Tag Archives: cliff

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset

2 Comments
Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset
Coastal cliffs, sea stacks, and beach reflecting the light of a Northern California Pacific Ocean sunset

Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Coastal cliffs, sea stacks, and beach reflecting the light of a Northern California Pacific Ocean sunset

This photograph illustrates — as do so many others! — the many situations in which a photograph is the result of some combination of planning, experience, patience, “seeing,” and just plain good luck. In the morning I had photographed a few hours north of here at Prairie Creek Redwood State Park. As I worked that area, in the back of my mind I was calculating the driving time (plus eating and photographing time) that would put me at a particular spot along the coastline above Fort Bragg a bit before sunset. It is a spot that I have photographed before and one that both challenges and appeals to me. I knew the features of the spot, but there was no way to know what the conditions might be — in fact, I thought there was a pretty good chance that it might be fogged in.

As I approached this area, passing through inland mountains, it was apparent that fog was going to be an issue. Even inland the coastal fog was obscuring the upper slopes. Arriving at the coast I found “blah,” gray light. But there I was, knowing that this would be my last stop of the day, so I thought I might make something work in black and white. Then I noticed something interesting — the fog bank ended in the distance to the northwest right along the coastline, and right along the horizon there was a thin band of glowing, reflecting water. It occurred to me that this thin band would likely expand toward my position as the sun dropped toward the horizon, and that there could be a short period of special light. Before long the glow on the water came closer and the nearby waves began to pick up some sunset color. Then, as the bottom of the sun started to emerge below the edge of the cloud shield, the mist began to glow and the sun’s light came directly at me between the shadows of sea stacks, something can happen only for a few days during a brief interval or two each year… and only on days when the coastal weather conditions permit it.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Morning Light, Haze, El Capitan

Leave a comment
Morning Light, Haze, El Capitan
Beams of early morning sunlight pass through haze to illuminate El Capitan

Morning Light, Haze, El Capitan. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Beams of early morning sunlight pass through haze to illuminate El Capitan

I’m coming to think of the start of this particular day in lower Yosemite Valley as being “Bierstadt Day.” Albert Bierstadt was a landscape painter who made several notable renderings of Yosemite subjects in the 1800s, paintings that perhaps formed the image for the park for many who saw them. They are not “realistic” in a photographic sense, but tend toward exaggerating features and using dramatic effects of perspective, atmosphere, and light. When I see Bierstadt paintings I often think both of how they evoked the wonder of seeing remarkable places like Yosemite Valley and of how flexibly and subjectively he treated these subjects. I also think about how little they look like the literal place, as least in objective sense.

However, at certain moments, the quality of light and atmosphere came close on this morning. The morning began inauspiciously, and in the pre-dawn light I could tell that it was cloudy and gray. However, as I approached the Valley from Wawona there were breaks in the clouds. Arriving at my first clear viewpoint, the iconic tunnel view (where I usually wouldn’t stop on my way into the Valley), the view included the usual Valley features, layers of drifting clouds and mist, and beams of colorful light playing across this landscape. I put a long lens on my camera and began to follow the changing conditions, picking out small sections of the grand view that seemed most interesting. At the moment of this photograph (and, indeed, the light lasted only a moment) sun beams broke through the clouds and moved in front of the face of El Capitan.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

El Capitan, Morning Light and Clouds

Leave a comment
El Capitan, Morning Light and Clouds
Clouds and mist shroud El Capitan shortly after sunrise

El Capitan, Morning Light and Clouds. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Clouds and mist shroud El Capitan shortly after sunrise

This morning was (yet another) lesson about not making assumptions too quickly, and about being ready to react quickly to changing conditions. I was up well before dawn and after coffee I quickly packed and headed out the door to my vehicle, ready to start the drive from Wawona to The Valley. There was enough light to get some idea of the conditions, and they did not warrant much optimism — the sky was completely covered by clouds, and as I drove they seemed to be getting thicker to the west, suggesting that they were increasing rather than thinning. As I continued to drive, crossing the road’s high point before descending toward Yosemite Valley, the light began to suggest the possibility of breaks in the clouds to the east. Sure enough, as I got my first long view of The Valley, there was open sky in that direction. What had promised to be dull and gray was starting to look more like their could be potential for special atmospheric conditions.

I made a few quick photographs at this first viewpoint and quickly moved on, driving through Wawona Tunnel and existing to the famous view of the Valley. Typically there are very few photographers here in the early morning — the opposite of the typical evening crowd — but the unfolding light show caused some of us to pull up short here and make some photographs. At this point I rarely do “the shot” of the full Valley scene in anything short of astounding conditions, preferring instead to focus on smaller components of the grand scene. As I photographed with a long lens, light appeared and disappeared, clouds drifted, beams struck isolated elements of the landscape, and there were bits of visual drama everywhere.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Detail, Granite Face

Leave a comment
Detail, Granite Face
Detail view of a section of a Yosemite Valley granite cliff face

Detail, Granite Face. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Detail view of a section of a Yosemite Valley granite cliff face

Yosemite, and especially Yosemite Valley, is famous for its “granite” (quotation marks for any geologists reading this post…) cliffs, towers, domes, slabs, and other formations. While we tend to think of this rock as being “gray,” the coloration varies quite a bit depending on the nature of the rock itself, the presence of lichens or plants, and on the light. Almost everywhere the expanses of granite are cut through by intrusions of different colored rocks. I don’t usually think of this particular face as being all that colorful, but on this morning the light somehow brought out the rust-colored tones on many sections of the rock.

I did just enough rock climbing many years ago to have developed memories of the sensations of such rock, from the cold and smooth slabs, to sharp edges of cracks, and rough surfaces (you hope!) on some friction routes. A close look at this section of cliff reveals an amazing variety of surfaces and irregularities. Perhaps most obvious is the large, curving vertical crack towards the left. The dark water stains are also striking, as is that rust colored rock. A closer look reveals other patterns, including a diagonal rising from left to right.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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