Tag Archives: cliffs

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

Slot Canyon Walls

March 26, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The sculpted walls of a narrow and curving slot canyon, Zion National Park

On the first non-travel day of my most recent Utah visit, since we were passing through Zion National Park on our way to points beyond, we decided to spend the better part of the day shooting there. For a few reasons, including that it was a bit early for fall color there, we chose to not go to Zion Canyon, but to instead spend the time along the Mount Carmel Highway that cuts through the park from west to east. Our object was to photograph the wide range of interesting subjects found there: sandstone of all shapes, textures, and colors; trees, both evergreen and those with fall foliage, and more.

We ended up spending most of the day along this route. An observer might have wondered a bit about us. We would drive slowly along the road in one direction, frequently slowing down and pulling over, looking around a bit, then either getting back on the road or piling out and heading off in various directions – either up into rocks or down into a wash or canyon. Eventually we worked our way to one end of the road’s passage through the park… and we turned around and headed back. We did this loop several times. Why? First, things that you might miss while driving one direction become easier to see when you head the other way. Second, and perhaps most important, light is not a static thing. It changes in may ways – intensity, color, angle, direction, what it strikes and what it misses – as the day goes on, so while the <i>landscape</i> might have been, arguably, “the same,” the <i>lightscape</i> was in constant flux. I made this photograph in a short section of slot canyon, contriving to find a point of view from which almost nothing but the twisting and overlapping forms of the rocks would be visible, along with just a bit of foliage.

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

Desert Wash and Mesa

March 17, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Sandstone formations and mesa tower beyond a desert wash, Capitol Reef National Park

It has been a while since I’ve posted more of the late 2012 Utah photographs I made during fall visits, but there are more. Actually, there are quite a few more! The time I spent in that state in 2012 was photographically very productive, and I look forward to returning before too long.

I think I might categorize this as one of those “you can find a photograph almost anywhere if you keep your eyes open” photographs, since it was made it a location that is probably not regarded as being as special as some others nearby. Driving from Torrey, Utah toward Capitol Reef National Park, there is quite a bit to see. Off to the right in places there are deep and rugged canyons with lots of trees among the red rocks. To the left runs a large series of red rock cliffs that lead up toward the park. As we drove on this afternoon, the light was softened a bit by clouds and there was a kind of glow on the red rock terrain. So we simply pulled off to the side of the road as we crossed this wash and I composed a photo looking back past the foreground plants and across the wash toward the rising cliffs beyond.

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

Red Rock at Dusk

February 15, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Red rock sandstone cliffs at dusk in the Fruita area of Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.

The farther mesa or tableland is a prominent feature of the Fruita District area of Capitol Reef National Park as seen when approaching from the west – though here it is photographed from a slightly different point of view that is more to the south. There is a prominent feature – not seen in this photograph – along the upper rim of these cliffs that is known as “The Organ,” and which is pointed out in guides and maps to the area. However, I’m surprise that the spectacular cliff and mesa itself seems to either not have a name or else have a name that is not widely known. I asked about this when I was there, and several people who should know did not know of a name for it, and one suggested a name that comes from another feature that is more general.

Nonetheless, these cliffs certainly impress me, named or not! The photograph was made rather late in the day, as the sun was just about to drop above the edge of the higher country to the left/west of here. Thin clouds somewhat diffused and softened the evening light, but not so much as to remove the warm coloration of the light. Among the strata visible here is one along the low ridge at front right that contains starkly differentiated layers of lighter and darker rock. Near the far lower left corner is a small area of trees that is not far from the campgrounds of the Fruita area.

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

Coastal Bluffs, Clouds, Dusk

February 1, 2013 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Coastal bluffs along the Pacific coast near Davenport, California in dusk light

I made this photograph on a day when I had gone to the coast to try to meet up with a “photo walk” group that was photographing (and socializing) in various areas in and around Santa Cruz, California. I never did quite manage to connect up with them – it is a long story – but I did get to shoot along the coastal bluffs near Davenport in the afternoon and as the day came to an end.

In late afternoon the light was mostly gray, with high clouds from a passing weak weather front blocking the western sky. However, just minutes before sunset the sunlight managed to sneak through a gap along the horizon and momentarily suffuse the coast with beautiful and soft light. I made some photographs during that moment, but I was not done yet when that light faded. Some of the most interesting light can come after sunset, when there may still be a glow from the sky but when this light is more diffused and softer. As the evening came on, I continued shooting until it was almost too dark to find my way back to my car, making exposures that gradually lengthened until I was using a 30 second exposure! This is one of the long exposures, allowing the clouds to move a bit and the waves and surf to blend together into a sort of hazy mist.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: cliffs

Slot Canyon Walls

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Desert Wash and Mesa

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Red Rock at Dusk

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Coastal Bluffs, Clouds, Dusk

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