Two Buildings, Kaysersberg

Two Buildings, Kaysersberg
“Two Buildings, Kaysersberg” — Two old buildings, one with Christmas decorations, in Kaysersberg, Alsace, France.

This is the second photograph that I have shared of the building on the right. Located in the Alsace town of Kaysersberg, it stands alongside the river that runs though the village. This building, with its colorful shutters and Christmas decorations attracted my attention first, but I also appreciated the contrast between it and the more rustic building to the left.

Kaysersberg is, like many other similar places in Alsace that we visited, a charming little town, especially during the holiday season when there are decorations everywhere and especially along the Main Street.


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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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Autumn Forest, Fog

Autumn Forest, Fog
“Autumn Forest, Fog” — Autumn fog drifts through a forest in California coastal hills.

Recently it has been very foggy across great swaths of the California landscape. Tule (or radiation) fog has turned the Central Valley cold and gray for weeks. At times the fog has spilled through the delta and over mountain passes into the San Francisco Bay Area. On one such day I decided to head to nearby woods to see what I could photograph.

I ended up on a narrow road heading into the hills, a road that I have known for decades — though I don’t believe I have ever photographed there before. At the head of a narrow canyon, just before the road ascended steeply to rise above the fog, I stopped to photograph this autumn scene. A few trees leaned this way and that, fog muted the light, and autumn leaves were everywhere.


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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Wetland Plants

Wetland Plants
“Wetland Plants” — Slender plants growing in a quiet wetland pond.

This is another “adapt and try something else” photograph from my early December visit to California wetlands — a visit originally intended to focus on migratory birds and tule fog, neither of which turned up in abundance when I arrived. So I looked for alternatives that didn’t require birds and which still worked under a thick, gray overcast. The result was a series of photographs of wetlands plants.

As the wetlands ponds fill from autumn and winter rains, the plants that grow in this (hot in the summer) area are gradually inundated by the rising water. Some plants simply go dormant, but others seem adapted to life in the shallows, including thiesedelicate plants, reflected in the still water of the pond.


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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Autumn Hillside

Autumn Hillside
“Autumn Hillside” — A Utah hillside with autum color from aspens and brush.

The range of colors in this photograph reminds me a little bit — but only a little bit — of the widely diverse autumn colors of New England forests. It is a bit subtler, with lots of softer tones, ranging from the marginal coloration of some of the green plants to the ghostly quality of the leafless brush in the foreground.

The location would usually be considered unremarkable. In fact, we ended up here more or less by accident. While driving a better known route through part of Utah I saw a gravel side road and spontaneously decided to see where it led. We started in a beautiful aspen grove, then climbed up and around a large ridge to west-facing slopes, where we found this autumn color.


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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

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