Tag Archives: dawn

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Birds, Fog, Dawn

March 31, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Birds fly over foggy Central Valley wetlands at dawn on a winter day

It is only the last day of March… and I’m already missing these winter wetlands with fog and the sound of birds. These places are found up and down California’s Great Central Valley, and each has its own personality. I know I can find eagles at one, night herons at another, cranes at several of them, and huge flocks of Ross’s and snow geese and yet another.

In my view, the best days at these refuges begin before dawn. The air should be cold — at or just below freezing is about right — and there must be at least some fog in the air. I favor thick fog that gradually clears as the morning develops, though on this morning it was thinning even as the sunrise began. The raucous sounds of the birds — mostly geese and cranes — are everywhere, and here and there small groups take off and fly past. If a faint view of the High Sierra emerges, as in this photograph, it is even better.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Geese, Fog, Dawn

February 15, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Geese take flight in dawn Central Valley tule fog

The sensory experience of arriving at a place like this is remarkable. To understand you need to consider how it begins — a wake-up call at 3:00 or 3:30, a very quick cup of coffee, gear tossed into my vehicle, and departure for a two-hour drive in darkness out into California’s Great Central Valley. Most of the drive is on high-speed roads, at least until I get close to my destination, where I frequently encounter very thick winter tule fog — treacherous driving conditions that may force me to drop my speed to 20 mph or slower as I stare into the foggy darkness. Finally I arrive, pass through an entrance gate, and drive to a parking area and turn off the engine.

I open the door. The air is cold and damp. It is still and it would be silent… but for the wild calls of thousands of geese and cranes and other birds, often concealed behind the fog. In an instant I switch from my high-speed world cocooned in my heated vehicle to an entirely different world of fog, cold air, and the birds. Often I can’t help by smile when I hear the wild calls of those birds, and sometimes I almost laugh out loud. On this morning the fog thinned just a bit when I arrived, and it was possible to make out flocks of geese rising from ponds not far away as the first color came to the morning sky.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Distant Sierra, Wetlands Dawn

February 13, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Seen from foggy Central Valley wetlands, dawn comes to the sky above the Sierra Nevada

Driving toward this spot in the pre-dawn hours I encountered the usual winter tule fog as soon as I left the main highway for the narrow back roads that criss-cross the agricultural lands. I figured that it would be a foggy morning out in the wetland with the birds once I got to my destination, but instead the fog thinned as I arrived and, to my surprise, I could see the pre-dawn sky. I stopped, quickly set up my camera for bird photography… and immediately began photographing landscapes!

A bit of thin fogged hugged the ground a ways off in the distance. (And later it would glide back in and cover this area to the point that visibility was near zero.) Above the fog, the ponds, and the scattered trees the silhouette of the Sierra crest stretched from north to south. When I looked closely, I could pick out familiar peaks along the distant skyline. A few birds — geese and cranes — began to fly over, and I made this photograph as the sky lit up just before sunrise.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Flight, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Into Dawn Sky

February 2, 2017 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A flock of Ross’s geese takes off into foggy Central Valley dawn sky

I was back in my favorite haunts in California’s Great Central Valley near the end of January, looking for migratory and other birds to photograph, along with the expansive landscapes of this region. After five years of awful drought, the Valley is now full of water again. Ponds are full and many fields have become ponds, and creeks and rivers are flowing once again. It is a beautiful thing to see! The birds are there in abundance — yet, somewhat ironically, the wet conditions have allowed them to find what they need across a larger, more friendly landscape, and sometimes they seem to not be where I expect to see them.

However, on this day there were plenty of birds — more than I’ve seen previously this year. The big flocks of (mostly) Ross’s geese are back and the sandhill cranes are active, too. My drive there was foggy, but it cleared up enough at dawn to give me some colorful sky. Bird action such as that in this photograph is pretty much a constant out here — but often not where I am with my camera! Photographing a lift off from the pond this closely, in such perfect dawn light, with subtle color in the sky depends on a lot of factors all coming together, and most of them are out of my control. The best I can do is to try to be in the right place when and where it might happen and to be ready to react quickly.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: dawn

Birds, Fog, Dawn

Geese, Fog, Dawn

Distant Sierra, Wetlands Dawn

Into Dawn Sky

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