“Highland Stream” — A wild stream rushes through a valley between highland mountains.
I am definitely not a fisherman. I’ve tried, both in the mountains and along the Pacific coast. But I’ve had few successes and many failures. (Eventually I decided that I did not need to carry fishing gear as an excuse to wander along waterways. A camera is a fine substitute!) But evenI have heard of the historic reputation of the fishing in Scotland’s highland streams and rivers. In my mind, a scene like this is central to that reputation — even I can imagine myself spending a day out in the beautiful landscape, wading in these waters.
“Boulders and Autumn Forest” — Fall colors in a conifer forest along the banks of the Merced River, Yosemite Valley.
while there is fall color in Yosemite, it is not widespread, and it comes in bits and pieces rather than hillsides blanketed in color. This scene is a case in point. The great majority of the trees here along the Merced River are conifers. But deciduous trees are scattered though the forest. Here they include three major sources of fall color in the Valley: A big leaf maple, a dogwood, and a black oak.
While working on this photograph I had a not-unusual “Yosemite experience.” When I made the exposure I was shooting across the Merced River into what seemed like an inaccessible forest. But as I post-processed the file and looked closely I discovered that there were old electrical wires hidden among the trees! The Valley has been populated for centuries, and few places there can be said to be true wilderness at this point.
“River And Autumn Trees” — Autumn trees change colors along banks of the Merced River, Yosemite Valley.
While I wrote elsewhere that this end-of-October fall color visit to Yosemite focused on more intimate landscapes, this one might seem like an exception, given that the trees are across the river and there is a rather large cliff beyond. OK, it isn’t exactly “intimate by the usual standards…” but if you knew what I left out of this photograph you might forgive me! This is a spot in the Valley where you might typically photograph some of those larger, monumental subjects.
I had passed this spot without stopping earlier in the day, so when I came by again later on I was prepared to pause and photograph. This is a narrower section of the Valley, and those trees grow on the opposite bank of the Merced River. We see several of the sources of Yosemite autumn color here including the golden-brown black oak trees and the brilliant yellow big leaf maples.
“River Thames at Blackfriars Bridge” — A boat on the River Thames cruises toward Blackfriars Bridge near central London.
You couldn’t ask for a lovelier London day in June, with blue skies dotted with fluffy clouds and pleasant temperatures. (The first time we visited London we were surprised by downright uncomfortably hot weather.) This photograph looks across the River Thames near Blackfriars Bridge toward a section of downtown London featuring large, modern towers. If you look closely, you might spot a few people wandering along the banks of the river at lower right.
London wasn’t our primary destination on this visit, though we were happy to be there again. The first part of this trip featured three weeks in Scotland. We started with a few jet lag adjustment days in Oban and Fort William before spending the next week walking from Fort William to Inverness on the Great Glen Way. From there we returned to civilization, with stays in Inverness, Stirling, Glasgow, and Edinburgh before taking the train south to York and London.
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.
Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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