Tag Archives: calero

Photographs: Central California

Oak, Sky, and Sun

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Oak, Sky, and Sun (monochrome)

Oak, Sky, and Sun (black and white). Calero Hills, California. April 13, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Black and white version of photograph of morning sun rising above an oak tree on a grassy ridge in central California.

For this photograph I was back at one of my most familiar haunts, the Calero Park south of San Jose, California. This area of oak/grassland is seemingly far less “exotic” and distant than some of my other subjects, but it is a favorite of mine. On this spring early morning hike I was perhaps no more than 10 minutes up the trail from the parking lot when I found this beautiful light along side a trail I’ve hiked scores of times.

keywords: black and white, oak, tree, meadow, grass, flowers, hill, ridge, sun, silhouette, blue, sky, plants, spring, morning, grassland, calero, santa clara, county, park, california, usa, scenic, landscape, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Oak, Sky, and Sun

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Oak, Sky, and Sun
Oak, Sky, and Sun. Calero Hills, California. April 13, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning sun rises above an oak tree on a grassy ridge in central California.

This is from one of the local oak/grassland areas that I visit regularly – hardly a week goes by when I don’t head over there and hike past this very spot in all seasons and all conditions. On this early spring morning the sun was just above the hillside to my east and the solitary oak was casting a long shadow across the slope of this grassy hill. (There is also a black and white version of this photograph that I like quite a bit.)

keywords: oak, tree, meadow, grass, flowers, hill, ridge, sun, silhouette, blue, sky, plants, spring, morning, grassland, calero, santa clara, county, park, california, usa, scenic, landscape, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Spring Oak Leaves

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Spring Oak Leaves
Spring Oak Leaves. Calero Hills, California. March 8, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Some people might say I shouldn’t admit it, but there was an element of serendipity – actually, I made a mistake – in this photograph. (Some who imagine that all photographs should coalesce in the photographer’s mind in their final form before the shutter is clicked won’t want to hear about this.) I was working with a long lens and wide aperture to narrow the depth of field. My plan was to shoot the colorful foliage in the foreground and throw everything beyond out of focus. I set up, let the camera autofocus… and it focused on the “wrong” branches – the branches that are in focus in this shot. “Wait a minute,” I thought, “I kind of like the way that looks!” Instead of an in-focus foreground with everything else OOF, the middle ground is in focus and objects closer and farther away are OOF. It ended up being my favorite version of this scene; I like it more than the shot I was planning on.

keywords: spring, oak, tree, branches, leaves, bright, colorful, yellow, green, calero, santa clara, county, park, california, usa, nature, stock, landscape, morning

Photographs: Central California

Calero Trail, Spring

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Calero Trail, Spring
Calero Trail, Spring. Calero Hills, California. March 8, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A spring morning on a hillside trail through oak grassland of the Calero Hills in central California. This is representative of the start of what I call “the impossibly green” season in central California when for perhaps a month the grasses, trees, and wildflowers go absolutely wild following the winter rains.

keywords: calero, trail, santa clara, county, park, trail, fire road, spring, new, grass, buds, leaves, sun, sunshine, blue, sky, shadows, meadow, forest, hills, clouds, hike, hiking, outdoors, nature, branches, trunks, oak, california, usa, stock