Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Pacific Vortex

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Pacific Vortex
Cloud patterns above California’s Pacific coastline

Pacific Vortex. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cloud patterns above California’s Pacific coastline.

Almost every time I photograph in this location at some point I turn my camera towards these sky and ocean-scapes that are almost abstract in form. While this photograph was made along the Big Sur Coastline of California, from beside the famous US Highway One, given the lack of definite landmarks it could be almost anywhere that ocean and sky meet.

The light and atmosphere were both fascinating and difficult on this visit. A Pacific winter weather system was approaching, and this can do all sorts of things to the atmosphere. In this case a cloud shield was forming overhead, thick enough to darken the landscape but still allowing some directional light. Below there was a lot of moisture in the air, with dissipating fog banks along coastal hills and offshore haze blurring the line of the horizon.

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: Germany, Photographs: Nature

Berlin Sky

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Berlin Sky
Bubbles and clouds above Berlin

Berlin Sky. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Bubbles and clouds above Berlin.

Bubbles. Yes, bubbles. In almost any central area of European cities that is popular with tourists you won’t have to look too hard to find someone making gigantic soap bubbles… and hoping for a tip or two. I don’t usually photograph them — I do have a photograph from London of one bubble person — but I gave in this time.

For what it is worth, this is an example of how the ability to think and act quickly is useful in street and travel photography. I wasn’t going to photograph the person making the bubbles — not that exciting, honestly — but when I looked up and saw them drifting off into this cloud-filled sky I made a few quick adjustments to the camera settings, pointed upwards, and found ways to photograph the bubbles against the sky.

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: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Construction Zone

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Construction Zone
A man walks past construction barriers in San Francisco

Construction Zone. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A man walks past construction barriers in San Francisco.

Like most big cities, San Francisco is in a perpetual state of construction, demolition, and reconstruction. It is fun to imagine a city that arrives in a perfect state and stays there for a while — but that’s not going to happen. Among many San Francisco projects, one of the biggest right now involves constructing an underground transit route under the center of the City, and years of torn up streets have ensued. Although it is possible to imagine the project concluding now, there’s still a lot of work going on.

One major purpose of the route is to extend transit in a more effective manner from the Caltrain station at Fourth and Townsend. I frequently travel to the City by way of the train, and this visit was no exception, so I found myself walking straight up Fourth and past a section where the rails are above ground before they descend into a tunnel. Here the ongoing construction is separated by barriers from the (few) remaining traffic lanes.

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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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.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Winter Clouds and Light, Big Sur Coast

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Winter Clouds and Light, Big Sur Coast
Cloudy, hazy atmosphere with dissipating fog and light ahead of an incoming Pacific storm along the Big Sur coast

Winter Clouds and Light, Big Sur Coast. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cloudy, hazy atmosphere with dissipating fog and light ahead of an incoming Pacific storm along the Big Sur coast.

Every time I visit the Big Sur coastline, to be honest, I think that I’m going to discover that there isn’t much new to see. After all, I’ve been visiting for literally decades, since I was a child and my parents took us there on family trips. Yet every single time I find something I haven’t seen before — a new overlook, a different condition of atmosphere and light, a side road I hadn’t noticed, a cliff-side home where I had not see one, some new color in the water.

I’m pretty sure that I’ve stopped and photographed in this spot or close to it before, but this light was different from anything I recall. It was an unusual combination of conditions. In the far distance the clouds of an incoming weather system darkened the southern sky. (Typically, it remains light in that direction longer as fronts approach.) There was a bit of fog under an inversion layer… which I wouldn’t usually expect to see as an arriving front increases the onshore winds. Despite the darker clouds, a bit closer to me there was filtered sunlight reflecting off the water. And the entire scene was softened by a slightly opaque atmosphere.

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.