Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Parking Lot, Bay Fog

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Parking Lot, Bay Fog
A parking lot along the edge of San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning

Parking Lot, Bay Fog. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A parking lot along the edge of San Francisco Bay on a foggy morning.

As the end of August approached I realized that I wanted to get up to the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco to see the extensive Andy Warhol exhibit. (While I’m not the world’s biggest Warhol fan, I find his work interesting and thought-provoking and seeing this collection was a rare opportunity.) I often combine visits to this museum with photography, and that was the plan this time, too.

As I often do for such visits, I took the train up from my home, arriving fairly early in the morning. It was a somewhat unusual San Francisco morning along the waterfront of the Bay. It was already warm when I arrived, and it was also humid — unusual for California. Despite the warmth, fog was drifting across the inner San Francisco Bay, backlit by the early morning sun. I’ve walked along this section of the bay between the train station and the Ferry Building many times, so at this point I’m often looking for things aren’t your typical San Francisco photographs, and as I walked past this familiar parking lot, standing on old piers right along the water, I was attracted by the lines and curves and the backlit structures.

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

Trees, Rocky Meadow

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Trees, Rocky Meadow
Trees march up the slopes of a rocky subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness

Trees, Rocky Meadow. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees march up the slopes of a rocky subalpine meadow, John Muir Wilderness.

Yes, I am still mining the files from this 2017 trip into the John Muir Wilderness. We were lucky to stay in an absolutely lovely area, and to find that this area was also within day-hiking distance of other wonderful locations, some of which were literally minutes away from our base camp. On top of that, we hit the weather jackpot. After a very wet and extended winter season, the lingering snows had kept the Sierra wet later than usual, and despite arriving here in the last week of August and sticking around until the very beginning of September, we had green meadows and wildflowers.

Perhaps a fifteen minute walk above our camp, beautiful subalpine meadows began. This is the land of small trees separated by expenses of seasonal green, dotted with boulders, swampy in places, and often open to expansive views of distant peaks. In short, it is pretty much my favorite place to be in the Sierra Nevada.

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: Architecture, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Travel

Bay Bridge, Morning Fog

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Bay Bridge, Morning Fog
The San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, with morning fog bank above Treasure Island

Bay Bridge, Morning Fog. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge, with morning fog bank above Treasure Island.

On the day I made this photograph I headed up to San Francisco to visit the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, where a special Andy Warhol exhibit is soon coming to a close. I’m close enough to San Francisco that I can take the train up for these visits, and that also affords me the time to do some walking around in this city, which of course involves photography. Because I had a specific schedule for the MOMA exhibit, I took a familiar walking path along the Bay waterfront to the Ferry Building before turning inland to get to the Museum.

The early morning light along the bay is often special — the atmosphere often glows in the backlight. Somewhat to my surprise, given the recent warm temperatures, there was a fog bank out in the bay, laying across Treasure Island. I paused at this familiar spot to photograph the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge near where it comes ashore, and the very bright sky and fog created a dramatic silhouette.

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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Commentary, Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze

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Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze
Street vendors and crowds of tourists at the Duomo, Florence, Italy

Street Vendors, Duomo de Firenze. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Street vendors and crowds of tourists at the Duomo, Florence, Italy.

One thing you can count on during tourist season in any popular city area like this one is that you’ll find lots of folks trying to sell you stuff, including street vendors of all sorts. The “art” objects for sale range from incredibly cheap trinkets (think of the tiny Eiffel Towers sold by the Paris entrepreneurs), though various kinds of post cards and similar, all the way to hand produced caricatures and others kinds of artistic efforts. (We’re not much for buying such stuff, preferring to make our own memories. Though we do give in on occasion.)

These two fellows were set up in a busy area in the shadow of the Duomo, the gigantic church in the center of the old part of Florence. If I recall, it was still morning, and the crowds were just starting to build, with lines growing at the entrances to this historical feature.

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 | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

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