Category Archives: Photographs: Night

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Star Trails and Surf, Pacific Ocean

Leave a comment
Star Trails and Surf, Pacific Ocean

Star Trails and Surf, Pacific Ocean. Pigeon Point, California. November 15, 2008 © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Night photograph of glowing surf and star trails above the Pacific Ocean coastline of California at Pigeon Point.

Every autumn the old beacon at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse south of Half Moon Bay, California is re-lighted for one evening. I first heard of this event last year, and I drove over only to arrive late and find that the lighthouse was fogged in. This year the event occurred on an unusually clear and warm evening so I headed over once again to photograph the lighthouse. We arrived early enough to join the throngs of photographers set up to shoot the amazing beacon from the original fresnel lens… but my heart just wasn’t in it when it came to photographing this scene. It happens. So instead of photographing the lighthouse we decided to wander around and just take in the scene.

A bit later I thought it might be interesting to walk up the coastline a bit and try a shot pointed back at the lighthouse from a greater distance. We found a nice flat spot along the top of the low bluffs north of the lighthouse and set up. But I still just couldn’t see the shot I was looking for, so I decided to instead turn my attention to the ocean itself. I thought that a long exposure capturing the star trails heading for the horizon and the foreground cove might be interesting. I set up and made one 15 minute (!) exposure in landscape orientation, but a couple of offshore boats with lights slowly moved across the scene – not what I had in mind. Having time for one more shot I decided to try one in portrait orientation with the same foreground cove. This time I had better luck. First, no boats! But even better, about 4 or 5 minutes from the end of the exposure the nearly-full moon topped the low ridge behind us and began to add its glow to the atmosphere and the surf! I wish I could say I planned this – but the best I can claim is that when I realized what was happening I modified my plans a little and took advantage of the situation.

keywords: night, photography, surf, star, trails, pacific, ocean, coast, coastline, shore, rocks, sky, glow, pigeon, point, mist, rocks, cove, sea, seascape, landscape, travel, scenic, stock, california, usa, highway, one, 1

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Urban/Street

Building 65 and Alley, Night – Mare Island Naval Shipyard

Leave a comment

Building 65 and Alley, Night. Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California. March 22, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Building 65 lit by garish sodium vapor lamps, with a dark alley in the background and stars above.

This photo prompts me to post something about night photography and color that I’ve been thinking about for awhile. A scene like this one is lit by a variety of light sources – some natural light from moon and sky, tungsten lights, sodium vapor lights, and a gentle wash of mixed light sources from a nearby city. A question might be: “How do you accurately render the lighting of the scene?” My answer is, “You don’t.” Even if you could achieve an “accurate” rendering it would look nothing like what your night vision affected eyes “saw” since your eyes do not see the same way the camera does.

For me, one of the fun things about night photography – especially when artificial light sources are part of the scene – is that I can render to colors in whatever way makes the most sense for me.

photo, photography, building, 65, alley, fence, windows, sodium vapor, light, brick, road, night, nocturnal, blinds, wires, pipes, industrial, urban, star, trails, sky, trees, reflections, yellow, blue, mare island, naval shipyard, vallejo, california, historic, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Urban/Street

Mare Island Street, Night

Leave a comment

Mare Island Street, Night
Mare Island Street, Night. Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California. March 22, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Color photograph of a waterfront street at Mare Island Naval Shipyard with cranes and artificial light. The precise spot is near the end of a large dry dock and not too far from the Mare Island Museum. Photographed on a night photography expedition with The Nocturnes SF Bay Area night photography group.

keywords: mare island, naval shipyard, historic, vallejo, california, night, nocturnes, photo, photography, street, road, railroad, train, tracks, fence, crane, industrial, equipment, usa, urban, dry dock, pipes, smokestack, buildings, brick

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Mare Island Chimney and Buildings, Night

Leave a comment

Mare Island Chimney and Buildings, Night
Mare Island Chimney and Buildings, Night. Mare Island Naval Shipyard. March 22, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Black and white night photograph of the smokestack and industrial buildings at Mare Island Naval Shipyard. While I usually shoot this subject in color, I like the stark quality of this one in black and white, along with the way that the monochrome rendition emphasizes the forms of the buildings.

keywords: black and white, photograph, mare island, naval, shipyard, MINSY, industrial, shops, factory, street, tracks, fences, quonset, hut, building, brick, wooden, windows, night, sky, nocturnal, stars, trails, historic, vallejo, california, usa, travel, stock