Tag Archives: creosote

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Creosote, Sunset Shadows

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Creosote, Sunset Shadows
A clump of creosote among curving sand dunes as sunset shadows arrive.

Creosote, Sunset Shadows. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A clump of creosote among curving sand dunes as sunset shadows arrive.

This comes from a short but very intense burst of photography on a late- January evening in Death Valley National Park. A suitable interval before sunset I had headed out on a hike of a bit more than a mile to a line of sand dunes, where I expected that the final direct sun o the day would arrive over the top of a low ridge to my west, and that it would have the potential to bring some lovely, wam light to the dunes. I arrived at the dunes well before sunset and set to work looking for subjects in this somewhat unfamiliar place.

The light was already transitioning toward evening, and as I worked the transition accelerated. I put a long lens on the camera, partly because it would allow me to pick our small compositions in the larger landscape and partly because it would let me quickly respond to short-term bits of beautiful light that were too transitory for me to pick up and move to their location. Moments before the sun dropped beyond that ridge, the color of the light intensified and the shadows lengthened.

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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Dune Plants, Morning Light

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Dune Plants, Morning Light
Light from the morning sun slants across the face of sand dunes to illuminate desert plants.

Dune Plants, Morning Light. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Light from the morning sun slants across the face of sand dunes to illuminate desert plants.

During times of what I consider to be the most interesting light in the dunes — right around sunrise and sunset — the scene changes with remarkable speed. These landscapes are so much about the color and angles of the light, and at these times both of those elements can change with great speed. One moment a subject might be dull and flat, but a moment later as a beam of light comes over a dune it may be spotlighted against shadows or its color may change drastically. I’m always surprised by how dynamic the photography process is in this supposedly static landscape!

I had earlier noticed this creosote bush and its small companion, but passed them by since they were in flat shadows. I turned my attention to something else further away, and when I looked at the nearer landscape a few minutes later I saw that the plants were in the sun and the light was touching the top of the dune in the upper part of the frame. I quickly turned my attention to this intimate landscape, and changed continuously as I made several exposures over what must have been no more than a minute or two.

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 to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Creosote and Blowing Sand

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Creosote and Blowing Sand
High winds blow streamers of sand across dunes and past a lone clump of creosote in evening light.

Creosote and Blowing Sand. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

High winds blow streamers of sand across dunes and past a lone clump of creosote in evening light.

There are certain things we do not mention when in the field, things that we hope stay away and do not show up to interfere with photography. Since I’m not in the field at the moment — instead, sitting at my computer in my studio — I can go ahead and name one of them: wind. Some years back I was photographing canyons in Utah with some friends, and I was informed that I should never mention the name of this phenomenon while in the field, and if it was necessary to refer to it, the thing could only be called “W.”

“W” is often an issue in Death Valley and similar landscapes. It both creates challenges to photography (dust, camera stability, and more) and opportunities (flying dust can look spectacular!). We learn to deal with it. Sometimes this means heading off to a spot that is sheltered from the worst of it. It might mean photographing the effects of the wind (for example, a dust storm) from just outside its boundaries. Sometimes it means cautiously wading right into the maelstrom if the conditions appear to be spectacular enough, even at risk to equipment and health. Truth be told, the wind whipping up the flying sand in this photograph wasn’t that bad, especially since I could keep it mostly at my back.

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 | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Creosote and Dunes, Evening Light

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Creosote and Dunes, Evening Light
Creosote plant in eveing light as wind-blown sand softens the contours of receding dunes.

Creosote and Dunes, Evening Light. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Creosote plant in eveing light as wind-blown sand softens the contours of receding dunes.

This is (yet another!) photograph that demonstrates the conjunction of a range of things: planning, good luck, responding quickly to conditions, and more. Regarding the planning, I had made a long drive to a place a mile or so from this spot, where I set up a primitive camp and waited for the late-day light. A lot of good luck was involved — this was my first time at this location, so I had to make some guesses about where to be when the evening light arrived… and the guesses turned out pretty well.

As to conditions, several things were happening here. First, it was extremely windy, so I made some decisions about camera setup to deal with that. I made the exposure during a short interval of less wind. Second, there was only a brief interval when the light acquired the warm, evening color, and then the shadows from a low mountain range to the west “turned out the lights.” If you look closely you can already see some shadows starting to creep into the edges of the frame.

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 | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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