Tag Archives: bloom

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

Yosemite Valley Forest

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Yosemite Valley Forest
A Yosemite Valley forest of conifers and spring dogwood trees.

Yosemite Valley Forest. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A Yosemite Valley forest of conifers and spring dogwood trees.

In an earlier post I described my “typical day” on one of my long, one-day visits to the Sierra. (I don’t recommend this approach, and I’d rather have had time to stay longer — but it was a choice between a quick visit and no visit.) I mentioned that, unsurprisingly, the early morning and evening hours are the most conducive to photography. But if I keep at it during the midday hours I can usually find some things that are worth the effort.

I made this photograph on a midday ramble. The goal was partly to scout potential subjects for later in the day, partly to enjoy a walk, and partly to make a few photographs if anything turned up. I stopped on a bridge over the snowmelt-swollen Merced River and as I contemplated the scene I thought this little bit of Yosemite Valley forest looked interesting with its tall conifers, open light, and scattered blooming dogwood trees.

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: Macro, Photographs: Nature

Translucent Bloom

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Translucent Bloom
Light glows through the petals of a spring blossom.

Translucent Bloom. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Light glows through the petals of a spring blossom.

The scale of my photograph subjects usually ranges between the whole landscape and something a bit smaller than that. But Patty, the other photographer in the household, has made a specialty of photographing vey small things, often flowers, and often so close that we see details rather than the whole thing. This was bound to rub off on me, and I realized that I have a series of such photographs on my desktop ready to post.

I made this photograph on one of our periodic forays to a large garden on the San Francisco Peninsula. At first I wasn’t thrilled with the light — we were expecting some lingering fog and soft light, but instead the sun was out. But I found that if I got in really close to some of these flowers that were in just the right light… it was possible to find that “less than all of it” perspective on them.

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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Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Globe Lilies

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Globe Lilies
A cluster of spring globe lilies in the San Francisco Bay Area hills.

Globe Lilies. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A cluster of spring globe lilies in the San Francisco Bay Area hills.

Every spring I make a point of visiting these flowers in a little valley in the hills not far from where I live. I thought I might miss them this year, but the heavy winter rainfall delayed the bloom and made it more extensive than usual. The first time I visited I thought the flowers were good. When I went back a few weeks later I expected them to be gone — but instead there were even more of them, more than I remember ever seeing here before.

They can be a little tricky to photograph. Because the plant isn’t too tall and because the flowers hang down at the end of spindly branches, it can be tricky to get a good camera angle on them. They also tend to grow in sheltered places that are at least partially shaded, so the light can be low. On the other hand, when there are as many as I saw this year, if I just stick with it I’m bound to find a few photogenic flowers!

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: Nature, Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Dogwood Blossoms, Central Park

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Dogwood Blossoms, Central Park
“Dogwood Blossoms, Central Park” — A spring dogwood tree in bloom on a rainy day in Central Park, Manhattan.

Yosemite Valley and other Sierra places would be my usual targets for photographing spring dogwood blossoms. But this spring I ended up in Manhattan near Central Park on a wet morning, and there I found scattered dogwood trees in full bloom. Their white flowers stood out against the surrounding trees on this dark and rainy day.

That makes this a “spring photograph” of nature — though it sure did not feel like spring on this morning! It was the third straight day of rain in Manhattan — mostly light, but occasionally strong enough to make outdoor activities unpleasant and to cause a bit of flooding here and there.

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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