Category Archives: Photographs: Utah

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Sandstone and Canyon Mud

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Sandstone and Canyon Mud
Cracked mud at the bottom of a narrow Utah sandstone slot canyon

Sandstone and Canyon Mud. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cracked mud at the bottom of a narrow Utah sandstone slot canyon

For various reasons I found myself looking back into my archives of older photographs this week. In one case someone asked about a particular subject and I thought that I could find the answer in the form of a photograph. In another I wanted to use an older image to illustrate a point. Sometimes when I go back to the old raw image files one thing leads to another and I’m off on an exploration of forgotten work. And, quite often, as I do this I “rediscover” photographs that I had originally left behind for one reason or another.

This week’s dive into the past took me back about four years to a wonderful trip to the Southwest. I had several weeks to wander. I started in the Kanab area, worked my way up to Capitol Reef to meet a photographer friend, then joined with a group of photographer/friends to spend several days camping and photographing in a remote area. I emerged from that backcountry trip to spend a night in a wonderful lodge in Boulder — what a shock that was! — and then headed west to join my family in the Zion area. I made this photograph early on the trip. I decided to explore a new area which I knew to hold some well-known features. I drove into the area, found a place to park at a likely looking trailhead, shouldered my pack and headed into a large wash, eventually entering a section of beautiful slot canyon terrain, with much from recent rains still covering parts of the canyon floor.

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

Old Tree, Snow Flurries

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Old Tree, Snow Flurries
Snow flurries begin around an old tree, Yosemite Valley

Old Tree, Snow Flurries. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Snow flurries begin around an old tree, Yosemite Valley

In the latter part of February I was very fortunate to be able to spend a full week in Yosemite National Park, mostly photographing in the Valley. (Thank you to Yosemite Renaissance for sponsoring my stay.) It was a cold week with a fair amount of snowy days — no heavy snow, but with the cold it fell all the way down to the elevation of the Valley and even lower nearby.

Late on this afternoon I had finished up some earlier projects and I was casting about for a final subject before the light faded. Since I was in this area I went to where I knew I could find this magnificent old tree, along with some other smaller trees growing along the Merced River. On this very cold afternoon the scene was quite gray, with clouds above and light snow beginning to fall, muting the details of the background forest and almost completely hiding the granite walls of the Valley.

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: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Juniper Forest and a Wash

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Juniper Forest and a Wash
Juniper trees on red rock soil next to a shallow canyon

Juniper Forest and a Wash. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah. October 21, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Juniper trees on red rock soil next to a shallow canyon

My recollection of this afternoon is that we set out down the west side of the park without a particular plan in mind. Eventually we photographed in a deep canyon with tall sandstone walls, but at times we were challenged by trying to find interesting subjects. The light was harsh, but it was also interrupted in awkward ways by clouds — occasionally producing interesting patterns of light and shade, but also sometimes killing the interesting light.

In this area the land slopes down from west to east, following the contours of the underlying strata. For this reason, well before the end of the day the light is already coming across this gently rising terrain at a low angle relative to its incline. Here that light is sweeping across a landscape of red rock, juniper trees, and the beginnings of a small red rock canyon.

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: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Juniper and Striped Sandstone

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Juniper and Striped Sandstone
A vertically striped sandstone cliff behind a juniper tree

Juniper and Striped Sandstone. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah. October 21, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A vertically striped sandstone cliff behind a juniper tree

My recollection is that we had driven into this deep canyon at Capitol Reef late in the day, and that we stopped to photograph as we began to head back out of the canyon not long before sunset. Because of the late hour, although it was still daytime, the light was blocked here by the very tall walls of this narrow canyon.

We stopped here largely because of the remarkable vertical stains on the smooth sandstone walls. In many places this layer of sandstone is almost monolithic, but here the staining produced sharp vertical lines and broke up the otherwise solid features of the rock. Near the base of the cliff a few boulders stood, and on the higher areas right next to the cliff a few trees managed to grow.

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.