Tag Archives: evening

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

Mount Conness, Early Evening Thunderstorms

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Mount Conness, Early Evening Thunderstorms

Mount Conness, Early Evening Thunderstorms. Yosemite National Park, California. September 9, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early evening thunderstorms above Mount Connesss, as seen from near Vogelsang High Sierra Camp, Yosemite National Park, California.

As most of California was heading back home on Labor Day, I was heading to the Sierra Nevada for a late-season four-day pack trip into the Yosemite National Park back-country around the Fletcher Lake/Vogelsang High Sierra Camp area. I got off to a very late start and didn’t get on the trail up Lyell Canyon until nearly 5:00 p.m., so it was dark when I finally arrived at the Ireland Lake trail junction to make camp and fix dinner – and, a bit later, to be serenaded by coyotes.

The next day I headed up the Ireland Lake trail to spend a night at Evelyn Lake and then move the following day to Fletcher Lake, the location of the Vogelsang High Sierra Camp. The situation at Fletcher Lake exemplifies much of what I love about late-season Sierra backpacking. During the high season this is a very popular place: a few dozen people stay at the facilities of the high sierra camp and many more backpackers camp nearby – it can be a very busy place! But the high sierra camp shuts down after Labor Day (they were dismantling the tents when I arrived) and the number of backpackers drops dramatically.

But for a photographer, many other special things happen at this time of year as well. While some may lament the passing of the rich green plants of these meadows, I love the golden color that lasts for a few weeks between early September and the coming of the first snow only weeks later – and the spots of green you do find are even more special. The weather cools and there is something special about the light that I can’t quite define – perhaps it is the lower angle of the sun or maybe some change in the weather conditions.

This photograph was made in the early evening on the day I arrived at Fletcher Lake. My usual practice is to set up camp and have an early dinner and then grab the camera equipment as “golden hour” approaches and go to work. I had been focused on the camp chores and hadn’t noticed these clouds until I picked up the camera! Here two large cells, perhaps beginning to dissipate as the day ended, were towering above Mount Conness and the Sierra crest.

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.

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Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Detail, Brick Buildings

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Detail, Brick Buildings

Detail, Brick Buildings. Mare Island Naval Ship Yard, Vallejo, California. August 30, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Details of the walls, windows and roof of brick buildings at the historic Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

This may be the final photo in the recent Mare Island series for a while. (Or maybe not… ;-)

This photograph shows the details of some of the old brick buildings not far from the power plant. They were photographed in twilight as I was wandering around prior to beginning the real night photography work. Although it is difficult to see in this small jpg, there is some really wonderful light on the small structure atop the roof that comes from the open view towards the sunset to the west. Also a bit hard to see here – but perhaps visible in a larger print – are the puffs of fog that were just starting to blow in off of the water and which catch a bit of the reddish early evening light.

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.

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keywords: brick, wall, detail, window, roof, pipe, blinds, round, skylight, vent, distressed, old, historic, metal, frame, sill, mortar, broken, dilapidated, mare, island, naval, shipyard, minsy, building, architecture, industrial, sky, fog, cloud, evening, warm, light, angle, structure, california, vallejo, usa, stock

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Mare Island Power Plant, Dusk

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Mare Island Power Plant, Dusk

Mare Island Power Plant, Dusk. Mare Island Naval Ship Yard, Vallejo, California. August 30, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The power plant and surrounding buildings at the historic Mare Island Naval Shipyard, photographed at dusk as fog rolls in overhead.

While I mainly go to the Mare Island Naval Ship Yard to do night photography, I like to start before dark when the evening light is still present. I have photographed this old power plant, with its iconic and widely visible smoke stack, in the past – both at night and at dusk. This building faces to the west and is open to the late light.

Previously when I have photographed it in these circumstances I’ve tried to include more of the surroundings – the neighboring buildings, the road in front, the railroad tracks that pass by and head into the distance. This time I swapped out the wide lens for a telephoto and decided to work for images that are more tightly cropped and which focus more on details of the building.

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Yosemite

Two Trees Against Boulder, Ten Lakes Basin

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Two Trees Against Boulder, Ten Lakes Basin

Two Trees Against Boulder, Ten Lakes Basin. Yosemite National Park, California. August 25, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two small trees growing against the face of a large boulder in the Ten Lakes Basin, Yosemite National Park, California.

Earlier in the day I had wandered down from “lake three” to “lake two” in Ten Lakes Basin (where there are apparently actually seven lakes – go figure!). My goal was partly just to see one more of the lakes, but I also wanted to scope out some photographic possibilities during the day so that when I returned later in the evening I would be able to get to work more quickly. This pair of trees was on my “maybe” list, so when I returned in the evening I photographed the subjects on the “definite” list first and then turned my attention to a group of trees growing closely around a large glacial (I assume) boulder.

Whatever the aesthetic result, this was not an easy photo to do on a technical basis. Since it was late and the lake was in deep shade behind a large mountain ridge to the west there was not a lot of light to work with, and what light there was trended a bit strongly toward blue. On top of that the wind was blowing like crazy, making camera stability a bit of an issue – not to mention the problem of shooting waving tree branches with the long exposures the conditions required. In the end I resorted to a regular strategy that included making quite a few exposures, trying to time them for brief pauses in the wind, and being willing to accept a small amount of motion blur.

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
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