Tag Archives: atmosphere

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

From the Panamints to the Sierra

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From the Panamints to the Sierra
The long view from the crest of the Panamint Range in Death Valley to the peaks of the Sierra Nevada.

From the Panamints to the Sierra. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

The long view from the crest of the Panamint Range in Death Valley to the peaks of the Sierra Nevada.

While details are somewhat obscured due to haze, this view stretches from the crest of Death Valley National Park’s Panamint Range all the way to southern summits of the Sierra Nevada. The distance here is quite impressive — my estimate is that those peaks are perhaps 80 miles away or so. If you look closely, you can see that the ridges just across Panamint Valley — two ridges before the Sierra — are topped with recent snowfall, even on this early spring date.

The haze tends to sit in the valleys between the mountain ranges, but it also extends higher into the atmosphere, thus hiding almost all details of the distance Sierra Nevada. The late-afternoon backlight contributes to the effect. Despite the hard edges of ridge lines this light brings a softness to the scene.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Desert Mountains, Evening Haze

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Desert Mountains, Evening Haze
The view from the Panamint Mountains across Death Valley on a hazy evening.

Desert Mountains, Evening Haze. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

The view from the Panamint Mountains across Death Valley on a hazy evening.

We visited this high place in Death Valley National Park on our late-March trip. It is a location I have been to many times, virtually always very early or very late in the day when the light is the most interesting. It can be crystal clear up here, providing distinct views stretching from the Sierra Nevada crest to distant mountains in southwest Nevada. But it can also be hazy, as it was on this evening.

Such haze is a mixed blessing. It obscures some distant details, but it also lends a softness and perhaps a bit of mystery to the scene. I made the photograph just before sunset, when the warm golden hour light was building. The foreground ridge is nearby, the intermediate stratified ridge is perhaps a few miles away, and in the distance mountains on the far side of Death Valley are faintly visible.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | 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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Sand Storm, Dunes

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Sand Storm, Daunes
A landscape of wind-blown sand dunes disappears into the distance during a desert sand storm.

Sand Storm, Dunes. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A landscape of wind-blown sand dunes disappears into the distance during a desert sand storm.

The landscapes of Death Valley National Park sometimes can seem almost alien. There are places where there is little or no apparent vegetation and the scene appears lifeless. While the truth about sand dunes is more complicated — there’s actually quite a bit of life there — when a big sand storm comes up these places look and feel like something from another world, one that is not particularly friendly to humans carrying cameras!

Recently someone asked if I worry about my equipment in these conditions. The answer is yes, but there are ways to manage the risks and make photographs. In this case I worked with a longer lens and positioned myself upwind of the dunes with the wind more or less at my back. As a result, even though my subject was a scene full of blowing sand, there was little sand where I stood, and it was coming from behind me.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | 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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm

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Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm
A plant-covered sand dune with a sand storm in the background.

Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A plant-covered sand dune with a sand storm in the background.

Perhaps this photograph is about the sand dunes. Perhaps it is about the raging sand storm. Perhaps it is about the plants on the small dunes in the foreground. Or about all of the above. The conditions were, by objective standards, pretty atrocious. A gale was whipping up the sand and blowing it toward the dunes and then up into the sky. You might wonder why the foreground seems relatively clear. The wind was blowing from slightly behind me and most of the dust was being picked from the dunes and blown away from me.

About two months earlier I had photographed in almost this exact spot, and the green transition of these plants on this visit was striking — back at the end of January they looked very dry. But now, even though there has not been all that much rain in this part of Death Valley in the interim, the seasonal greening was underway.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | 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. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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