Tag Archives: big

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

Rocks, Spray, and Gulls – Punta de los Lobos Marinos

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Rocks, Spray, and Gulls - Punta de los Lobos Marinos

Rocks, Spray, and Gulls – Punta de los Lobos Marinos. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. November 22, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two gulls on offshore rocks, engulfed in ocean spray and illuminated by the light of the setting sun, Punta de los Lobos Marinos, Point Lobos State Reserve. California.

Shooting almost directly into the setting sun, I photographed the wild spray as a weather front departed, leaving waves, wind, and spray it its wake. I was amazed that the two birds remained perched and completely immobile as the wind and surf raged around them.

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

Squall, Point Lobos

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Squall, Point Lobos

Squall, Point Lobos. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. November 22, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

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.

An offshore squall in the wake of a frontal passage, Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

Shortly after I arrived to photograph at Point Lobos in what looked like it might become fairly photogenic weather, I was surprised by a small cold front that quickly swept across the part and left some mist in its wake. It passed quickly and after the offshore showers had passed the sun soon began to return – in fact a half hour later it was almost completely clear at sunset.

I have a long term project of photographing what I think of as minimalist seascapes and this is another in the series. Many are made during the “interesting” season along the northern and central California coastline – the season that includes late fall, winter, and early spring. During this half of the year, rather than the summer’s binary alternation between boring blue sky and dense coastal fog we seek a tremendous range of local and larger area conditions. Yes, the fog is still around, but we also see the gloom of approaching fronts, the power of Pacific storms, the mixed light and clouds and these storms clear, and the tremendously clear air after the last remnants of a front departs.

One more comment on this photograph. I think this may be one of those in which the inclusion of a very tiny object can have an effect on the perception of the image that is way our of proportion to its size. What looks like a small spot in the sky on the left side of the frame in this online jpg is a solitary bird passing across the scene. I feel that this photograph is changed in an important way by its inclusion.

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

Punta de los Lobos Marinos, Sunset

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Punta de los Lobos Marinos, Sunset

Punta de los Lobos Marinos, Sunset. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. November 22, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sea lions atop the rocks at Punta de los Lobos Marinos at the end of the day – Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

After not getting out to shoot for a couple weeks – too much work at school! – I finally finished grading a giant stack of papers this afternoon and decided to celebrate by making a quick trip down to Point Lobos for a couple hours of photography. As I drove south I saw beautiful broken clouds and blue sky, and I thought that I might encounter some special conditions in – I thought – the wake of the passage of a minor Pacific weather front. As I got closer to Monterey it appeared that there were heavier clouds offshore to the northwest, and when I got to Point Lobos I had less than a half hour to shoot in decent light before the front came through and surprised me with perhaps a half hour of light rain.

I almost left, thinking that I might head further south and catch sunset light nearer to Big Sur just before the front arrived. However, I soon saw that there was light out to sea beyond the clouds and drizzle and I suspect it might soon pass and that perhaps there would be some sunset light. Since the surf was fairly dramatic I decided to head out on the trail to Punta de los Lobos Marinos, the rocky peninsula that extends out from the shore towards offshore rocks populated by sea lions (or are they harbor seals?) and birds. Once I got there I discovered that the post-front wind was whipping up a lot of spray and that the very low angle sun light was back-lighting it and the rocks in dramatic fashion. If you look closely you can see those seals/sea lions atop the foreground rock.

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

Half Dome Sunset from Big Oak Flat Road

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Half Dome Sunset from Big Oak Flat Road

Half Dome Sunset from Big Oak Flat Road. Yosemite National Park, California. November 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sunset on Half Dome and El Capitan, photographed from Big Oak Flat Road, Yosemite National Park, California.

I almost always stop at this turnout along the Big Oak Flat Road entrance to Yosemite Valley when heading into the Valley and, if the conditions are right, photograph the view up the Valley past El Capitan toward Half Dome. (The turnout is just past the side road to Foresta as you head toward the Valley.) The morning view tends to be, obviously, backlit and often includes a lot of haze – which can be an interesting subject itself.

For some time I’ve wanted to try photographing this view near sunset. I have tried a few times during the past year, but either managed to miss the good light (it starts a bit earlier than I thought it would) or else I had flat and boring light when I arrived. On this afternoon I thought that the light might be more interesting so I managed to leave the Valley soon enough to get to this spot with plenty of time to spare. I actually arrived so early that I didn’t even set up my camera right away – but I was soon surprised by the full moon coming up above El Capitan! (Photos of that scene may be coming a bit later.)

As sunset approached the last light hit the forested ridge in the lower part of the scene and shadows from foreground ridges began to lengthen and get darker.

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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