Tag Archives: field

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

Trees, Fog, and Geese

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Trees, Fog, and Geese
Ross’s geese fly through early morning fog and among trees in California’s Central Valley

Trees, Fog, and Geese. Central Valley, California. January 1, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Ross’s geese fly through early morning fog and among trees in California’s Central Valley

A small group of us met before dawn on New Year’s Day, as we do each year, at a location in the California Central Valley, with the plan of welcoming the (literal!) dawn of the new year in the company of a few photographer friends and few tens of thousands of feathered friends.

It is typical for there to be tule fog in parts of the Central Valley on winter mornings, and we encountered some as we drove. However, we were surprised to find that it had pretty much cleared by the time we arrived, and we actually got to see the sun rise above a distant fog bank. But not long after this the fog began to move back in — first isolated pockets formed above creeks and ponds, and soon it began to collect in long streamers passing overhead. I bracketed a flock of Ross’s geese between a nearby solitary tree (with a couple of hawks that you may spot if you look closely) and a further line of cottonwoods as the fog began to thicken.

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 and Amazon.
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Photographs: People, Photographs: Photographers

Photographer Franka M. Gabler

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Photographer Franka M. Gabler
“Photographer Franka M. Gabler” — Franka M. Gabler in the field photographing in the San Joaquin Valley

I often photograph alone — ultimately, most photography of the sorts I do tends to be a solo thing — but sometimes I do get together with other photographers (and occasionally painters and assorted others) in the field. In fact, some of us have a bit of a tradition of meeting in the Central Valley to welcome the new year in the company of one another and of many thousands of migratory birds! Among other things, these get-togethers are a fine opportunity to photograph one another!

I made this photograph of friend and photographer Franka Mlikota Gabler on New Year’s Day this year, as all of us were on a wild goose chase — literally!

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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

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Geese, Field, Twilight

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Geese, Field, Twilight
Ross’s geese fly above winter fields at twilight

Geese, Field, Twilight. San Joaquin Valley, California. February 15, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Ross’s geese fly above winter fields at twilight

The edges of the day are the most magical times in these Central Valley wetlands — from the thick morning tule fog that hides everything from sight and mutes sound, to the hazy evening twilight as the light decreases and takes on the dusk colors. A huge flock of geese was mostly settled in on this newly mown corn field, but every so often they would suddenly take flight and pass back and forth above the fields before settling down once again.

By the time this group flew past the light was failing quickly. I had a long lens on my camera, hardly the right thing for sharp photographs in deep twilight, and even pushing my ISO left me with very low shutter speeds. At this point, rather than fight, I go with the long shutter speeds and have a few final minutes working with the long exposure blur, tracking the flock but letting their motion and the background blur into abstract forms.

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 and Amazon.
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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Flight, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Cranes and Geese, Winter Fog

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CranesGeeseFogMNWR20150213.jpg
A foggy San Joaquin Valley winter landscape filled with geese and cranes

Cranes and Geese, Winter Fog. San Joaquin Valley, California. February 13, 2015. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A foggy San Joaquin Valley winter landscape filled with geese and cranes

This photograph comes for exactly two weeks ago, when we took a detour through a favorite migratory bird area on our way to Yosemite for the opening reception of a show. Driving into the San Joaquin from the west it looked like most of the fog was gone — and I wanted fog! — but we took a chance and headed out into this area, which seems to be one of the most consistently foggy around. And luck was with us — we drove into the tule fog just before out goal. And when we arrived we found stupendous conditions of fog and birds.

A very large bunch of birds had settled in on a recently cleared field this is very close to the access road. Among there were a few egrets, more white-fronted geese, yet more sandhill cranes (as many as I’ve seen here at one time), and then thousands and thousands of Ross’s geese. Within minutes the fog began to thin and areas of light began to move among the birds. The birds were in constant motion, with one or another group taking of at every moment. At times something would cause them to go on alert (note the heads held straight up) and then, quite often, to suddenly take to the air in wild, flapping clouds of birds.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist 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.