Tag Archives: canyon

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

Aspens in Green and Yellow

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Aspens in Green and Yellow
“Aspens in Green and Yellow — A grove of tall aspen trees in transition from summer green to autumn gold, Eastern Sierra Nevada.

Recently I wrote that I have not been able to visit the Eastern Sierra this season (as of this writing) while I work through a health issue. It is disappointing to miss the aspen color season this year, but I’m fortunate to have a huge archive of photographs from previous autumns. Recently I dug back into that archive and found some older photographs that I never worked up for public presentation. This is one of them.

Sometimes the trick with aspen photography, and fall color photography in general, is finding ways to make some kind of compositional sense out of wild colors and abundant details. I often stop and stare at forests like this one, trying to find the section in which some sense of order may emerge. It is usually there, but it can take a while to find it. Here I think that the combination of the large gesture of yellow leaves and the underlying patters of vertical trunks makes it work.

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: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Lake, Ridges, and Haze

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Lake, Ridges, and Haze
“Lake, Ridges, and Haze” — Hazy morning light on ridges, cliffs, and a subalpine lake, Sierra Nevada.

It is fair to say that I got a lot of photographic mileage out of this view during our stay here a few years back. I’ve shared numerous photographs of it, though in different formats, times of day, and conditions. Despite the presence of so much other visual material, it dominated our consciousness. I suppose that part of the reason is that it was within minutes of our campsite, but it is a remarkable setting, too.

I photographed this version in the morning. At the start of our visit we had quite a lot of rain, but that diminished later on, and the sky was mostly clear on this day. The view looks roughly northeast, so the sun was just clearing the ridges out of the frame to the right. This light, coming in at an angle, illuminated the atmospheric haze and emphasized the atmospheric recession of more distant ridges. It also produced what almost looks like rim light on the exposed places on the face at the left.

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: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Telford Bridge

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Telford Bridge
“Telford Bridge” — The historic Telford Bridge at Invermoriston, Scotland.

The last bit of this day’s walk on the Great Glen Way was full of surprises. One of them was that as we approached the town of Invermoristen it seemed that we were only a very short distance from our destination, but then the path took a long sideways detour to finally cross the river. such a detour is not what you want at the end of a long day of hiking! On the other hand, this detour took is right past this historic Telford Bridge, where we paused for a moment before continuing toward our destination in town.

The first version of the bridge was completed approximately two centuries ago. (It was replaced by a more “modern” structure in the early 20th century.) It was devised by the great Scottish engineer, Thomas Telford, who is also responsible for all sorts of projects in Scotland, including the Caledonia Canal connecting Fort William and Inverness. We take structures like bridges for granted today, but when this was constructed it improved transportation and trade in the area. (Imagine trying to get across the river without the bridge!)

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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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: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Telford Bridge, River Moriston

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Telford Bridge, River Moriston
“Telford Bridge, River Moriston” — The River Moriston flows past the historic Telford Bridge at Invermoriston, Scotland.

We came to the historic Telford Bridge at the end of a long day on the Great Glen Way walk, as we entered the small town of Invermoriston. There were a few surprises at the end of the day. For one, as we came down the last hill the town appeared to be right in front of us, but then the route headed off to the right to take us to bridge across the river. Soon after the crossing we came to the Telford Bridge. All in all, it was a wonderful walk, full of cloudy views of Loch Ness and the Scottish countryside.

The name of the bridge refers to the same Thomas Telford who conceived of the Caledonian Canal connecting Inverness and Fort William, along with many other projects in the late 1700s and early 1800s. The original bridge was constructed over the River Morriston in 1839. (The current structure dates to 1913.) As a side note, seeing the River Moriston flowing past the town of Invermoriston as we walked toward Invernes… a mental lightbulb came on and I wondered, “What does ‘inver’ mean, and why does it keep showing up in place names?” In turns to that an inver is a place where bodies of water (typically a lake and a river) meet.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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