Tag Archives: bush

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

Sunset Virga Above Mount Dana, Tuolumne Meadows

August 3, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 3 Comments

Sunset virga drops rain above the summit of Mount Dana and is reflected in a quiet pool of the Tuolumne River.

Earlier on this day I had been caught out without raingear, two hours out from the trailhead on the Sierra crest at Mono Pass, as the thunderstorms began. Apparently a change in the weather pattern had sneaked in without me noticing, and what started as a completely clear morning turned into an afternoon of thundershowers and quite a bit of rain in the Tuolumne region.

For a photographer, this can be good news. All too often, Sierra weather can be what seems like an interminable string of boring, perfect blue sky days. A bit of weather is often a lot more interesting.

Since it had rained all afternoon, I thought there might be a chance of interesting sunset colors if the clouds over the crest stuck around and the clouds to the west cleared enough to allow the light of the setting sun to shine in unimpeded. You almost never know for certain when it comes to these conditions – the best you can do is recognize when they might happen, and then be there to do your work if it happens. You’ll either get some great sunset color… or you’ll be left standing there wondering what happened.

Back in early June I had scouted this location that placed the group of three trees to the right of Lembert dome and placed a quiet pool of the Tuolumne River in the foreground. At that time, while I liked to the potential of the location, there was no interesting light and I did not even go back on that trip to photograph there – I just filed it away in my memory as something to try should I be there when sunset clouds were just right. So when I thought I saw “sunset potential” on this night, I more or less made a bee-line to this spot. I set up my gear, made a composition (and a few variations on it) and waited to see what would happen. Not only did the colors turn on just before sunset, but at that exact time a single cloud dropping virga (rain that doesn’t reach the ground) appeared above Mount Dana, the distant and highest peak in the photograph.

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Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Morning Squall, South Tufa

August 1, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 3 Comments

The shoreline of Mono Lake as a morning squall drops rain over the Sierra Crest near Lee Vining, California.

This photograph is, in a number of ways, a sort of happy accident. I had been camped in the Tuolumne Meadows area for several days, doing photography in that area of the Yosemite National Park Sierra Nevada high country. On the previous day I had been caught out on a hike in a surprise thunderstorm without rain gear, so I was very conscious of the weather. That evening it occurred to me that given the approach of some monsoonal moisture and the already wet weather, that it was possible that interesting clouds might form in the Mono Lake area the next morning. (Mono at dawn is a spectacular place, but since I’ve photographed there quite a few times I don’t necessarily shoot there at dawn every time I’m in the area unless there is a chance of special conditions.)

That night I peered out of my tent from time to time to see if any clouds were interrupting the light of the full moon, thinking that this might be enough to get me to change my plans for morning photography and make the drive to Mono Lake. At one point a few clouds did dim the moon light, and a bit later a few showers came through. At this point I was pretty certain that the cloud potential would be there in the morning so I decided to get up a bit earlier and drive to South Tufa.

I thought I was up early enough. However, as I drove down highway 395 south of Lee Vining I realized that I had miscalculated and that the sun was already hitting the clouds! I experienced the photographer’s conundrum – shoot what I see here now, or race on hoping to shoot the planned thing. I decided to stop and shoot the very first light on the Sierra crest from 395 before heading on, but now my original plan for a pre-dawn visit to Mono was out the window. Soon I headed on down the road, turned off onto eastbound 120 and made my way to South Tufa just as the first sun was striking the lake shore. I quickly made it out to the tufa area and saw (how could anyone miss it!?) this giant cloud cell blowing up over the Sierra crest just north of Lee Vining.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Oaks and Hills, Winter Fog

January 24, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Winter morning fog clears over northern California hills and oak forest.

When it comes to photography, there is a long list of subjects that I cannot resist. Included on this list are: morning sunshine across the shoulder of a grassy hill, oak trees, clearing, high clouds from an approaching weather front, hills receding into the haze-shrouded distance, stacked diagonal forms, a bit of a trail. This is, of course, a list that corresponds pretty much to what is found in this scene.

I was out hiking in my “photographic backyard” in the Calero hills on this early-January morning. I initially went out looking for fog, and I found that in abundance earlier in the morning when I photographed a solitary oak tree in a fog covered valley. Soon, however, the fog began to hold light that suggested clearing above, so I headed up a trail to a nearby ridge that commands a good view of surrounding oak-filled valleys and ridges. When I arrived there the fog was still quite thick, but I felt it would soon start to clear so I went ahead and unpacked my gear and set up my tripod… and waited. Soon I was rewarded with this scene to my south, mostly backlit by the morning sun as the fog washed in and out of the valleys and finally the sun became bright enough to light this foreground ridge and cast shadows from the oak trees.

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: california, usa, landscape, winter, stock, calero, county, park, santa clara, tree, oak, fog, mist, cloud, grass, nature, oak, forest, grove, meadow, trail, grass, silhouette, ridge, mountain, haze, atmosphere, recession, light, clearing, bush, valley, hike

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Suburban Home With Lawn and Red Porch

January 22, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A suburban home with a red painted porch, sidewalk, walkway, tree, and lawn.

Another in the “banal suburban homes” series… ;-)

Shot while on a walk not far from my home on this early January Sunday evening. I’m not going to try to explain what draws me to shoot subject like this – I have some idea, but I’m not sure I can fully explain it in a way that will make complete sense. Some of the visual elements that attracted me to this particular house include the very geometric and “neat” shapes of the sidewalk, trimmed lawn, red porch step, the coiled green hose, and the shrubs. I also like the dissonance of the slightly unruly tree on the left portion of lawn and the slightly off-kilter elements including the slightly tilting porch roof. There’s more, but you’ll have to fill in the gaps for yourself… :-)

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: willow, glen, san, jose, california, usa, street, urban, city, structure, winter, stock, home, house, surburban, surbubia, old, walk, sidewalk, walkway, cement, concrete, green, lawn, bare, tree, shrub, bush, window, door, screen, step, porch, light, roof, wire, hose, step, mat, reflection, stock, street, urban, coil

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: bush

Sunset Virga Above Mount Dana, Tuolumne Meadows

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Suburban Home With Lawn and Red Porch

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

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