Tag Archives: dusk

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

Sunset Sand Storm

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Sunset Sand Storm
“Sunset Sand Storm” — A sunset sand storm partially obscures sand dunes in Death Valley National Park.

This is another photograph from the tremendous wind and sand storm that blew though on our last afternoon in Death Valley at the end of March. These storms are common there, and if you spend much time in the park you have a good chance of experiencing one. If the prospect sounds exciting, well, it is… but it can also be very uncomfortable and even dangerous, and the romantic notion of wandering the wind-whipped dunes during a sand storm is quickly trumped down by the reality of flying sand and dust.

I positioned myself just outside the maelstrom and put a long lens on my camera. The winds were so strong — likely in the 50mph range — that my tripod was useless, especially with the long lens. I resorted to handholding the camera, switching on image stabilization, bracing myself against the nearest solid object, and trying to time exposures for brief moments when the gale diminished a bit.

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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


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

Dunes at Dusk

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Dunes at Dusk
Soft dusk light on low sand dunes, Death Valley National Park.

Dunes at Dusk. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Soft dusk light on low sand dunes, Death Valley National Park.

This subject is going to appear in several photographs from our late-March visit to Death Valley National Park. Some of them will focus on the astonishing power of a dust storm that swept through near the end of the trip. However, this one comes from a different evening, a quiet one with gentle winds and soft light.

The conditions make all the difference when photographing dunes, More than almost any other sort of landscape, the appearance of sand dunes varies greatly depending upon intensity, quality, and color of light. Here I photographed in the early twilight just after the sun had dropped behind distant mountains in the west. The dunes picked up the pink of the sunset, the blue of the sky, and the softness of indirect light.

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Winter Tree, Evening Sky

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Winter Tree, Evening Sky
A bare winter cottonwood silhouetted against dusk sky, California Central Valley.

Winter Tree, Evening Sky. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A bare winter cottonwood silhouetted against dusk sky, California Central Valley.

This photograph is an example of why I always try to remember to not get so focused on the primary subject that I forget to look around. I was here to photograph migratory birds, and at this point in the evening they were putting on quite a show, rising and flying in giant circles directly in front of us in the evening light. But when I took a moment to look behind I saw the trees and the colorful evening sky.

This was an “interesting” day in weather terms. I didn’t actually have very high hopes for it as no fog was forecast (and I love to photograph these subjects on tule fog day) and early clouds from a incoming weather system were predicted to turn the sky gray, with extreme winds predicted for the afternoon. All of that happened, but it turned out that the sky cleared again in the afternoon, and the winds may have slowed the birds a bit is struggled to overcome its strength.

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

Geese, Before Sunrise

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Geese, Before Sunrise
Migratory geese in pre-sunrise sky about the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada crest.

Geese, Before Sunrise. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Migratory geese in pre-sunrise sky above the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada crest.

On these days photographing migratory birds I arrive in darkness thirty to forty-five minutes before dawn. After driving several hours in the dark, the first thing I do is get out of the car. The first impression I always have is the sound of the birds as they get ready for morning fly-out. It is a wild, raucous thing and it always makes me smile. Before long more and more of the birds take to the air as the first light arrives. The birds flying across this brilliant early morning sky are geese.

This photograph would not have been possible on most days photographing in California’s Great Central Valley, and it depended on a particular conjunction of weather conditions. On the foggy days when I prefer to visit, of course, none of this would have been visible at all. On other clearer days the sky color is much more muted. On this visit a thin dome of clouds covered much of the sky, stretching far to the east beyond the crest of the Sierra Nevada. The first dawn light lit these clouds in a display of intense color.

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.