Category Archives: Photographs: Utah

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

Cottonwood Grove and Cliff, Autumn

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Cottonwood Grove and Cliff, Autumn - A cottonwood grove in golden fall colors, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
A cottonwood grove in golden fall colors, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

Cottonwood Grove and Cliff, Autumn. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. October 24, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A cottonwood grove in golden fall colors, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

In late October these bright yellow-gold cottonwood trees seem to be almost everywhere in Utah, albeit at slightly different stages of color development. Some are still mostly green with just a hint of yellow, while others have lost most of their leaves. From what I can tell, the difference in the pattern of change relate to things such as elevation, whether the trees are in sheltered canyons – in Zion Canyon they seem to change much later – or out in the open, and other causes that I don’t yet understand. One thing I do know: Between the aspens, which change color several weeks earlier, and the cottonwoods it seems like the entire month of October produces a lot of fall color. From what I hear it even extends into November, though I haven’t been there during that month to see it for myself.

On this day we began early with very cold hike into a portion of the Escalante River, which runs for quite a good distance through this section of Utah. Before the day was over we were challenged by strong wind, more cold, and eventually even a bit of light rain, but early on when I made this photograph the conditions were still bit less challenging, at least as far as the wind was concerned. Here the water course ran very close to the cliff wall, and clumps of golden cottonwoods grew between the water and the sandstone face. Although some direct light was beginning to strike the upper canyon walls and reflect light down into the canyon, here at the bottom along the creek the light was still soft and diffused.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Cottonwood Trees, Courthouse Wash

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Cottonwood Trees, Courthouse Wash
Cottonwood Trees, Courthouse Wash

Cottonwood Trees, Courthouse Wash. Arches National Park, Utah. October 11, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn cottonwood trees along Courthouse Wash and sandstone towers, Arches National Park

After a second visit to Arches National Park and a few days into that visit, I was beginning to be able to see past the main, iconic towers and arches and other sandstone structures. This takes a while. When visiting a new location, it is natural and, I think, even a good idea to go with the icons at least a bit. They are, as the saying goes, icons for a reason. While I cannot say that I’m yet close to knowing this park nearly as well as I would like to, on this morning I began to feel that I was beginning to see past the main features a bit more. (Though I confess that I did begin the day shooting one of those well know features.)

As we drove out on the main road, I quickly noticed the beautiful cottonwood fall colors down in the bottom of Courthouse Wash. Shortly after crossing a creek bed, we pulled over and I wandered off to photograph these trees. Before I finished here, I had tried a number of different approaches to the subject – shooting mixed brown and yellow leaves collected on the ground beneath them branches silhouetted against morning sky, and here the backlit trees with some of the characteristic red rock towers beyond.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Red and Yellow Leaves, Sandstone Wall

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Red and Yellow Leaves, Sandstone Wall
Red and Yellow Leaves, Sandstone Wall

Red and Yellow Leaves, Sandstone Wall. Zion National Park, Utah. October 22, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Brilliant red and yellow autumn leaves of oak and red leaf maple against a backdrop of layered and fractured sandstone, Zion National Park

I suppose that I have to be honest and admit that the main reason for making this photograph was the absolutely ridiculous and gaudy colors in this little bit of red rock canyon. You can find red trees in this area, and you can find yellow trees, but it isn’t often that you (or I, anyway) find this combination of leaves, packed so tightly together, and against the intense color of the sandstone wall.

We had probably driven past this spot a few times before we finally came back and pulled over and photographed it. I can’t speak for the others in my group, but in some ways it is almost a bit embarrassing to point a camera at something so colorful and photograph it… just because it is colorful. Compositionally it was a very tricky thing to shoot. The only feature that brings much relief to the shades of red, yellow, and orange is the single arching crack leading up from right to left.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Colorado River, Dead Horse Point

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Colorado River, Dead Horse Point
Colorado River, Dead Horse Point

Colorado River, Dead Horse Point. Deadhorse Point State Park, Utah. October 10, 2012. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The canyon of the Colorado River, from Dead Horse Point State Park, Utah

The light was a bit tricky when we drove out to Dead Horse Point to look at the famous view of the Colorado River as it loops below huge cliffs at the edge of Canyonlands National Park in Utah. It was nearing the middle of the day, so the soft morning and evening light was nowhere to be found. It was also hazy, with the slightly opaque air taking on distinctly blue colors. For all of these reasons, and also perhaps as a nod to old school landscape photography, I went with a black and white rendition of this photograph.

This is a truly remarkable bit of terrain. First, in the bottom of the canyon the Colorado River negotiates and abrupt horseshoe bend here beneath the tall cliffs leading up to the “Island in the Sky” portion of Canyonlands National Park. Above the river are a series of huge terraces form as the river eroded its way though the deep and old layers of sedimentary rock that characterize this area. Shooting with a slightly long focal length, I was able to eliminate most extraneous subjects and crop tightly around this area of massive cliffs and terraces.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.