Tag Archives: flower

Photographs: Nature

California Buttercup

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California Buttercup
“California Buttercup” — A California buttercup spring wildflower, Almaden Quicksilver Park.

Previously I have mentioned my habit of returning to seemingly unremarkable places that are special to me — perhaps a particular rock in the Yosemite high country, a certain tree in the Central Valley, an overlook along the Big Sur coast, one small Eastern Sierra aspen grove, and so on. If you visited these places (at the right times) you might think, “Well, yes, that is nice — but it isn’t iconic.” And you would be right. They are not iconic — they are just special to me. This flower photograph comes from one of those places.

There is a park in the South San Francisco Bay Area where I have hiked for decades. Over the years I’ve probably walked pretty much every trail within its boundaries. One trail descends into a small, shady gully where wildflowers grow in April. I go back every year, specifically to find, small plots of particular flowers. I made this photograph on my most recent walk to this place.

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.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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

Photographs: Nature

Red Tulip

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Red Tulip
“Red Tulip” — A red tulip blossom opens.

I have to confess to a degree of ignorance about flowers. Many people (including my wife, photographer Patricia Emerson Mitchel) can walk into a garden and name every flower. I recognize flowers by shape, size, color, and season, but I’ve never been able (or willing?) to learn all of their names. So this was just a “very intense red flower” (and a big one, too) until I looked at the buds and realized that it was a tulip. I think…

The color of this flower was amazing. The red was the most intense I think I’ve seen in a flower. As a photographer, that sounds an alert about a technical issue — blowing out the red channel in the digital capture. It also makes me concerned about how accurately the color can be reproduced in a photograph, as some of the very bright and intense colors don’t map perfectly to the digital color space. Having said all of that, this is just about how I recall the flower.

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.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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

Photographs: Macro, Photographs: Nature

Fringed Yellow Tulip

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Fringed Yellow Tulip
“Fringed Yellow Tulip” — A yellow fringed tulip flower about the blossom.

Although I’m no expert on flowers, I am a fan of photographing them, especially tulips as they transition from buds to newly-blossomed flowers. (My lack of expertise is something of a family joke. “those are tulips, right?”, I might ask every spring.) This was one of the last we photographed on an early spring visit to a local garden where thousands of them are growing. It is a “fringed” tulip, a type with a remarkable and complex fringe along the edges of the petals.

The fringe impresses me, but is less interesting to me as a photographic subject. I’m attracted to the smooth forms of the unfolding blossoms more than to those details. This one is at the fascinating stage where it has taken on is full coloration and is on the verge of opening and turning into an actual flower.

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.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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

Photographs: Nature

Pink Tulip

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Pink Tulip
“Pink Tulip” — A pink tulip blooms in late winter.

Patty is the real flower and macro photographer in our household, but sometimes I tag along and give it my best shot. There is a large garden on the grounds of an old San Francisco Peninsula estate that is a favorite of hers — she has a membership and visits regularly to photograph whatever is in season. In early March that meant it was tulip season, so I accompanied her for a morning of photographing these (and a few other kinds of) flowers.

We had great conditions for this subject. Direct, harsh sunlight is not your friend when photographing the subtle colors, shapes, and textures of these flowers — and this morning featured overcast, a bit of light rain, occasional muted sunlight, and lots of shady areas. I photographed this tulip in wonderful soft light that tends to fill in shadows and reveal details that would be missing in high contrast light.

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.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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