Category Archives: Photographs: Central California

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Dormant Wetlands Plants

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Dormant Wetlands Plants
“Dormant Wetlands Plants” — Dormant and dried wetlands plants reflected in the still water of a quiet pond.

My first “real” visit of the season to my favorite migratory bird photography location did not go as planned. (Actually, I did stop briefly a month ago and a half earlier, but things were still slow back then.) I was hoping for luminous tule fog and lots of geese and sandhill cranes. Instead I got thick gray elevated overcast and fewer birds than expected. Ah, well, it happens… and when it does I look for something else to photograph.

This is one of the “something else” photographs. This area is full of shallow seasonal ponds, and when they fill the summer’s plants still emerge from the still water and make fascinating reflections. For this subject the very soft light from the overcast worked well and revealed a more of the plants’ details.

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Sea Stacks and Surf, Big Sur

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Sea Stacks and Surf, Big Sur
“Sea Stacks and Surf, Big Sur” — Rough surf and rugged sea stacks along the Big Sur coastline.

California’s coast is quite varied — in places you can find classic wide beaches, but there are impossibly rugged, inaccessible areas, too. (One section in far-northern California is so rugged that engineers were forced to divert the route of Highway 1 far inland.) This photograph comes from a section of the upper Big Sur coast that combines that ruggedness with a degree of accessibility.

I visited on the late-June morning because friends and fellow photographers were visiting the area — so it was a chance both to photograph and to meet up with them. We arrived very early, before the tourist crowds, and photographed soon after the sun cleared the coastal hills and light arrived on the rugged, rocky shoreline and surf.

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Winter Trees, Dusk

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Winter Trees, Dusk
“Winter Trees, Dusk” — A row of bare winter trees silhouetted against the a colorful dusk sky.

This photograph lets me recall how we greeted the New Year. It was the same way we’ve done it for the past decade or so — joining a group of photographer friends to photograph migratory birds in the winter landscape. A few of us arrived the day before, but everyone showed up before dawn on New Year’s Day to greet the first sunrise of the new year together.

This photograph comes from New Year’s Eve. We arrived in the middle of the afternoon, in time for the late-day light. It was a quiet evening, with a few clouds forming when I made this photograph of a row of winter-dormant trees in the post-sunset dusk light.

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Snow Geese in Formation

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Snow Geese in Formation
“Snow Geese in Formation” — A group of snow geese in flight and lined up vertically.

Most of these migratory birds will likely have departed from their winter homes in Central California by the time you see this photograph. They arrive in the fall, overwinter, and then depart some time in early March. Back in the pandemic year of 2020 I visited one of the places where I photograph them about one week into March, and they were still there. I went back one week later, and they had all departed. The place seemed awfully lonely!

This group was part of a much larger flock that was in motion above wetland ponds — thousands of birds swirling around as they contemplated where they might land. The light was just right for this group — it came from the side and from down low, illuminating the birds’ undersides. (Often photos of birds overhead end up too dark against the bright sky.) I also like the fact that the five of them together demonstrate every phase of their wing flapping.

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.