Tag Archives: bush

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Dormant Desert Holly

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Dormant Desert Holly
A dormant desert holly plant against rocky backdrop in evening light.

Dormant Desert Holly. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A dormant desert holly plant against rocky backdrop in evening light.

Photographing this dormant desert holly bush was very much a last minute opportunity. Late in the afternoon we headed toward a prospective early evening subject, stopping along the way to photograph various other things as the light cooperated. Ironically, when we arrived at that intended subject several factors made it less appealing than expected, and I barely photographed it at all! We spent a few minutes there, and as the light began to decrease we moved on.

We were along the east side of Death Valley at the time. A big part of photographing in this landscape is learning the daily patterns of the light. Because of the very large mountain range on the west side, the direct light where we were ends well before sunset. This also produces an extended period of soft light in the shadow of that western range, when the landscape is still illuminated by the blue sky and sometimes by colorful clouds. I photographed this plant, set against a nearly barren and rocky hillside, as that soft evening light began to fade.

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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Creosote, Shadowed Dunes

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Creosote, Shadowed Dunes
Creosote plant in sunlight, backed by shadowed sand dunes.

Creosote, Shadowed Dunes. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Creosote plant in sunlight, backed by shadowed sand dunes.

Sand dune landscapes provide all sorts of surprises. After seeing many photographs of impressive blowing sand and dust storms, you might think that is the norm — but most of the time the dunes are quiet and still. In the daytime there often doesn’t seem to be a lot going on in a visual sense. But go there at the earliest and latest moments of the day, and the light changes so quickly that it is almost impossible to keep up. Here there was only a brief moment when the soft light fell on the dune and the creosote plant and left the further dunes in soft, cool-toned light.

It is common to think of landscape photography as a slow and deliberate process. In fact, at times and with certain subjects it can be, and the photographer may have a lot of time to look and contemplate. But in this edge-of-day light things happen so quickly that photography can become a kind of action sport. The light does something “over there” for a brief moment, but when I look up something new is happening elsewhere. I turn my attention, quickly make a photograph or two, and right away some new combination of form and light emerges. And this whole dynamic show itself only lasts for a short time between midday bright (and often harsh) light and darkness.

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: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Autumn Color, Aspens and Brush

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Autumn Color, Aspens and Brush
Backlight on a high country brush and a small copse of aspens with fall colors.

Autumn Color, Aspens and Brush. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Backlight on a high country brush and a small copse of aspens with fall colors.

There is a good chance that I’m approaching the end of this season’s fall color photographs — though there are still at least a couple in the pipeline. Given that in prior years have managed to hunt down a few remaining examples of autumn leaves in early January, well, there could are more! Here on the West Coast, by starting high in the Sierra in September and continuing into the lowlands as fall ends and winter begins, it is possible to experience a “fall” color season that lasts up to four months!

This scene comes from a location where the color transition begins near the beginning of this period. It is in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, at close to 8000′ elevation, where the semi-arid high desert terrain rises to meet the eastern escarpment of the range. Years ago I did not pay much attention to this zone, preferring instead to head straight to the high country. More recently, at least in part as a result of my fall color photography, I have become fascinated by this region. It is a complex zone, and the boundaries are affected by water, exposure, elevation, and soil conditions. The foreground brush is more typical of the high desert, while we usually tend to think of aspens as belonging to the near-alpine high country.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Redwood National & State Parks

Redwood Forest Trail

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Redwood Forest Trail
A trail winds through redwood forest, past ferns and rhodendrons, Del Norte State Park.

Redwood Forest Trail. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A trail winds through redwood forest, past ferns and rhodendrons, Del Norte State Park.

As I write this post, it has been a 100+ degree day with wildfire smoke drifting across the Bay Area and mostly forcing us inside — and I know it is much worse in many other parts of California and the West. Barely more than two months ago we walked this coastal trail through redwoods on a cool June morning as fog drifted overhead and rhododendrons bloomed. How long ago that seems now! But looking forward an equal amount of time we can hope that this nasty, dry, hot summer will be behind us and, with luck, autumn rains will return.

Photographing redwood forests can be a tricky thing. Deep in the forest the light can be so low that exposures as long as a second or more a necessary. Meanwhile, even on the most still days there is always a slight bit of air motion, and the long palm fronds and hanging plans are virtually never still. And when the sun rises higher in the sky and sends a few beams of light to the forest floor, the difference between the sunlit spots and the shadows can be huge. In this photograph, in order to produce something that reflects what we see when we look around such a scene, I had to carefully control the brightness of the bits of sky at the top of the photograph and the stray beams of light along the trail… and then ensure that the dark areas were bright enough to make details visible.

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 | 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.