Tag Archives: cliff

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning. Yosemite Valley, California. May 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates a small portion of the vertical face of El Capitan, Yosemite Valley. (black and white)

This is a black and white version of a photograph I posted earlier. Back in May I was photographing spring trees and meadow plants in El Capitan Meadow in Yosemite Valley. Since I happened to have the 400mm lens on the camera at one point I decided to do a few close shots of some sections of the face of the monolith. In the full size versions of this photograph I can make out a number of individual climbers and even see the ropes stretched between them.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: national park, travel, yosemite, valley, national park, morning, spring, el capitan, cliff, face, mountain, rock, granite, climber, flake, crack, monolith, shadow, landscape, scenic, geology, big, wall, route, rope, haul sack, belay, lead, stock

Oak Leaves and Branches, Yosemite Valley

Oak Leaves and Branches, Yosemite Valley

Oak Leaves and Branches, Yosemite Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. June 6, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The leaves and branches of a spring oak tree above the cliffs of Yosemite Valley, California.

I have photographed this oak tree before. It is one of several that sit near the edge of the drop off above the lower section of Yosemite Valley above the narrow section before the Merced begins its precipitous descent down the narrow canyon to El Portal; this is also the location of the first view of El Capitan and Half Dome as you arrive via the northern entrance to the park. I had stopped here to photograph those icons but decided to also photograph the new spring leaves on this tree with the cliffs across the canyon as the backdrop.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: oak, tree, branch, leaf, bud, season, spring, twig, cliff, bokeh, yosemite, valley, national park, california, usa, travel, scenic, nature, landscape, sierra, nevada, mountains, range, foliage, stock

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning

El Capitan, Morning. Yosemite Valley, California. May 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates a small portion of the vertical face of El Capitan, Yosemite Valley.

While photographing the oaks in El Capitan Meadow in early May I decide to point my lens up towards the vertical face of El Capitan. In the full size version of this print you can pick out a number of climbers in various places across the cliff.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: national park, travel, yosemite, valley, national park, morning, spring, el capitan, cliff, face, mountain, rock, granite, climber, flake, crack, monolith, shadow, landscape, scenic, geology, big, wall, route, rope, haul sack, belay, lead, stock

Middle Cathedral and El Capitan Meadow, Spring

Lower Cathedral Rocks and El Capitan Meadow, Spring

Lower Cathedral Rocks and El Capitan Meadow, Spring. Yosemite Valley, California. May 10, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early spring view of the trees and new grass of El Capitan with the lower face of Middle Cathedral and the Yosemite Valley rim beyond.

El Capitan Meadow is one of my favorite places to photograph in Yosemite – at just about any time of year, at any time of day, and in any conditions. This photograph was made on a beautiful early spring morning as the new spring growth was just beginning to show – the grasses are just coming up in the meadow and the trees are beginning to leaf out. Beyond the meadow is the smooth face of Middle Cathedral facing the morning light, and beyond that is a shaded portion of the south Valley rim.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: national park, travel, yosemite, valley, national park, california, usa, season, spring, new, growth, grass, tree, meadow, el, cap, capitan, silhouette, ,middle, cathedral, rocks, cliff, mountain, face, rock, sun, rim, forest, peak, landscape, scenic, stock