Layered Groves. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.
Parallel rows of Eastern Sierra Nevada aspen trees in varying stages of color.
So, how good has this Eastern Sierra autumn color season been… or not been? To be honest, that is a tough question to answer. If it was the first time you’ve been there for the annual changing of the aspen (and other vegetation) and you got to the right spots at the right time in the right conditions… there’s every chance that you found it to be incredible. And, to be honest, even when the entire range doesn’t light up with autumn color, you can find great color in the area you are visiting and all is good. After seeing quite a few autumn color change cycles in the Sierra, for me this one was just OK. But, odd as it may sound, that has its pluses, too. One of them is that it gives me good reason to look more closely and to look in different places… and to remember that the experience of autumn is not just about colorful leaves.
I visited this spot a couple times during the eight days I spent in the Eastern Sierra over a period of a couple of weeks. On my first visit most of the trees were still green, and I had looked forward to returning a bit later when those green trees transitioned. Surprisingly, when I returned perhaps a week later I found that most of the trees here had already lost their leaves or that the leaves had simply turned brown. But I don’t give up easily! Late in the day, with the low-angle light coming from the right direction, it was possible to frame compositions that juxtaposed the bare trees with those that still held some color. I made this photograph just a few minutes before the sun dropped behind the Sierra crest to the west.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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