Tag Archives: america

Photographs: Nature

Mallow

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Mallow
Spring mallow blossoms, Northern California.

Mallow. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Spring mallow blossoms, Northern California.

I photographed these wildflowers last spring, right here in the San Francisco Bay Area at one of the local county parks where I frequently hike. In retrospect, there must have been so many wildflowers in bloom on the day I made the photograph that I neglected to make any photographs of the surrounding landscape at all — and the close-up photographs of wildflowers only provide sufficient clues to narrow it down to either of two nearby locations.

It seems like whenever I photograph wildflowers with a macro lens that I end up with a few surprises in the image — some tiny critter than I wasn’t paying attention to while focused on the flowers.

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: Night, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Closing Time

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Closing Time
A woman places boards over the windows of a business at night.

Closing Time. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A woman places boards over the windows of a business at night.

It has been a while since I’ve done one of these night photography shoots in San Francisco. A few years ago a group of us would get together once per year or so in the late afternoon, photograph in early evening light, typically go somewhere for dinner, and then head back out to photograph at night. We frequently ended up in Chinatown, perhaps because the lights and narrower streets are conducive to photography after dark.

This photograph comes from one of those excursions back in 2015. Since around that time — perhaps a few years earlier — it occurred to me that since I live close to San Francisco and regularly visit New York that I could do a little project around photographing in Chinatown districts of both cities. They are both fascinating places, both draw tourists (though in different ways), and both have a non-tourist life that is even more fascinating. (I see this photograph a bit differently in the wake of the pandemic.)

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.

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

Photographs: Night, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Urban/Street

Open Door and Stairway, Night

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Open Door and Stairway, Night
“Open Door and Stairway, Night” — The entrance to someone’s Chinatown home, San Francisco.

Originally I contemplated adding this to the “Postcards From Pandemic” series — the mood and subject seem about right. In the end I did not, since I’ve decided that those photographs will all be made during the lock-down and whatever follows. This photograph is almost five years old.

There is, for me, a lot to ponder in this photograph. Let’s start with the obvious — it is not a pretty picture. Despite the fact that the scene is so gritty, I was attracted by the colors, textures, and all that stuff, apart from the underlying reality of the scene. But, obviously, we have to ask some questions about a scene like this: Who lives here? What must it be like to enter your home through such a portal?

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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

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Photographs: Nature

Fairy Lanterns, Spring

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Fairy Lanterns, Spring
A cluster of spring fairy lantern wildflowers.

Fairy Lanterns, Spring. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A cluster of spring fairy lantern wildflowers.

These are among my favorite spring wildflowers here in my part of the world — the San Francisco Bay Area. The photograph is from last spring, as this year my opportunities to go out and photograph wildflowers have been much more limited. I did photograph flowers like these at the very beginning of their cycle, when they were still mostly buds and before the social lock-down commenced. Even when the rules were relaxed to allow hikes, the location of these flowers is one in which social distancing could be difficult to maintain.

I photographed this little group of flowers at a local spot where I first “discovered” this kind of flower over a decade ago. Oddly perhaps, given that I’ve hiked in these hills for decades, I was unaware of the fairy lantern flowers and surprised to see them. These grow a long a narrow and somewhat steep trail that heads through a narrow ravined, a place that is often in shade but with a bit of sunlight each day.

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.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question.

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