Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Wetland Dawn Clouds

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Wetland Dawn Clouds
A cloud-filled dawn sky reflected in the waters of a wetland pond

Wetland Dawn Clouds. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Somehow it seems appropriate to make a sunrise photograph the subject of the first post of a new year. In fact, I and a few friends have started a new tradition over the past few years — we meet every New Year’s Day before dawn to greet the literal dawn of the new year together. We make photographs, tell stories, share food and champagne, consider what the coming year may bring, enjoy the camaraderie, and perhaps even consider the fact that yet another year has passed. (Perhaps the only downside — or maybe it is an upside? — is that in order to make it to our meeting place before dawn we all have to get up so early than partying until midnight the evening before is pretty much out of the question.)

So, here’s my Happy New Year wish to you. I hope you have a great year, that you start it and end it among friends, that you visit interesting places, make new discoveries, and enjoy familiar wonders, too. If you are photographer, best wishes for finding a crop of new subjects and for making beautiful, compelling photographs of the new and the familiar. And to all, thanks for following my daily posts and my photography.

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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Sandstone and Canyon Mud

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Sandstone and Canyon Mud
Cracked mud at the bottom of a narrow Utah sandstone slot canyon

Sandstone and Canyon Mud. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cracked mud at the bottom of a narrow Utah sandstone slot canyon

For various reasons I found myself looking back into my archives of older photographs this week. In one case someone asked about a particular subject and I thought that I could find the answer in the form of a photograph. In another I wanted to use an older image to illustrate a point. Sometimes when I go back to the old raw image files one thing leads to another and I’m off on an exploration of forgotten work. And, quite often, as I do this I “rediscover” photographs that I had originally left behind for one reason or another.

This week’s dive into the past took me back about four years to a wonderful trip to the Southwest. I had several weeks to wander. I started in the Kanab area, worked my way up to Capitol Reef to meet a photographer friend, then joined with a group of photographer/friends to spend several days camping and photographing in a remote area. I emerged from that backcountry trip to spend a night in a wonderful lodge in Boulder — what a shock that was! — and then headed west to join my family in the Zion area. I made this photograph early on the trip. I decided to explore a new area which I knew to hold some well-known features. I drove into the area, found a place to park at a likely looking trailhead, shouldered my pack and headed into a large wash, eventually entering a section of beautiful slot canyon terrain, with much from recent rains still covering parts of the canyon floor.

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: Central California, Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature

Autumn Foliage, Wetlands

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Autumn Foliage, Wetlands
Autumn foliage and a reflecting pond under late Autumn skies

Autumn Foliage, Wetlands. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn foliage and a reflecting pond under late Autumn skies

Fall color varies a great deal from location to location. My East Coast friends remind  me that I haven’t seen anything quite like the forest-wide flood of color that happens there every fall — and they are probably right. (I still need to go to New England and photograph fall color. Too many subjects, too little time! ;-) On the other hand, we West Coast dwellers have a few special opportunities of our own, at least if we have learned where to look for them. One of these opportunities comes from the extraordinarily long color season.

I usually see my first indications of “fall” color in the Sierra as early as late-August. The first hints are subtle, but by halfway into September they are becoming pretty obvious, with the first aspens changing colors, and by early October the show in the Eastern Sierra is quite amazing. Because of the elevation range and north/south extent of the Sierra, the color lasts a long time — higher and more northerly color may come first, while lower elevation color may still be appearing over a month later. Once the aspens are done, the cottonwoods and other lower-elevation trees come into form. At the western Sierra foothill elevations the color can peak close to the beginning of November, and out in the Great Valley and closer to the coast there can still be excellent color in December! That’s when I photographed this group of trees, reflected in a pond and underneath autumn clouds… and at the peak of their seasonal color transformation.

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: Germany, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Window, Shutters, Bicycle

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Window, Shutters, Bicycle
Heidelberg street scene with bicycle, window, and colorful reflections, shutter, and door.

Window, Shutters, Bicycle. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Heidelberg street scene with bicycle, window, and colorful reflections, shutter, and door.

This is another little scene we found on a walk along back streets of Heidelberg Altstadt. The main street is very busy, and lined with businesses appealing to the many tourists who go there. You can find some of that stuff on the other streets but much less of it, and there are fun little vignettes that seem a bit (humor me here!) less contrived… and you certainly don’t see the chain businesses that are part of the busier areas.

It was also a bit easier to photograph here since there the crowds of people are largely missing. So we walked these streets slowly, with two goals — making a few photographs and finding a place for lunch! Both had successful outcomes. This window, combined with the green shutter, the blue door, and the red/orange reflected wall produced a striking color pattern. Oh, and a bit later we located a little restaurant that wasn’t too busy where we ordered a beers and food.

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.