Category Archives: Photographs: Central California

Plastic Covered Window

Plastic Covered Window

Plastic Covered Window. San Jose, California. January 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Plastic covers the window of a stucco house being remodeled in San Jose, California.

This photograph was taken literally within walking distance of my home – I know this because I walked there! At first the slanting shadows dropping from right to left across the wall caught my attention. Then the interplay between the shadows and the deep textures of the stucco wall caught my eye. Eventually, I began to like the plastic sheet (obviously put there to protect the glass from paint) and the way it obscures the interior of the building. In the end I can’t make up my mind whether the photo is simply a geometric/texture study or perhaps something a little more mysterious.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: plastic, sheet, tape, mask, masking, window. curve, white, frame, curve, glass, frame, brick, arch, wall, stucco, texture, shadow, paint, scraped, peeling, construction, remodel, willow glen, san jose, california, usa, urban, street, structure, building, house, home, stock

Pacific Ocean, Evening Sky

Pacific Ocean, Evening Sky

Pacific Ocean, Evening Sky. North of Santa Cruz, California. January 11, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Pacific Ocean evening surf and sky at Panther Beach, north of Santa Cruz, California.

I’ve been working on a series of “minimalist seascape” photographs for a couple years now, and this is the latest in the series. This was shot quite a bit after sunset and the only light left was the soft, diffused light from the sky.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: beach, california, county, Dusk, evening, nature, pacific ocean, sand, Santa Cruz, seascape, seashore, sky, Sunset, travel, water, waves, winter, surf, sea, seascape, landscape, sky, pink, blue, reflection, pattern, color, bird, gull, usa, winter, rocks, stock

Pacific Ocean, Beach, Evening Panorama

Panther Beach Evening Panorama

Pacific Ocean, Beach, Evening Panorama. North of Santa Cruz, California. January 11, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Panoramic photograph of a Pacific coast beach at sunset with one small figure on the beach.

Like one of the other photographs in this series that I posted earlier, this was made from the top of the bluff near the thin extension across the beach where a natural bridge is found. I waited for an interesting set of waves to come in and for the right number of people (one!) to be on the beach and in the scene. The small figure standing at the end of the patch of rocks on the beach near the right side of the frame is another photographer who eventually made his way out onto the rocks where the wave is crashing to shoot close-ups of the surf. Conditions were a bit odd on this evening. January is, obviously, in the middle of winter – but this scene looks almost like summer, and it felt like summer as we were having unusually warm conditions.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: beach, california, county, Dusk, evening, nature, pacific ocean, sand, Santa Cruz, seascape, seashore, sky, Sunset, travel, water, waves, winter, panther, sand, surf, spray, rock, horizon, sky, bluff, cliff, person, landscape, stock

Boulders, Beach, Twilight

Boulders, Panther Beach, Twilight

Boulders, Beach, Twilight. North of Santa Cruz, California. January 11, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Large surf-worn boulders near the waterline in the twilight – south of Santa Cruz, California.

Just after the sun dropped below the horizon, I passed through a “natural bridge” between the two sections of the beach and came out on the south side by these two large boulders set in the sand. I used a 35mm prime and positioned the camera quite close to the boulder on the left to get this shot, pausing long enough to let people in brightly colored clothes walk through the scene before making my long exposure. (In one frame there is a very interesting smear or color passing behind the rock! :-)

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: boulder, rock, sand, footprints, sunset, evening, twilight, panther, beach, state, park, california, usa, coast, highway, one, 1, santa cruz, cliff, bluff, surf, wave, pacific, ocean, sea, shore, seascape, landscape, sky, cloud, nature, stock