Tag Archives: fall

Cancer Doc Heals Through Photography

I just saw a link to this story about Radiation Oncologist Dr. Bernard Lewinsky and his photography on a Southern California “ABC 7” television news program. The link goes to a short text story and a video about Dr. Lewinsky.

As soon as I saw the text link in my browser I knew that he must be the same fellow photographer I shared a bit of time with last Autumn while photographing fall colors at North Lake in the eastern Sierra. When I’m photographing and I see another photographer at work, I try to guess whether the fellow photographer will welcome the conversation or be distracted from his work. He seemed to be finishing up – and he was in a spot where I wanted to photograph… ;-) – so I wandered over and said, “hi.”

While we spoke a bit about equipment – it seems to be the universal icebreaker for photographers – the conversation soon to shifted to other things, including the beauty of the location and his work as a radiation oncologist. He told me how he works with “very sick people” and that he uses his photography to create a more peaceful and calm environment for them.

I’ve spoken with many photographers in the field, but my meeting and conversation with Dr. Lewinsky has stuck with me.

Unfortunately, I cannot find a web link to his photography, but the story says he has compiled a book of his photographs – which look quite impressive from what I can see on the video – and copies are available for sale with the proceeds to go to the American Cancer Society. For more information Dr. Lewinsky’s office can be reached at (818) 884-1683.

(The linked photo is mine, and was taken as Dr. Lewinski and I talked.)


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.

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Yosemite Valley Tunnel View #2

Yosemite Valley Tunnel View #2
Yosemite Valley Tunnel View #2. Yosemite National Park, California. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Black and white photograph of the narrow space between two buses, several people waiting by the buses, and a group getting its self-portrait at the Yosemite Valley View parking lot.

Beyond… Yosemite Valley, Bridalveil Fall, Sentinel Dome, Half Dome…

keywords: California, National Park, Sierra Nevada, Spring, Yosemite, valley, view, parking, lot, bus, door, windows, shadow, people, woman, wawona, tunnel, bridalveil, fall, three brothers, sentinel, half, dome, tourists, travel, irony, wheel, stock

Evening at Inspiration Point – Yosemite Valley

Evening at Inspiration Point - Yosemite Valley
Evening at Inspiration Point – Yosemite Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. April 27, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Evening at Inspiration Point, the original “Valley View” – Yosemite National Park, California.

Another photograph from my late April hike up to Inspiration Point to watch the day end in Yosemite Valley. Inspiration Point is the original “Valley View” that was used before the construction of Wawona Tunnel, when the road out of the Valley followed a different and steeper route. This beautiful spot is a 1.3 mile hike up from the overrun Wawona Tunnel View location, and a million miles away in terms of atmosphere. At Inspiration Point you may experience this sublime scene in solitude rather than accompanied by traffic noise and exhaust fumes.

keywords: California, National Park, Sierra Nevada, Spring, Yosemite, inspiration, point, valley, view, el capitan, half, dome, clouds rest, evening, sunset, tree, forest, oak, sky, light, bridalveil, fall, sentinel, landscape, stock, scenic, travel, usa

Morning, Merced Canyon and Bridalveil Fall

Morning, Merced Canyon and Bridalveil Fall
Morning, Merced Canyon and Bridalveil Fall. Yosemite National Park, California. May 16, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Black and white photograph of morning light on the Merced River canyon leading into Yosemite Valley with Bridalveil Fall in the distance.

If you enter the park via state route 120 and head toward Yosemite Valley, after passing the exit to Foresta you cross a ridge and begin the descend toward the Valley. I almost always stop at this location right after the longer of the three tunnels on this section of roadway and enjoy the view straight up the Merced Canyon toward Bridalveil Fall and a point where the Valley bends to the right.

The more I see this photo, the more I like it. Yosemite is, obviously, a place with quite a few famous and iconic photographic subjects, but I don’t think this view – at least not in these conditions – is one of them. But it is a view that many of us know well, as it is along the main northerly entrance to the Valley and is one of the first open views down into the Merced River canyon and the Valley itself, albeit the lower section.

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