Tag Archives: cliff

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Erosion Gullies, Waterpocket Fold

November 16, 2014 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Eroded gullies at the base of cliffs along the east side of the Waterpocket Fold Valley, Utah

The Waterpocket Fold is a huge geological feature of Utah that essentially defines Capitol Reef National Park, creating the deep valley along its east flank, the uplift that created the high ridge that runs the length of the park, and the many exposed edges of rock strata found all over the park. Its westward-trending uplift is also a reason why you may be challenged to get a traditional golden hour spectacular western sky photograph from along the west side of the park — the land continues to trend upward to the west there.

It is easy to overlook the feature if you are within the intimate landscape of many of the popular portions of the park, where you may be more attracted to washes and canyons and trees and nearby cliffs. But if you head down the east side of the park — on a long gravel road — the immensity of this feature becomes very obvious. This photograph was made from a high point in this part of the park, at a location that sits on the edge of this big valley and offers views to the north, east, and south. Here the view is straight across the valley toward the base of the tall ridge on the opposite side, below which there are steep gullies in the material that has eroded from the faces above, a bit of which is visible at the top of the frame.

And, yes, it is a double post day.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Evening Light, Haze, Granite

October 27, 2014 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Soft evening light among granite slabs and cliffs in the Yosemite backcountry

Near our Yosemite backcountry camp there was a beautiful granite bowl, with a bench on top with an open view to the west down the canyon of the nearby river. In the late afternoon and evening we were photographing lots of mostly small details in this area — trees growing out of improbably small cracks and potholes, rocks, and the colors and textures of the granite slabs.

As the sun dropped toward the horizon, its light spread almost directly up the length of the canyon. A large wildfire in another part of the park had left the air smoky and the smoke added a warm coloration to the atmosphere. As these conditions came on I remembered that in the past I had found this tree high up on one of the canyon walls in the evening and had photographed it in similar late day light — so I turned the camera in that direction, and just in time! I made a vertical format photograph as the last bright light broke over the shoulder of the granite and lit the tree. I decided to turn the camera to landscape orientation, and by the time I did the light was already starting to leave the tree — and this photograph ended up with softer light and a darker quality than the first one.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Cliff, Slabs, and Sunset Tree

September 19, 2014 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Hazy evening light slants across steep granite cliffs and slabs and trees

This was not quite the very last photograph I made on my recent 10-day Sierra sojourn, but it was close. Our exit from the backcountry was scheduled for the following morning, and camp busy-ness (and general end-of-trip laziness) would mean no morning photography the next day, so I went to nearby area of beautiful granite slabs and canyon views and went to work, photographing on into the evening light and eventually stopping only after the sun had set.

We often hear that the vast majority of visitors to Yosemite only visit The Valley, and that they regard that small but spectacular place as being the whole of the experience of the park… and that they are entirely wrong. In a sense I am grateful that most visitors do not crowd into the high country in the same way they do in The Valley, even though a part of me is disappointed that they miss so many other astonishing beauties. I cannot think of a juxtaposition of cliff and slabs and trees in the Valley that is more beautiful than this spot, especially in the evening when the last rays of the sun shine up this valley and illuminate cliff edges and the branches of trees.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Monolith, Trees, and New Snow

August 7, 2014 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Trees on a snowy bench in front of the granite face of Half Dome

With this photograph I continue on the theme of Yosemite Valley winter photographs I made back in the late winter, while there for the opening of an exhibit in the Valley. The opening was just one evening, but that meant that we had most of three days to photograph. It had been anything but a snowy winter in the Sierra, but we were fortunate to arrive not long after one of the few snowstorms, and the Valley walls and pinnacles had a thin coating of new snow.

While out in a meadow photographing other subjects I looked up and saw that some of that snow was still plastered to the vertical face of Half Dome and to the row of trees standing precariously on the ledge running down from right to left at the base of the main cliff. Such places in the Valley are very interesting to me — spots that everyone can see but which remain virtually inaccessible to all but some climbers… and to photographers with long lenses who look closely. And, yes, I’m aware of the obvious precedent when I use the term “monolith” in the title of the photograph.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: cliff

Erosion Gullies, Waterpocket Fold

Evening Light, Haze, Granite

Cliff, Slabs, and Sunset Tree

Monolith, Trees, and New Snow

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.