Tag Archives: desert

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Evening Road, Death Valley

Image Leave a comment
Evening Road, Death Valley
“Evening Road, Death Valley” — A gravel road descends toward desert playa under evening skies, Death Valley

Sights like this become familiar if you spend much time exploring Death Valley National Park — a deserted gravel track heading off into the arid landscape with hills in the distance. There are variations: a narrow track following a streamed winding between high walls, a road crossing high desert mountains, and others. This particular example is not all that isolated — though it doesn’t get a lot of visitors.

It was late in the day and we had hurried back down into the Valley in hopes of low-angle sunlight on the terrain between the road and the far hills. That did not happen, and the light was somewhat flat. But the same clouds that blocked the late-day sun also filled the sky above the desert terrain in this photograph.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (Click the title to see the full article and to comment if you are viewing it on the home page.)

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Receding Desert Ridges

Image Leave a comment
Receding Desert Ridges
“Receding Desert Ridges” — Desert ridges recede into the distance, Death Valley.

The desert is a fine place to photograph basic geological forms and effects of light. At first glance this may appear to be a monochromatic photograph, but it is just that the colors are so soft and subtle, being muted by the desert atmospheric haze. That haze is also responsible for the lighter tones of the distant mountains — an effect known as “atmospheric recession.”

Now, weeks after I made the photograph, I can only recall the location in general terms. It certainly was not an iconic spot nor a location where most people would stop. But these patterns speak to me, and I’m fascinated by the conjunctions and relationships of lines and by the layers of tonality in a such scenes.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (Click the title to see the full article and to comment if you are viewing it on the home page.)

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Dawn Light

Image Leave a comment
Dawn Light
“Dawn Light” — Red dawn light on ridgetop boulders, Panamint Range.

I share this photograph as much for illustrative purposes as for its value as a photograph — it is, in part, a record of a remarkable light phenomenon that too many people never experience. Indeed, it can be difficult to rise hours before dawn, travel to a remote place in the darkness, and stand on a mountain ridge in the winter. But once you do it a few times and see what happens, you will likely be hooked.

We arrived at a high prominence in this desert mountain range in morning twilight. A band of intense red pre-dawn light glowed along the ridge of the mountains to our east, and the clouds began to pick up this color as we set up our camera gear. A moment later the first direct light from the rising sun struck these rocks, turning them blood red.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (Click the title to see the full article and to comment if you are viewing it on the home page.)

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Window Formation, Desert Mountains

Image Leave a comment
Window Formation, Desert Mountains
“Window Formation, Desert Mountains” — Desert mountains beyond a teardrop-shaped window in a rock wall, Death Valley.

Death Valley National Park is full of popular and famous attractions that are quite accessible — Mesquite Dunes, Badwater, Zabriskie Point, to name a few. But there’s far more to this immense park than the popular spots. There are equally worthy things to see everywhere, including in some rather remote locations. This is one of those sights, and the odds are that you would be alone here if you were to visit.

The feature is an impressive tear-drop shaped “window” in a wall of rock that stands on the inside of a sharp bend in the canyon. Beyond, further canyon walls rise above the wash, and in the far distance we see the highest peaks of the Panamint Range, including 11,000’+ Telescope Peak.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (Click the title to see the full article and to comment if you are viewing it on the home page.)

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.