Tag Archives: aspen

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Peak Aspen Color

October 16, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

An eastern Sierra Nevada aspen grove at the peak of fall color

I regard fall aspen photography as, to a great extent, an exercise in timing. One element of this is, of course, to simply be in the right place at times of peak color. Aspen color is rarely static, and from day to day it changes. Just a few days earlier I had been in this same spot and most of the trees were still green. (I made a mental note on that earlier visit to come back in a few days when I suspected that the colors might be more developed.) The time of day is also critical since light variations play a huge role in the ways the colors appear. Early and late in the day, when the trees are still in shadow but perhaps lit by open sky and reflections from surrounding mountains, the soft light can produce rather saturated colors and fill the shadows with light. When backlit, the same groves might be so bright that it is sometimes difficult to figure out the idea exposure. And when the groves are front lit the colors can be greatly diminished.

Before we came to this spot we had started our day by photographing in a rather different area a few miles away. We worked those subjects for perhaps an hour and a half, and at that point I remembered my idea of visiting this other location, the one where I made this photograph, before the direct sunlight arrived. So off we went, down one canyon and then up another, to arrive at this spot where I knew colorful aspen trees would spread up the hillside in the shade. The colors were quite incredible. Most of the hillside was in full color — a lot of golden/yellow, but also shades of orange and red. Here and there a few trees where still green, and for this composition I decided to place one of those clusters of green trees in almost the center of a frame otherwise filled with wild colors.

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

River Of Aspens

October 14, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A river of autumn aspen trees descends a valley and turns around a side hill

I made this photograph during a brief visit to a familiar place, one that I probably have photographed from time to time over a period of about a decade. It is interesting to think about how my relationship to the location has changed over the years. The first time I visited, it held an almost mythical attraction, with several features that are iconic enough that at least three views of the location are quite well-known. But back then the number of photographers going here was a fraction of what it is today when sometimes it feels like the “east side” is virtually over-run by photographers in the fall. I suppose that this allowed me to mostly get past those standard views and simply regard this location as simply one among many beautiful spots in the general area.

Yet, certain features still have the potential to produce especially memorable conditions. This “river of aspens,” snaking down a shallow canyon and around an outcropping before ending at the shore of a lake, is one of these features. The colors can vary quite a bit during the season and between successive seasons. I’ve arrived to find it almost completely green… or to find that almost all of the leaves had already fallen. I’ve been chased away by snow and wind. This year the situation was, again, somewhat different from what I’ve seen in the past. The colors were mostly intense when I arrived, yet they ranged from green through almost bare trees. Rather than trying to take in the entire view, I constrained my framing and worked for a composition that might draw attention to the fluid curve of the grove as it nears its end at the shoreline of the lake.

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Back-lit Trees and Ridges

October 13, 2017 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Low, late afternoon sun back-lights autumn aspen trees and receding ridges, Eastern Sierra Nevada

What can I say? I love back-light! The more difficult the light, the more I like it. Often I shoot almost directly into the sun when it is low in the sky, especially when there is some haze that makes the atmosphere appear to glow. (I’ve become adept at shading the lens from the direct light — using my hand, my hat, or anything else handy to try to prevent lens flare and reduce the hazy quality that comes when this light is directly on the lens.) The kind of light I’m looking for is the sort that is too bright to look at.

We arrived at this location late in the day, as per my plan. I know it well enough to recognize that the light can become quite interesting just before the sun drops behind mountains to the west. For a short time the light slants across the landscape, almost parallel to the slope of the land as it drops to the east. This produces that glow I mentioned, it accentuates the atmospheric recession effect, and the leaves of trees can glow with the light coming from behind. For this photograph I found a spot where lines of colorful aspens crossed the frame from bottom to about half way up, and then ridges continued the pattern until the final pattern with its row of conifer trees.

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Leaning Aspen Trees, Reflections, Autumn

October 12, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Leaning aspen trees with autumn colors, reflected in an Eastern Sierra Nevada pond

On the first day of this short trip to the Sierra Nevada, with photographs of fall color our objective, we followed a long driving route to the east side so that we could take a look at a wide range of locations. We began by crossing the range quite far to the north at Carson Pass, then headed south over Monitor Pass to US 395, and from there we continued toward our eventual destination in Bishop. Along the way we made quite a few stops and a few side-trips to look at and photograph fall color. By the middle of the day it became clear that we were going to be dealing with wind. (In fact, by the time we arrived in Bishop after dark it was so windy that driving was starting to be an “interesting” experience.) Wind is not generally regarded as being helpful when photographing aspen trees — though there are some ways to deal with it — so eventually we sought out locations where it was moderated a bit.

One way to get out of the worst of the worst winds is to leave the wide-open country east of the range and head up into the narrower canyons. While this typically doesn’t eliminate wind completely, it often does block the worst of it. That’s just what we finally did, turning up into a familiar canyon and driving almost to the end of the road. Here we arrived at a location with quiet ponds surrounded by all kinds of trees, including some with fall foliage. Along the edge of one pond and its boggy surroundings we found large aspen trees leaning away from the water. My assumption is that the soggy ground was no longer solid enough to hold the trees and something, probably even stronger wind than we were dealing with, pushed them toward the nearby grove. Many of the trees were still alive, though you have to wonder whether their current lean angle is the end of the story!

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: aspen

Peak Aspen Color

River Of Aspens

Back-lit Trees and Ridges

Leaning Aspen Trees, Reflections, Autumn

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.