Tag Archives: california

Photographs: Urban/Street

Pylons

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Pylons
Unused orange pylons, pipoes, and a fence.

Pylons. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Unused orange pylons, pipes, and a fence.

A postcard from Pandemia, photographed on a neighborhood walk last month that took me past a school that should have been in session, crowded with students, and likely with cares everywhere. It was empty, with no sign of students, teachers, parents, or anyone else. The piles of dead leaves along the edges of parking areas accentuated the feeling that the place had been abandoned.

This row of bright orange pylons stood along a curb with nothing to do, just hanging out and waiting to see if anyone showed up. They seemed happy to see me.

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 and Amazon.

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Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Mondrian Wall

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Mondrian Wall
“Mondrian Wall” — A wall of a school building closed during the pandemic.

Why, yes, this is from the “Postcards from Pandemia” series of photographs made on my almost-daily walks in the greater neighborhood, an area including a range of subjects in suburban neighborhoods, apartment complexes, closed schools, nearly empty parks, a largely shuttered business district, and light industrial zones.

This is a detail of a wall at the front of a school that is became deserted at about the time when students would have been pushing through the last part of the academic year and looking forward to summer. If you are like me, you might find more than one way to look at this scene.

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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

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Cranes Above The Levee

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Cranes Above The Levee
A small group of sandhill cranes flies into a mist-filled early morning winter sky above a Central Valley levee.

Cranes Above The Levee. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A small group of sandhill cranes flies into a mist-filled early morning winter sky above a Central Valley levee.

Light comes in infinite variations — bright, warm, cool, clear, misty, back, front, reflected, glowing, harsh, and on and on. (I wonder how many ways there are to describe light?) Photographers and photographers may be characterized by their favorite subjects, how they compose, elements of post-processing, and much more. But what light they prefer and how they handle it may be among the most important factors.

I have my preferences. One of them is for light coming through a glowing, mist or fog filled atmosphere, so bright that you almost cannot look straight at it. In this light the atmosphere almost becomes a tangible thing. This winter morning in California’s Central Valley had that quality as this small group of sandhill cranes flew past.

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 and Amazon.

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.

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Perching Finches

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Perching Finches
A flock of house finches perches on utility lines in winter morning sun.

Perching Finches. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A flock of house finches perches on utility lines in winter morning sun.

Looking at this little group of colorful birds hanging out on utility lines against a backdrop of perfect blue sky, you might image that this is a summer scene, photographed on a warm June day. You would be wrong. I made this photograph on a very cold January morning out in California’s Central Valley.

The reason I was there, of course, was to photograph much bigger and more impressive birds — the annual winter migration of geese and cranes and lots of other birds that over-winter here. I had been photographing those subjects since before dawn, and as the morning wore on the migratory bird action was slowing down. I had stopped to look at some cranes, but I looked up to find these wonderful little birds.

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 and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

Scroll down to leave a comment or question.

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