Blue Angels in Black and White

October 12, 2008 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

OK, now for something entirely different.

My original plan was to be in the eastern Sierra ~~today~~ on Saturday, patiently photographing peaceful and quiet aspen groves. But driving conditions did not look promising and I decided not to go. (I did go for the day on Sunday, but more on that later.) In any case, instead of shooting aspens I found myself on the waterfront of San Francisco Bay watching an air show featuring the Blue Angels, here photographed as they blew past directly overhead at a rather low altitude.

See, I can photograph things that move, too! :-)

Later note: Several people asked about the equipment I used to shoot this event. I used a Canon 5D with the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS lens. I shot mostly at 400mm, but was glad to be able to zoom out on a few occasions when the action was a bit closer. My technique is to put the camera in burst mode, but usually just fire a single shot at a time. Most of the time I’m definitely not a “burst and hope for the best” sort of photographer – I’ll actually follow the action through the viewfinder and resist the temptation until the shot looks interesting. But not always. This shot was done in burst mode as the formation screamed almost directly overhead.

keywords: san francisco, california, usa, fleet, week, air, show, airshow, bay, event, stock, blue, angels, air craft, jet, aerobatics, formation, wings, us, navy

Morning Musings

I Chickened Out

October 11, 2008 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Or perhaps made a wise decision?

I was all set to drive over the Sierra Crest today for another session of autumn color photography. But when I checked the road reports early this morning I read that roads over Ebbetts, Sonora, and Tioga Passes were closed, and that chain requirements were up on 50, 80, 89, and the portions of 395 that I would drive on.

So I’m still at home. I am thinking of zipping up to San Francisco this afternoon to photograph some of the Fleet Week activities, including the Blue Angels. I still may try a one day marathon drive to the Sierra and back tomorrow, since this will be my last chance for fall color photography on the “east side” for the year.

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.

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Grove, South Bishop Creek

October 11, 2008 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Aspen grove near South Bishop Creek in full autumn color.

Another aspen grove photograph from last weekend’s Epic Aspen Hunt in the eastern Sierra, this example from the south fork of Bishop Creek below South Lake. This specific spot was not one that would necessarily attract anyone – it was down a short and very inconspicuous dirt road paralleling the main paved roadway, and there was only one other photographer shooting in the area when I visited. I just drove into the grove on this little one-lane road, found a pull-out, and got out and shot right where I found myself; I spent at least a half hour exploring this one very small are of dense trees. The shaded grove provided an opportunity to see and photograph the brilliant colors and bright white trunks of these trees without having do deal with the harsh direct sunlight that can create a dynamic range that is almost impossible to capture.

For those hoping to photograph these aspen during the upcoming weekend, some advice. I think that these the trees in these higher areas up the roads to North Lake, South Lake, and Sabrina Lake are likely to have pretty much run their course by now. Reports I saw today seemed to say as much, but they did mention that the colors further down that canyons are looking pretty good. I’ll probably head back up on Saturday and Sunday, but I’m likely to shoot in lower-elevation areas including Lundy and Lee Vining Canyons – the latter often has good color a bit later in the season.

Events, News

Blue Angels in San Francisco

October 10, 2008 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

San Francisco Bay Area photographers will likely be out in droves this weekend to photograph the Blue Angels during Fleet Week events around the Bay. (I won’t be there – going to photograph more eastern Sierra fall color – but I did see them “rehearsing” over downtown SF yesterday afternoon.) Jim M. Goldstein has shared some advice for photographing the Blue Angels at his blog – along with some of his impressive photographs from the Blue Angels’ previous visits.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Blue Angels in Black and White

I Chickened Out

Aspen Grove, South Bishop Creek

Blue Angels in San Francisco

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.