Tag Archives: dry

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert

Detail, Zabriskie Point Folds in Morning Light

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Detail, Zabriskie Point Folds in Morning Light

Detail, Zabriskie Point Folds in Morning Light. Death Valley National Park, California. April 3, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light on variously angled curving ridges below Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park.

This is another in the series of photographs of details of the geology surrounding Zabriskie Point in Death Valley National Park – for the most part the interesting patterns of folded and twisted earth rather than the grand epic landscape to the west.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: zabriskie, point, fold, gully, angles, wash, ravine, morning, light, sun, death valley, national park, california, usa, desert, dry, landscape, scenic, travel, stock, shadow, geology, colors, shape, form, hill

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

Aguereberry Point, Afternoon Light

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Aguereberry Point, Afternoon Light

Aguereberry Point, Afternoon Light. Death Valley National Park, California. April 3, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Looking west from Aguereberry Point across high peaks of Death Valley National Park toward the Sierra Nevada.

In April of 2008 I spent a number of days photographing in and around Death Valley National Park. On the third day I finished driving down through Titus Canyon in the afternoon and found myself with some extra travel time, so I headed up to Aguereberry Point where there is a high and austere view of Death Valley. After photographing the Valley and watching the last light leave the valley floor I headed back to the parking area and pointed my camera west toward the setting sun and the distant ridges of the southern Sierra Nevada range.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: aguereberry, point, death valley, national park, mountains, desert, dry, geology, geography, sunset, afternoon, light, black and white, ridge, atmospheric recession, valley, sierra nevada, distant, landscape, scenic, travel, california, usa

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Winter Cattails and Grasses

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Winter Cattails and Grasses

Winter Cattails and Grasses. Calero Hills, California. February 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Winter cattails and grasses at Calero Hills, California.

At the start of today’s “photo hike” at Calero Park I walked to Castillero Pond. I had the 100-400 lens on my camera, anticipating that there might be some birds to photograph at the pond. When I arrived there weren’t really any interesting bird subjects, but I went ahead and used the long lens to shoot these plants alongside the pond, since the long focal length does a fine job of isolating a subject and throwing the background out of focus.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: cat, tail, cattail, grass, blade, stem, leaf, bokeh, blur, seed, fuzz, sun, light, morning, brown, golden, castillero, pond, calero, hills, county, park, santa clara, nature, foliage, landscape, winter, stock, california, usa, dry, drop, droplet

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert

Zabriskie Point Abstract

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Zabriskie Point Abstract

Zabriskie Point Abstract. Death Valley National Park, California. April 2, 2007. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates hills and gullies below Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park, California.

Another relatively abstract photograph of the amazing folded hills and gullies seen from Zabriskie Point in Death Valley National Park. Here the sun has risen just enough to catch the upper portion of all of the small hills, but not high enough to light the shaded areas in the gullies between them. The idea here was to crop the scene tightly enough that nothing would be visible besides the shapes and textures of this small portion of the terrain.

It is easy to be overwhelmed by the bizarre and amazing nature of the Zabriskie Point view – it is simply a place like no other and the view is otherworldly. But after going back a few times I have started to be able to see past the most obvious elements of the “grand scene” and I find some of the details interesting. (One of my favorite photographs from this area is not of a subject that most photographers would look at; it is a small – for lack of a more picturesque description – mud hill right next to the walkway between the parking lot and the official viewing area.)

keywords: zabriskie, point, fold, hills, gully, shadow, erosion, form, structure, geology, ridge, desert, dry, wash, death valley, national park, california, usa, abstract, landscape, scenic, travel, stock