Tag Archives: big sur

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

Pacific Sky

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Pacific Sky
Pacific Ocean sky, California Coast.

Pacific Sky. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Pacific Ocean sky, California Coast.

One of the things I miss most during this time of travel restrictions is the chance to be in the grand landscape, the landscape of deserts, mountains, ocean, and valleys that extends into the far distance. I do get outside daily, for neighborhood walks and to work in our garden, but all of these are landscapes on a much smaller scale.

I made this photograph last year on a foray down the California coast, where I can never get enough of the grand westward views out over the ocean and toward the distant horizon. On this day the scene was softened by big clouds and atmospheric haze over the ocean that glowed in the sunlight.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Sea Stacks And Headlands

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Sea Stacks And Headlands
Sea stacks and rugged headlands along the upper Big Sur coast.

Sea Stacks And Headlands. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sea stacks and rugged headlands along the upper Big Sur coast.

California’s coastline is quite varied, but nearly always interesting. There are flat and gentle areas in the south, areas exposed to wind and covered with trees in the far north. And then there is the (loosely speaking) Big Sur coast south of Monterey. it is an area of very tall coastal mountains, vast open views of the Pacific, and a shoreline that is often rugged and rocky.

I had a few free hours on this spring day so I headed south from the San Francisco Bay Area with the plan of getting some distance down the Big Sur coast… but not so far that I couldn’t be back by mid-afternoon. I’m a bit familiar with these formations, having stopped to photograph here in the past. This time I was struck by the color of the water, the springtime green of the plants, and the lights softened by very thin coastal fog.

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

Morning Glory, California Coast

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Morning Glory, California Coast
Spring morning glory flowers along the California coastline, Monterey County

Morning Glory, California Coast. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Spring morning glory flowers along the California coastline, Monterey County.

I hope I have the right identification of this flower! (If not, I’ll rely on the intelligence of the web to set me straight.) I think it is morning glory, though there is at least one other flower that seems to fit the appearance and location along the Pacific Coast Highway.

I had briefly stopped to photograph a landscape scene — a small cove and rocky beach, with overlapping headlands marching away to the south. As I walked to my overlook I passed through an area filled with all sorts of wildflowers, including these specimens.

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

Pacific Vortex

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Pacific Vortex
Cloud patterns above California’s Pacific coastline

Pacific Vortex. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Cloud patterns above California’s Pacific coastline.

Almost every time I photograph in this location at some point I turn my camera towards these sky and ocean-scapes that are almost abstract in form. While this photograph was made along the Big Sur Coastline of California, from beside the famous US Highway One, given the lack of definite landmarks it could be almost anywhere that ocean and sky meet.

The light and atmosphere were both fascinating and difficult on this visit. A Pacific winter weather system was approaching, and this can do all sorts of things to the atmosphere. In this case a cloud shield was forming overhead, thick enough to darken the landscape but still allowing some directional light. Below there was a lot of moisture in the air, with dissipating fog banks along coastal hills and offshore haze blurring the line of the horizon.

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.