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Upper Yosemite Falls in Mist

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Upper Yosemite Fall in Mist
The mist of an autumn rainstorm shrouds upper Yosemite Falls.

Upper Yosemite Falls in Mist. Yosemite Valley, California. November 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The mist of an autumn rainstorm shrouds upper Yosemite Falls.

This photograph was made on a very rainy early November morning, when the previously-dormant Yosemite Falls had sprung dramatically back to life following two days of rain.

This was a very difficult photo to take and it has been a difficult photo to work with in post-processing. I shot it with a very long lens (400mm on full-frame) as mist and rain swirled around the top of the upper falls, most of the time almost completely obscuring the waterfall. Occasionally the clouds and rain would thin a bit and I would make a few shots. The complexity of the post processing has several parts. First, the dynamic range of the photograph is very small. (Usually we struggle with the opposite problem – a dynamic range that is too big!) For this reason I had to make some decisions about whether and how much to expand this range in post, and also about just where the “normal” brightness should be. Second, the color saturation is so weak that the photograph almost appears to be a black and white image, but it is indeed a color photograph… with extremely muted colors.

I’m looking forward to working on making a print of this one. I’m certain that it will be a challenge, but I think that it may work well as a print.

keywords: upper, yosemite, falls, valley, national park, water, waterfall, cliff, fog, mist, cloud, rain, autumn, scenic, travel, landscape, weather, sierra, nevada, california, usa, stock, tree, silhouette, high key

Commentary, Site News

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Commentary, Stories

Recipe for a Poor Night’s Sleep

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Reposted from my other blog:

Plan a photography trip to Yosemite Valley. A couple days beforehand, realize that the weather is going to be “interesting” and that camping is not going to be a really wonderful idea. “Upgrade” to a Curry Village “tent cabin, unheated” – hey, it is cheap! Spend Saturday photographing (the wonderful fall colors) in the rain. Check in to your “tent cabin, unheated” and get yourself snug just as the rain starts. The rain increases until it is more or less pouring. The wind begins to rise.

The “tent cabin, unheated” is reasonably snug and dry, but soon you remember news stories about boulders from a rockslide that crashed into Curry Village a few weeks ago, crunching an unoccupied cabin or two. The rain increases. The wind strengthens.

Suddenly there is a loud clap of thunder. Followed by the sound a large rocks and boulders crashing down from the cliffs above.

More thunder. Several times during the night you hear more boulders coming off the cliff. You wonder whether anyone has reconsidered the wisdom of locating Curry Village right beneath this cliff.

Just sayin’.

Commentary, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Gates of the Valley

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Gates of the Valley

Gates of the Valley. Yosemite Valley, California. November 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Gates of the Valley and the Merced River, Autumn – Yosemite Valley, California.

I made my annual fall color pilgrimage to Yosemite Valley this past weekend and since I had a few extra minutes while going from point A to point B I decided to stop at this over-photographed location and try a long exposure using a 9-stop neutral density filter, thus the effect you see on the surface of the Merced River in the foreground.

The trip was not quite what I anticipated. The fall colors were quite good, with lots of bright yellow maples, my favorite yellow and brown oaks, golden meadow grasses, and more.
But it rained. A lot.

It started almost as soon as I arrived on Saturday morning, got worse as the day wore on, poured overnight, and rained off and on most of the day on Sunday. Even this shot in seemingly clearing weather was taken as a light mist fell.

keywords: yosemite, valley, national park, el capitan, three brothers, merced, river, reflection, plant, tree, grass, meadow, forest, fall, autumn, color, clouds, fog, blue, sky, time, exposure, landscape, nature, scenic, travel, california, usa, stock, ripple