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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Morning Shadows and Symmetry

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Morning Shadows and Symmetry
“Morning Shadows and Symmetry” — The line between morning light and shadow descends a talus slope toward a lake, revealing mirror image symmetries.

Getting out of your tent before dawn isn’t easy when it is cold and dark outside and you have to leave a warm sleeping bag. But if you don’t rise early you miss some of the most sublime moments of the day in the high country. And, I promise, once you are up and about you’ll be glad that you made the effort.

On this morning it was almost too dark to photograph when I unzipped the tent, and for the first half hour or longer I photographed in the soft blue hour light. Eventually the first direct sunlight touched peaks high above me and gradually worked its way down the steep slopes toward “my” lake. (At about the time I made this photograph, my non-photographer backcountry partners were starting to awaken in their tents on the peninsula at the right.)

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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.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Evening Light, Trees

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Evening Light, Trees
“Evening Light, Trees” — Just before sunset, evening light slants across trees high in the Eastern Sierra.

In late July a group of us camped for two nights at a lake just east of the Sierra Nevada crest. The lake is at about 10,000′ of elevation, and peaks to the west tower almost 3000′ higher. That tall ridge (the Sierra crest) begins to block the direct light remarkably early, in some places an hour and a half or longer before actual sunset. To photograph the “late” light close to this ridge I had to start quite early!

I had a rough plan to start closer to the ridge and catch the last direct light there on this rocky rise, and to then work my way to the east, following that edge of the light. This was one of the first photographs I made, and you can see the alpine terrain beyond these trees growing in this rocky landscape..

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Shoreline in Shadows

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Shoreline in Shadows
“Shoreline in Shadows” — An eastern Sierra lake, surrounded by meadows and forest and reflecting talus slopes, in early morning shadows.

While we love to photograph mountain light, sometimes it can be tricky. I photographed this scene in the early morning. I had gone out well before sunrise, planning to spend some time working with the soft light before the direct sunshine arrived. The the sunlight first touched peaks high above the distant talus slope, then began to descend toward the lake. I made this photograph while the directly-lit talus field was just outside the frame, and moments later things were very bright!

This is, at least for me, the kind of scene that I don’t immediately “see” as a photograph. But when I do I intuitively work out some kind of composition, moving forward and backward, left and right, higher and lower, and adjusting focal length until it just seems to come together.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Evening, Tuolumne River

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Evening, Tuolumne River
“Evening, Tuolumne River” — Evening light on forests and peaks as the Tuolumne River flows through Tuolumne Meadows.

This quiet scene was even more peaceful than usual. It was an early July evening and the campground was still closed. There was hardly anyone else up there. Walking in the meadow I doubt if I saw more than a dozen people. I paused near some half-submerged rocks along the bank of the river and made this photograph looking east toward the Sierra crest in late evening light.

Let me share a secret for those of you who like solitude. Tuolumne Meadows can be a pretty busy place during the peak summer season, between folks staying at the campground and those driving in and out for the day. But at the two most beautiful times of the day the the meadow is often nearly deserted. In the morning many people are still sleeping or on their long rives to the location, and in the evening they are again driving or else back in camp fixing dinner.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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.