Tag Archives: curve

Photographs: Structures and Objects

Nested Orange Bowls

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Nested Orange Bowls
Two nested orange ceramic bowls.

Nested Orange Bowls. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Two nested orange ceramic bowls.

This is actually a “spring” season photograph — I’ll explain. Recently we took advantage of a break in the California storms to visit a large garden. It comes alive this time of year, and right about now various colorful bulbs are blooming. I’ll share some of those photographs soon, too. The bowls are actually large garden pots for plants that I spotted as we walked though a small shop on the way into the garden.

When Im visually “on” I start to see things like this everywhere. This subject appeals to my natural interest in forms, colors, and textures — something that I think underlies a lot of my photography, even when the apparent subject is the landscape, wildlife, or city subjects.

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

Boulder, Desert Canyon

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Boulder, Desert Canyon
The route through a a desert canyon curves past a boulder before entering narrows.

Boulder, Desert Canyon. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

The route through a a desert canyon curves past a boulder before entering narrows.

For more than two decades I have photographed in Death Valley, typically one or two times each year. I have learned some things about the place and about photographing there. One thing that eventually seems obvious is that canyons are often great place to photograph in between the times of beautiful dawn and sunset light. They are often at their best when the sun is a bit higher and light can ricochet among the canyon walls to produce soft light down below. (Another thing I’ve learned is that no matter how much I think I know I am always surprised by something new!)

I went into this canyon in the afternoon during one of those “between times.” Even though it is a very accessible place I had never hiked into it before, despite thinking about it for years. I love the narrow, shaded sections where I feel cutoff from the surrounding world — where the light is soft and sounds are muted. I made this photograph near a bend in the canyon and just above a short dry fall, where the blue shadow light contrasted with the warmer glow of sunlight around the corner.

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

Across the Valley

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Across the Valley
A desert wash curves past barren desert hills on its way to the salt flats of Death Valley.

Across the Valley. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A desert wash curves past barren desert hills on its way to the salt flats of Death Valley.

Visitors to Death Valley might not immediately realize how much of a role water has played (and continues to play) in shaping the place. I like to point out that this location, known for its heat and aridity, is one of the best places to see the effects of water laid bare. The vast playa and salt plains in the valley are formed by water that settles there and evaporates. The Valley once held an ancient (and quite large!) lake. The alluvial fans — like that in the foreground of the photo — are laced with waterways, small and large. The present-day forms of the mountains result largely from water eroding uplifted blocks.

The location of the photograph is on one of the immense alluvial fans that descend from rugged mountains toward the playa. In this area the fan is interrupted by groupings of mostly-barren hills, many featuring darker rock, and they line up in interesting patterns. In the far distance, perhaps up to 50 miles away, lie mountains at the far southern end of the Valley.

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 | Twitter | 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

Gullies, Hills, and Mountains

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Gullies, Hills, and Mountains
A line of badlands terrain full of gullies with desert mountains in the distance.

Gullies, Hills, and Mountains. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A line of badlands terrain full of gullies with desert mountains in the distance.

This photograph embodies many elements that attract me to Death Valley National Park. I’m always impressed by the clarity (and seeming irony) with which the place reveals the effect of water on the landscape. Essentially everything in this scene is the result of water, from the gullies on the soft foreground formations, to the gigantic, gravel-filled wash beyond, and the the eroded mountains in the distance. That distance is another important feature — I’ve only encountered the immense scale of this landscape in a few other places.

It was still morning when I made this photograph, though golden hour had passed. We had photographed more intimate aspects of the landscape in the earlier light, and now we were moving on when we paused at this high point to take in this gigantic scene. Beyond the foreground hills, the flat wash stretches for miles to the base of haze-obscured desert mountains.

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.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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