Tag Archives: brown

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Winter Fog and Oak Covered Hills

January 21, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Winter morning fog settles over the oak covered Calero Hills landscape of central California.

On this early-January winter morning I headed to my “photographic backyard” in the Calero Hills area, knowing that I’d get to shoot my favorite hills, oak trees, and grasslands in fog, clearing fog, and perhaps even sunlight. Things didn’t pan out exactly as I expected, but it was a good morning of photography anyway.

After starting out by photographing a tree in the “lowlands” of the park, I could tell that the tule fog was starting to clear a bit along the ridges – the brighter light from above was one hint, and the occasional faint sight of blue sky and clouds through the low fog was another. So I decided to finish up my work on that tree and follow a trail that ascends to one of the many minor ridges running through the park.

Arriving at a familiar point on the ridge along a valley that drops away to the south, the fog began to clear from my location. I soon discovered that it wasn’t going to be a day for sunlit photographs – a weak weather system was approaching and high clouds muted the sunlight. In addition the fog didn’t exactly clear – it was more a case of the fog sort of washing back and forth. One moment my position and nearby ridges would clear and I’d see the overcast sky above (as in this photograph), but a few minutes later another wave of fog would expand out of the valleys and I’d be socked in again. So I set up and waited and watched and ended up with several photographs that I like.

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.

keywords: calero, county, park, santa clara, california, usa, hills, oak, tree, grove, grass, brown, golden, valley, fog, mist, clouds, silhouette, nature, ridge, mountain, sky, winter, season, central, grassland, emerge, clear, settle, landscape, soft, light, rock, plant, stock

Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Wall, Stairway, and Late Afternoon Shadows

January 4, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Late afternoon shadows cast by a stairway cross a beige stucco and wooden wall.

This is another in the wandering about with only a 50mm prime series shot on Christmas eve afternoon. I have photographed this wall and stairway before, but here the strong diagonal lines of the shadows from the stairs cut across the horizontals and verticals in the image and almost seem disorienting to me. I swore that the lines in the photo were tilted until I checked them against an on-screen grid – and they still look out of kilter to me even though I know they are not.

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.

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

Late Season Subalpine Meadow and Creek

December 9, 2009 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

A dry creekbed meanders through a boulder-filled golden late-season Sierra Nevada meadow at sunset near Evelyn Lake, Yosemite National Park, California.

This is another view of the “backyard” of my solo-backpacking camp site near Evelyn Lake back in early September of this year. Dusk has fallen across the meadow and the twisting creekbed leading to the lake, but a bit of alpenglow lingers on the clouds beyond the tree-lined ridge.

This photograph is evidence of the early onset of “fall” in the high country. Although the equinox was still nearly two weeks away, the plants here had lost their summer appearance – the meadow was almost entirely brown or golden and the small creek, which would contribute to the flooding of this lakeside meadow earlier in the season had already stopped flowing.

(By starting my “fall” season in late summer in the high country I can manage to experience fall colors for at least three months every year!. I often see the first hints of the change in the highest country even earlier than the date of this photograph. Then by late September and early October the Sierra aspen color show is in full swing. By the end of the month I can find great colors at lower elevations on the west side of the range, such as in Yosemite Valley. After that the colors continue to develop through November in the coastal areas of central and northern California, and here in the SF Bay Area there are still a lot of fall colors to be seen.)

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.

keywords: dry, brown, golden, creek, bed, meander, curve, twist, boulder, rock, filled, late, season, summer, autumn, fall, meadow, sub, alpine, brush, bush, plant, flora, foliage, sierra, nevada, mountain, range, sunset, dusk, evelyn, lake, backpack, camp, hike, wilderness, nature, landscape, sky, forest, grove, yosemite, national, park, california, usa, cloud, pink, stock

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

Three Pelicans in Flight, Waddell Beach

December 5, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

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.

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

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.