Tag Archives: fog

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Two Bridges and Fog, San Francisco Bay

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Two Bridges and Fog, San Francisco Bay - Morning fog floats above the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Bay Bridge, and Yerba Buena Island.
Morning fog floats above the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Bay Bridge, and Yerba Buena Island.

Two Bridges and Fog, San Francisco Bay. San Francisco, California. July 14, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning fog floats above the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Bay Bridge, and Yerba Buena Island.

This is certainly not a unique viewpoint for photographing the Golden Gate (and the bridge named after it) and the rest of San Francisco Bay… but I keep returning anyway. While the principal physical elements of the scene – Marin headlands, bridge, the City, bridges, Yerba Buena Island, the East Bay – the conditions of light and atmosphere change constantly. The variations in the fog alone could be the subject of a book, I’m sure! It can come from the west (summer) or the east (winter), it can be high or low (or both at once!), thin or thick, opaque or luminous, static or moving quickly, illuminated by sun or by artificial light at night, and more.

On this morning it was a combination of several of those. There was a sort of thin fog/haze at the lower levels, but the thicker fog was quite high, above the bridge towers and even a bit above my position in the Marin headlands. The fog was beginning to break up, starting to the east and gradually moving westward toward the coast, and when I made this photograph large beams of diffused light were coming through the fog deck and lighting areas around the San Francisco waterfront and even on the bay waters. Lining up the elements of the photograph wasn’t terribly hard once I found the composition I liked, but then I waited for boats for move into or out of the frame (see a large freighter passing between towers of the distant Bay Bridge) and for the light to appear in (as close to) the right places (as one can hope for).

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.

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Pier, San Francisco Bay, Morning

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Pier, San Francisco Bay, Morning - An old pier along the Embarcadero, San Francisco Bay, with structures of the Port of Oakland, California across the water.
An old pier along the Embarcadero, San Francisco Bay, with structures of the Port of Oakland, California across the water.

Pier, San Francisco Bay, Morning. San Francisco, California. July 8, 2011. © Copyright 2011 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

An old pier along the Embarcadero, San Francisco Bay, with structures of the Port of Oakland, California across the water.

I wonder how long it will take for me to feel that I have exhausted the possibilities of this walk along San Francisco’s Embarcadero? Here is (yet another!) morning photograph made it this area, once again with what is perhaps my favorite light in this location – the early morning glow of backlit fog/haze over the waters of the Bay.

I made this photograph on a very calm summer morning when there waters of the Bay were almost completely smooth, at least until a bit of boat traffic began to come by and a breeze came up. Interjecting itself into the left side of the frame is one of the old piers along this section of the waterfront. In the far distance, all the way on the other side of the bay and muted by the morning haze, are giant cranes used at the Port of Oakland.

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.

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

Cloud Shrouded Cliffs and Snow, Yosemite Valley

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Cloud Shrouded Cliffs and Snow, Yosemite Valley - Late season clouds shroud snow-covered cliffs high above Yosemite Valley, California.
Late season clouds shroud snow-covered cliffs high above Yosemite Valley, California.

Cloud Shrouded Cliffs and Snow, Yosemite Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. April 15, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Late season clouds shroud snow-covered cliffs high above Yosemite Valley, California.

Among my very favorite conditions in Yosemite Valley are those of winter or late-spring days when there is snow along the cliffs high above the Valley and clouds float along the cliff tops alternately revealing and hiding trees, cliffs, and granite spires. The story behind this photograph is, as is often the case, one of being distracted from the obvious thing by some other small thing that I could have overlooked if I hadn’t looked in the right direction at the right moment.

I was in the Yosemite Valley area for a day, primarily to shoot wildflowers in Merced Canyon below the park. Between my morning and evening shooting along the Merced, I headed up into the Valley to see what I could find. Frankly, although it is always beautiful to be in the Valley, I wasn’t seeing much of anything that inspired me to make photographs. I enjoyed my time there, but eventually decided to go to a slightly different area to see what I could find. On my way back to the Valley from that other place, I passed through Wawona Tunnel, had some extra time, and decided to at least pull out briefly at tunnel view and have a look around. The scene is always tremendous, with the astonishing Valley and all of its impossible features spread before you – but it isn’t always worth trying to turn this into a photograph. I’m spoiled enough that I don’t always even take the camera out when I stop there, and this was one of those days. I left my gear in the car and just walked to the overlook to, well, look for a minute before driving on. I have a habit of looking all around when I’m in such a place since sometimes a subject can be found that is not the primary iconic thing. So I looked around… and high above and way off to the side I saw the clouds gathering around a few of the granite spires, with an occasional beam of light shining through. Ignoring the Valley itself, I now quickly returned to my car, put a long lens on the camera, put the camera on the tripod… and from the back of my car and in the parking lot (sigh… ;-) I made a series of photographs of these fog-shrouded snowy cliffs.

I understand that this weekend a number of photographers, including quite a few that I know, will assemble in the Valley for a “photo walk.” I won’t be there, since I have another thing that I have to attend to elsewhere. So consider this photograph to be my “best wishes for a great shoot.” Oh, and it is also a personal photographic celebration of the fact that Tioga Pass will open on Monday, making the high country my home away from home for many days over the next few months.

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 | Facebook | Google+ | 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.

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

Rocky Islands, Fog, and Surf

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Rocky Islands, Fog, and Surf - Brightly sunlit fog blankets rocky islands and high surf, Point Lobos.
Brightly sunlit fog blankets rocky islands and high surf, Point Lobos.

Rocky Islands, Fog, and Surf. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. March 29, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Brightly sunlit fog blankets rocky islands and high surf, Point Lobos.

The conditions were wildly changeable on this early afternoon at Point Lobos. I had originally been shooting at a more protected location in the park where it was mostly sunny, though with the sun partially obscured by high, thin clouds. After finishing with my shooting in that location I decided to head out toward the more exposed coastline just south of the “Point” itself before leaving, and when I got there I found that the fog back was perhaps only a few hundred yards offshore and was already beginning to obscure some of the rocks.

I hurried a bit to the south to a point where the view might be clear toward Bird Island and the Carmel Highlands, thinking that I might get some long distance shots before the fog closed it or, better yet, as it came in. Sure enough, I arrived at a good spot to work from while the rocks were still clearly visible against the backdrop of the fog, which was brightly lit from behind by the sun. I set up my tripod, mounted a very long lens, and attached the camera, and looked back at the view to find… that the rocks had virtually disappeared as the fog moved in more quickly that I expected. Still, by waiting for momentary clearing in the mist, I was able to make a few very foggy photographs of these large off-shore rocks, almost obscured by the incoming fog.

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 | Facebook | Google+ | 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.