leading presentations with help from family and friends, Hamilton began to lose his vision to glaucoma in 2000.
With diminished vision, he said it forced him to interact and rely more on people.
“By nature I’m a recluse, but I’ve learned to really appreciate and love people and their beauty,” he said.
Naehrig said Hamilton claimed he was a hermit but “it brought him way closer to people than he had ever been.”
As a lifelong bachelor, Hamilton also reconnected with his childhood friend Kathy (Haney) Barnes late in their lives.
Originally their families met on a family trek in Montana when they were 10 or 11, and their families would reconnect every other year in Montana. Hamilton said he would write to Haney while in high school as friends. She married Maux Barnes at age 19, and lived in Salem, Oregon for years until his death in 2006.
While on a trip to Victoria, B.C., Kathy said she saw Sequim on the map, which sparked memories, leading her to reach out to Hamilton and reconnect.
She eventually relocated to Sequim.
Hamilton said he was happy with the friendship, but Kathy was hoping for more from their relationship. One day she told him, “I’m at peace,” leading to a change in his perspective, he said.
Hamilton prayed about whether he should ask her to marry him, which was new territory for him.
He asked Kathy to marry him on June 1, 2018 while on a picnic outing on the Dungeness Spit. They were married a month later by Richards.
On marriage, Hamilton said, “it’s incredibly nice. I never expected to find marriage so sweet.”
