Tag Archives: 1

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Cloud Forms #1 – June 23, 2010

June 27, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Evening cloud forms above the Pacific Ocean coastline near Davenport, California.

This is the first of a pair of abstract images of evening clouds that I photographed earlier this week along the California coastline north of Davenport.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Summer Evening, Scott Creek Beach

June 24, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

Fog rolls in on a summer evening at Scott Creek Beach, on the Pacific Ocean coastline near Davenport, California.

I’m fortunate to live close enough to the California coastline that I can occasionally just decide on the spur of the moment to “drive over the hill” and step out of the world of work to watch the sunset over the Pacific. This is what I decided to do yesterday. I drove over that hill with only a vague plan to see what conditions looked like and then most likely head north from Santa Cruz toward and perhaps beyond Davenport.

I almost never know exactly what I’ll find on the coast until I get there. Yesterday I had suspicions about the possibility of fog, but I also thought that clear sky might linger a while before the fog rolled in. For the most part it turned out that there was fog but that in most places it was a good distance offshore though starting to form in closer. However, it also turned out that there was a good amount of high cloudiness blocking the sunlight. In other words, the prospects were mixed – might be interesting light at the last minute, fog might roll in and cover everything, the clouds might thicken instead of thin. So I continued with no specific images in mind, driving past various familiar locations. As I descended toward Scott Creek Beach I caught a quick glimpse of a panorama across the beach that seemed like it might work as a wide angle shot, so I quickly turned around and returned to the spot. Once I got set up I realized that while it was a beautiful scene it wasn’t going to work as a photograph. But this scene, which required a longer focal length, caught my attention instead.

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

Rocky Creek Bridge, Big Sur

May 4, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A natural bridge in front of manmade Rocky Creek Bridge along the Big Sur Coastline, California.

This scene is becoming a sort of personal icon in my photography of the California coastline. I have made a couple black and white photographs of the location that are among my very favorite photographs, but I’ve been meaning to work on a color photograph of this spot. There are at least three general conditions in which this spot gets what I regard as interesting light: fairly early morning when the light slants down toward the ocean from over the coastal Big Sur hills, late afternoon in warm light, and during various types of cloud and fog conditions. This version is from the first of these – photographed relatively early in the day when portions of the scene are backlit but some light hits parts of the scene directly after the sun rises above the tall mountains to the east.

Believe it or not, I still don’t think I’ve fully worked this scene – and I have several other ideas of how I would like to shoot it when the conditions are just right.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 360mm
ISO 200, f/11, 1/250 second

keywords: natural, manmade, bridge, rocky, creek, pacific, ocean, sea, shore, shoreline, coast, highway, 1, one, rock, island, surf, wave, arch, beach, spring, morning, light, bird, gull, cliff, hill, steep, ridge, monterey, carmel, landscape, seascape, nature, scenic, travel, road, drive, stock

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

Kelp Detail #1, Weston Beach

January 31, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

Detail of kelp and other debris (“wrack”) washed up by winter storms at Weston Beach, Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

This is another of the close up shots of kelp washed up on the shore at Weston Beach following a winter storm. There are several things that caught my eye on this pile of washed up sea trash… ;-) First, the shapes and colors of the kelp “floats” are intriguing, and I think more photogenic during this wetter time of year. I also liked the curving steps of the plants that wind through the frame from the left and up toward the right. Mixed in with this are some larger leaves with deeply ridged texture. Underlying all of this is the faintly colored sandstone and a few odd colorful stones.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: kelp, plant, rock, pebble, sea, ocean, life, nature, washed, up, storm, debris, wrack, winter, point, lobos, state, reserve, park, california, usa, monterey, carmel, peninsula, pacific, pattern, brown, red, orange, yellow, rock, sandstone, landscape, detail, close, up, stock

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