Tag Archives: arid

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Dry Panamint Flowers

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Dry Panamint Flowers
Dry flowers photographed high in the Panamint Mountains of Death Valley during winter.

Dry Panamint Flowers. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dry flowers photographed high in the Panamint Mountains of Death Valley during winter.

The title “Panamint Flowers” refers not to the identification of the flowers, but to the place where I photographed them, high in the mountains of Death Valley National Park. I was there back in January for a four-day visit. The photography was challenging — conditions were less than ideal — so on several occasions I simply went off exploring. On this day I was way out along a lonely gravel road in the Panamint Range when I spotted an old mining site off to one side. I stopped to take a look, and soon my attention shifted from the historical site to the thousands of dry flowers on the surrounding vegetation.

In retrospect, it was very fortunate that I made this trip in the January. Every year I head to Death Valley around the end of March and beginning of April for that brief interval between winter and the arrival of extremely hot and dry weather. That visit isn’t going to happen this year as national parks are shutting down and we are all sheltering in place to slow the spread of corona virus.

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: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Drifting Fog, Hills

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Drifting Fog, Hills
Dawn fog pours across arid California hills

Drifting Fog, Hills © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dawn fog pours across arid California hills.

This is a somewhat unusual photograph — not the photograph itself, actually, but the fact that I’m sharing it. It is a black and white rendering of a photograph that I have previously shared as a color image. Most often I make a decision one way or the other, and I rarely ask “Is this better in color or monochrome?”, at least not publicly! But recently I have had reasons to look at the world in black and white a bit more than usual, so I decided to take an alternative view of this scene.

This was a remarkable morning in these inland Southern California hills where I had gone to photograph wildflowers. Early in the morning, a bit before sunrise, I headed from my hilly campsite toward a large valley filled with flowers… and I was very surprised to look look down and see the valley filled with fog. Of in the distance, gentle breezes were pushing the fog bank over and around these hills as the sky began to lighten.

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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm

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Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm
A sand storm blows a cloud of dust into desert mountains at sunset

Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A sand storm blows a cloud of dust into desert mountains at sunset.

This early-April afternoon and evening produced remarkable conditions in Death Valley. I had seen the advance warnings of high winds and sand storms so I was already thinking of the potential conditions beforehand, but late in the day I noted that dust clouds were already visible far to the north. But the wind-driven sand and dust wasn’t the only interesting element — a weather front was also moving through, stacking up spectacular clouds, some of which were managing to drop some rain.

We did a big loop northward along the eastern slopes of the valley, climbing a ways into the Amargosa Range before coming back down to the valley, where the winds continued and dust and sand were blowing everywhere. We stopped in the thick of it, and I thought about a technique I often use in these conditions: photographing with a long lens from inside the vehicle. But that presented two problems: opening a window even a crack quickly let in piles of sand, and the subjects I was interested were in all directions. So I got out, cowering in the leeward side of the vehicle, and photographed as the sand blew, clouds to the west began to thin, and sunset light struck the mountains to my east.

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.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Desert Holly, Dry Wash

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Desert Holly, Dry Wash
Desert holly plants grow along the curves of a small desert wash

Desert Holly, Dry Wash. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Desert holly plants grow along the curves of a small desert wash.

Among plants that manage to eke out an existence in dry landscapes, such as that of Death Valley National Park, there seems to be a spectrum of accommodations to dryness. Out near the sharp edge of that bell curve is found the desert holly plant. In some of the locations where I see it, the plant seems to be just about the only thing that is still able to live on the driest and rockiest soils.

The specimens in this photograph are growing along the course of a dry wash, and they probably get a good portion of whatever small amount of water that sustains them during brief periods when water flows following rainstorms. (It had rained heavily during the previous month here… and there was no visible water in this wash.) The plants present a sometimes surprising bit of green in this otherwise arid and bare landscape.

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.