Tag Archives: beach

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Wildlife

Gulls Taking Flight, Near Waddell Creek

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Gulls Taking Flight, Near Waddell Creek

Gulls Taking Flight, Near Waddell Creek. Pacific Ocean Coastline near Santa Cruz, California. December 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Flock of gulls takes flight over dark and cloudy Pacific Ocean near Waddell Creek.

This is a second photograph from the same location where I made the motion-blur pelican shot posted previously, the Waddell Creek Beach (part of Big Basin State Park) along the Pacific Ocean coastline on Highway 1 (the “coast highway”) north of Santa Cruz. When I shot this the light was truly dismal from a combination of ocean spray, foggy haze, and high clouds above.

Working quickly – fortunately my long lens was already on the camera – I pivoted and tracked this large group of gulls as they lifted off from the beach near the creek and headed north. Although I’m posting this small version of the photograph, it really is intended to be seen large – I’m thinking it might make an interesting print in a width of two to four feet.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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keywords: pacific, ocean, sea, coast, highway, one, coastal, california, usa, gulls, birds, flight, fly, flock, group, wing, surf, sea, ocean, shore, wave, foam, horizon, clouds, fog, mist, haze, dark, scenic, nature, wildlife, seascape, landscape, travel, stock, waddell, creek, big basin, state, park, beach, sand

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Wildlife

Three Pelicans in Flight, Waddell Beach

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Three Pelicans in Flight, Waddell Beach

Three Pelicans in Flight, Waddell Beach. Pacific Coast, California. December 4, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Three pelicans, blurred by their motion, fly just above the wet sand of a Pacific Ocean beach.

It has been a busy week and it promised to remain busy next week as well, so I decided to make a quick trip over the hill to the Pacific coastline north of Santa Cruz this afternoon with a vague plan to shoot some seascapes and whatever else might come up. The weather today was a type of typical central California winter weather – some tule fog in the morning that cleared to hazy light… perfect for photography in my book! I was hoping for something like this on the coastline, too.

When I arrived I found that it was even more murky along the coast (and colder!) than back home. I finally ended up at the beach where Waddell Creek enters the Pacific and pulled over to stop before turning around and starting back. At just that moment two large groups of pelicans were coming in from the south and landing among sea gulls on the beach. I quickly put the long lens on the camera and very soon the group of birds took off and headed across the shoreline in front of me.

Most often I try to make wildlife photographs as sharp as possible, but at the moment the birds took off that just wasn’t going to be possible. I had a 400mm lens on the camera, the light was very murky, my ISO was still at 100… and the birds were in flight now! So I tracked them as they flew past, blurring the background surf and sand and letting their wings blur as well. In the end, I feel that this blurry shot in which everything seems to be in motion better suits the subject and perhaps conveys the atmosphere of the scene better than sharper photos might. (I later adjusted everything and captured a few more traditionally sharp pelican shots – and in this light they strike me as pretty boring!)

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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keywords: pelican, bird, marine, pelagic, brown, pacific, ocean, sea, coast, shore, shoreline, beach, sand, wave, surf, motion, fast, low, fly, blur, wing, formation, water, reflection, shadow, beak, bill, flight, california, usa, nature, travel, scenic, stock, waddell, big basin, state, park

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Shoreline Trees in Morning Light, Upper Cathedral Lake

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Shoreline Trees in Morning Light, Upper Cathedral Lake

Shoreline Trees in Morning Light, Upper Cathedral Lake. Yosemite National Park, California. September 27, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates a row of shoreline trees and autumn meadow with granite slopes beyond at Upper Cathedral Lake, Yosemite National Park, California.

During the final weekend of September I briefly joined five other photographers (and a painter) at Upper Cathedral Lake in the Yosemite National Park back-country near Tuolumne Meadows. (The rest of this group was there for a full week, and I only joined them for two days.)

For a location so close to “civilization” (the trailhead in Tuolumne Meadows is only 3.5 miles away) the Cathedral Lakes area provides an astonishing wealth of photographic subjects. There are two lakes, and the pointed summit of Cathedral Peak looms nearby. But beyond that the lakes are surrounded by huge masses of glaciated granite slabs, domes, and peaks. There are beautiful meadows and surrounding forest. A short climb away are the alpine peaks of the Cathedral Range.

While the other photographers ventured further from the base camp at Upper Cathedral, I chose to work closer to camp. On the first evening I wandered up a nearby rocky gully, shooting fall foliage and granite formations. I eventually topped out and climbed out onto the smooth dome-like glaciated surface overlooking the upper lake and with a clear view of Cathedral Peak. Very early the next morning I was up and starting a 3 hour circumnavigation of this small lake, photographing the water, the shoreline rocks, the meadows, the surrounding peaks, and in this photo the forest and groves of trees than surround the lake.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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keywords: morning, light, backlight, forest, grove, tree, pine, large, small, meadow, brown, golden, dry, beach, sand, shore, shoreline, rock, boulder, bowl, shadow, reflection, water, lake, surface, fall, autumn, season, high, sierra, nevada, mountains, range, california, usa, yosemite, national, park, backpack, hike, camp, scenic, landscape, nature, stock, upper, cathedral, lake

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco

Morning, South Beach Harbor, Clearing Fog

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South Beach Harbor, Clearing Morning Fog

Morning, South Beach Harbor, Clearing Fog. San Francisco, California. September 16, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Moored boats float in calm water under morning high fog on San Francisco Bay at South Beach Harbor.

The South Beach Harbor is a favorite subject of mine when I take the train to San Francisco to do photography on foot. I often walk from the Caltrain station past AT&T Park towards the Embarcadero, which takes me right to this spot. If the combination of still water, fog, and/or early morning light is right I usually stop and shoot here a bit before moving on.

On this morning the water was just about as smooth as I’ve ever seen on this part of the San Francisco Bay. Although there was fog, it ws the higher variety that still permits long views across the water, and it was already clearing when I arrived.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
Twitter: http://twitter.com/gdanmitchell
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keywords: san francisco, california, usa, travel, tourist, scenic, city, urban, downtown, fog, high, clouds, reflection, sky, morning, boat, sail, yacht, moor, dock, south, beach, harbor, oakland, east, bay, waterfront, mast, rigging, hull, travel, scenic, embarcadero, smooth, still, calm, stock, maritime, break, water