Category Archives: Photographs: Nature

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Monolith, Trees, Snowy Ledge

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Monolith, Trees, Snowy Ledge
A band of resilient trees growing on a snow-covered ledge at the base of a granite monolith

Monolith, Trees, Snowy Ledge. Yosemite National Park, California. February 25, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A band of resilient trees growing on a snow-covered ledge at the base of a granite monolith

By the time this photograph appears at my website and on social media, the snow at the base of this famous monolith should be long gone — having melted, flowed down in rivulets to join the rushing Merced River, crossed into California’s Central Valley, perhaps reached the San Francisco Bay, and even made it out into the Pacific Ocean.

These trees, growing on a narrow ledge at the base of one of Yosemite’s most famous and visible granite faces, always draw my attention. Their location is impressive, but so is the fact that they have managed to grow relatively straight and tall while located in a world of rock, most of which came from (and continues to come from!) weathering of the giant monolith above. Winter snows highlight their dark forms more clearly.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Panamint Valley and Mountains

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Panamint Valley and Mountains
Looking into Panamint Valley and toward the Panamint Mountain Range

Panamint Valley and Mountains. Death Valley National Park, California. April 7, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Looking into Panamint Valley and toward the Panamint Mountain Range

When most people think of Death Valley they probably think of incredibly hot desert conditions. Those conditions are real, and are among the reasons that I do not visit the place during the warmer times of the year. But the conditions are quite a bit more varied than that reputation would suggest. I have been snowed on in Death Valley — on one memorable occasion photographic desert wildflowers in a snow storm! — and I have encountered temperatures ranging from over 100 degrees to below freezing. The variations are related to seasons (there are some very cold places here in the winter!) and to elevation, which ranges from below sea level to over 11,000′.

This photograph captures a range of those conditions in one image. It was a pleasantly warm, though cloudy, day as I left the park. The winds were howling down below in Panamint Valley, where a dust storm was beginning to kick up. Winter snow was still thick on the highest peaks of the Panamint range, and an incoming storm was developing and promising more precipitation.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

White Globe Lily

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Chinese Lantern
White globe lily  blossom in the Almaden Hills

White Globe Lily. Santa Clara County, California. April 29, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

White globe lily blossom in the Almaden Hills

The white globe lily just might be my favorite wildflower from my local hills. I have hiked these areas for decades, but it was only perhaps 20 years ago when I first became aware of this flower, back when I started to hike one favorite area throughout the entire year, no longer limiting myself to the “nice weather” seasons. While walking down a little ravine that I had been in many times before, on a damp spring morning I noticed these flowers growing along the trail in grassy areas, and I’ve looked for them ever since.

This is a single specimen, but there are often several of them growing together. Because I often choose to photograph them early in the day when the light is not too harsh — they don’t hold up well visually in bright light — there is often a bit of dew on the blossoms, and the background is in shadow. This time I think I managed to visit close to the end of the bloom, and some specimens had already formed seed pods.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Evening Shadows, Death Valley

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Evening Shadows, Death Valley
The evening view down Trail Canyon, across Death Valley, and to the Black Mountains

Evening Shadows, Death Valley. Death Valley National Park, California. April 3, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The evening view down Trail Canyon, across Death Valley, and to the Black Mountains

The first day of any trip to Death Valley is often a long one for me. Typically it begins with a very early departure from the San Francisco Bay Area for the long drive down the Central Valley, east over Tehachapi Pass and then back to the north to reach the park. This year’s journey to the park was even longer since I took a first-day detour and briefly joined friends on the Carrizo Plain for an evening and a morning of wildflower photography. But the time I was on the road the second day it was mid-morning, and I arrived in Death Valley in the mid-afternoon to find winds and dust kicking up in the Valley. Not looking forward to camping in those conditions, I reconsidered and headed up to Wild Rose Canyon, where the mountains can provide some shelter.

I got there and found plenty of campsites. I grabbed one and just sat around for a while, recuperating from too much time behind the wheel. However, I knew that I wanted to do some photography on this first evening, so I worked up the energy to rise from my camp chair and head out to a favorite spot along the ridge of the Panamint Range. Often my Death Valley visits combine return visits to places I know well and want to continue to explore photographically with visits to places I haven’t been before. This spot is a very familiar one by now, and it seemed like and almost sure bet for this first evening. It was hazy — remember the wind and dust I just mentioned? — but as the color of the light warmed near the end of the day the landscape’s features became a bit more visible. This photograph looks across Trail Canyon in the foreground, with the late-day shadows already concealing the features of the ridge, toward the main portion of Death Valley, with its large salt flats. Beyond lie the Black Mountains and the southern boundary of the park, with further mountains just barely visible through the distant haze.

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.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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