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Black Oaks, Smoke

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Black Oaks, Smoke
Smoke from a management fire surrounds autumn black oak trees in Yosemite Valley.

Black Oaks, Smoke. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Smoke from a management fire surrounds autumn black oak trees in Yosemite Valley.

Smoke drifted in and out as I photographed trees in this meadow. The light changed as beams passed through a gap in the ridge and moved across the landscape. I moved from position to position, trying to keep up with the unfolding scene. Landscape photography can be less of the sedate and quietly thoughtful experience than some assume. We work with the conditions we are given, and sometimes they are quite dynamic. Recently I shared another photograph of this same group of trees, made at almost the same time. Even disregarding the slightly different compositions, a comparison shows how much the light and haze changed between the two exposures.

How we regard fire in a place like this is a complex subject, especially for those of us who were brought up during the decades when Smoky the Bear told us that the only good fire is no fire at all. It turns out that Smoky was wrong, and too much fire suppression allowed extremely flammable undergrowth and detritus to build up, and when fire did inevitably arrive it consumed forests whole, utterly destroying them in many cases. New, enlightened policies recognize that fire is a natural part of forest ecology, and that it keeps the forest healthy. The smoke in this photograph comes from a managed fire, designed to clear out the built-up undergrowth. Yet, while I know this is a good thing, I can’t say that I enjoy working in the smoke!

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: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Black Oaks, Drifting Smoke

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Black Oaks, Drifting Smoke
Seasonal fire smoke drifts through a grove of Yosemite Valley black oak trees in morning light.

Black Oaks, Drifting Smoke. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Seasonal fire smoke drifts through a grove of Yosemite Valley black oak trees in morning light.

This photograph comes from my early-November one-day marathon up-and-back photography visit to Yosemite Valley, timed to photograph the fall colors. Since I start these trips hours before sunrise, I can never be sure of what conditions I’ll find in the Valley. I knew it would be clear weather with relatively warm temperatures… but I did realize until I arrived and saw the smoke that there would be management fires in the Valley. These fires are a good thing — they reduce the dead vegetation that can lead to extremely destructive fires — but they can make photograph difficult. As I arrived in the Valley it was obvious that I’d be dealing with smoke!

At this time of year the colors of backlit black oaks trees can glow, so I headed to a place where I know that there are some good specimens and excellent opportunities for that backlight. Arriving there, I discovered that the fire was right next to and almost surrounding the location. This could have been a very bad thing, but I soon realized that the light passing through the smoke was glowing beautifully and producing light beams. I found a spot with this composition and waited for the light to move across this spot.

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: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Autumn Light and Color

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Autumn Light and Color
Light through seasonal haze illuminates autumn trees in Yosemite Valley.

Autumn Light and Color. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Light through seasonal haze illuminates autumn trees in Yosemite Valley.

I have a few seasonal rituals, things I do and places I go every year. Visiting Yosemite Valley during its fall color season is high on the list. The Valley has color, but it comes later than the Eastern Sierra aspen transition. So I made one of my epic one-day up-and-back visits earlier this week. The plan: up hours before dawn, a four-hour drive to arrive just after sunrise, a few hours of morning photography, midday naps, more late-day photography… and then the four-hour drive back home again..

It is exhausting, but it is also exhilarating to see the peak color there once again, to renew my acquaintance with familiar subjects, and to investigate a few new ones. I know this specific location quite well — and if you visit the Valley much you probably know it, too. A gap in the Valley’s cliffs to the south-southwest allows beams of light to reach the valley floor and progress across the meadow and trees. I made a plan to be there for this light, and I made this photograph just as the light passed across this group of black oaks.

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: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

El Capitan Meadow Trees

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El Capitan Meadow Trees
Tall trees stand at the end of El Capitan Meadow, against a backdrop of giant cliffs in hazy light.

El Capitan Meadow Trees. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Tall trees stand at the end of El Capitan Meadow, against a backdrop of giant cliffs in hazy light.

By Yosemite view standards, this is distinctly non-iconic, at least superficially. (Actually, the meadow is pretty well-known as a place to view climbers on El Cap, but this photograph looks the other direction.) But one of the great themes of this remarkable Valley is the juxtaposition of relatively common things (a meadow and some trees) with the uncommon (a cliff face erupting thousands of feet above the Valley floor.) At the upper right corner you can spot a few remaining late-May snow patches left over for this historic precipitation season.

I suspect that the first point of attention for most people in a scene like this is the powerful vertical of the two tall trees. But I see a whole lot of relatively horizontal layers in this scene. It begins with the nearly flat and very green meadow at the very bottom. Above that is a layer of (mostly) black oak trees. They are backed by a layer (or arguably several layers) of tall conifers. Finally, behind everything else, is the shadowed, vertical wall of this 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.