Tag Archives: fall

Meadow Plants, Early Snow

Meadow Plants, Early Snow - Meadow plants bend beneath the weight of an early October snowfall, eastern Sierra Nevada, California.
Meadow Plants, Early Snow - Meadow plants bend beneath the weight of an early October snowfall, eastern Sierra Nevada, California.

Meadow Plants, Early Snow. North Lake, Eastern Sierra Nevada, California. October 8, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Meadow plants bend beneath the weight of an early October snowfall, eastern Sierra Nevada, California.

I made this photograph on a very cold early October morning high in the eastern Sierra after a series of early season snow storms had passed over the Sierra. The gravel road to North Lake had apparently just opened again on the morning I arrived, and few other people were there. I was there to photograph autumn aspen color, but the opportunity to photograph snow scenes so early in the season distracted me.

As I walked the road skirting the edge of North Lake, I passed by meadows that were completely covered by new, untouched snow. Here and there a few small plants managed to poke up from beneath the white blanket.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Corn Lilies, Late Summer

Corn Lilies, Late Summer
Corn Lilies, Late Summer

Corn Lilies, Late Summer. Yosemite National Park, California. September 18, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Late summer corn lilies begin to take on fall colors, Yosemite National Park.

Corn Lilies are among my favorite Sierra Nevada high country plants. During their short summer growth period they begin as corn-cob-shaped shoots that spring up in wet areas as the snow melts out. They quickly grow into lush green plant in thick bunches that are intensely green and which have beautiful curving shapes and textures. (This makes them a very popular subject for photographers!) As the season continues they begin to show some “flaws” from insect damage and so forth, and at some point in August they begin to lose their green color, often beginning to pick up some brown coloration that can be nearly golden in the right light. At some point in September even the most durable specimens begin to be striped with yellow, brown, or even black and they finally simply fall over.

I found this bunch very close to our campsite in the back-country of Yosemite National Park around the middle of September. Although you cannot see it in this photograph, this clump of corn lilies had fallen over in a most interesting way – they all fell pointing away from the center of the group! So these plants are in the middle of falling over, and are lit by early morning light diffused by forest cover.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | FacebookGoogle+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Evening Clouds, Tuolumne River Valley

Evening Clouds, Tuolumne River Valley
Evening Clouds, Tuolumne River Valley

Evening Clouds, Tuolumne River Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. September 20, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Evening clouds from dissipating afternoon thunderstorms in early evening light above the Tuolumne River Valley, Yosemite National Park.

I recently posted a photograph of wildly colorful sunset clouds made a bit earlier on this same evening this past September as I was concluding a week-long photography backpack into the Yosemite back-country. By the time I had the photograph shown here, the most psychedelic of the sunset colors had begun to fade (though the reddish coloration on the granite is from that light) and I turned my attention to the thinning clouds.

Not much earlier, these clouds had been part of a massive line-up of huge thunderstorms over Yosemite high-country. I had escaped the rains since I was now in the relative lowlands around Glen Aulin, but it was clear that these had been some powerful localized storms. But as typically happens on many Sierra evenings, the giant storms soon dissipated and the clouds thinned to transparency as the day came to an end. By the time I made this photograph only a bit of direct sunlight was striking the tops of the highest remaining clouds.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | FacebookGoogle+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Final Weekend of Canon Fall Promotion on Lenses, Bodies, Speedlites

Canon currently has an “instant savings” promotion on a number of lenses and speedlites through November 23, 2011. Here is a list of most of the qualifying products, with links to site sponsor B&H Photo. In many cases the “instant savings” price is considerably lower than the B&H “import” version of the product. When you purchase from B&H via these links you help support this blog. Thanks!

Lenses

Camera/Lens Kits
Speedlites

When you purchase from B&H via these links you help support this blog. Thanks!

(Double check the links to check for availability and read instant savings promotion details.)