Tag Archives: fog

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Point Sur, December Sky

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Point Sur, December Sky
High clouds, brilliant reflecting light on the water, and fog at Point Sur.

Point Sur, December Sky. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

High clouds, brilliant reflecting light on the water, and fog at Point Sur.

There is a lot of “accepted wisdom” about photography that turns out to be not quite true when you stop and consider your actual picture-making experience..Yesterday I was having a conversation with a photographer friend (Hi, Charlie!) about various things, including the way that some photographs don’t quite make sense to us until we return to them long after making the original exposure. If one ideal is to pre-visualize the photograph perfectly (and I do believe in the value of pre-visualizing), then it would seem that being surprised months or years later to find that a forgotten image works is hard to explain. But it happens — quite a lot, actually. One of my ideas about this is that at first we are too invested in what we believe the photograph to be that we are unable to look beyond that and see what it actually is.

All of this is a long way of getting to a point about this photograph. When I first viewed it right after the day I visited the Big Sur coast, I had a hard time with certain aspects of the light and the color and, to a lesser extent, the way it was framed. Originally I settled on a black and white interpretation. (Yes, a neat way of copping out about the color issues!) Recently I went back and looked at it again, and this is the result. I ended up with a slightly different crop, some work to lighten portions of the scene, and some new thinking about color of clouds and sky and about how to handle the bright yet low contrast reflections on the water out near the horizon.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Headlands and Fog

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Headlands and Fog
Thin fog and brilliant autumn sun along the Big Sur coast.

Headlands and Fog. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Thin fog and brilliant autumn sun along the Big Sur coast.

Today’s photograph takes me even deeper into the high key and minimalist landscape frames of reference. For a long time I have been intrigued by the question of just how little detail could be present in a photograph, and the conditions on this morning gave me an opportunity to extend the experiment to the subject of the Big Sur coast.

The light, weather, and geography here often collaborate to produce some remarkable conditions. The potential for various sorts of fog is a given along the edge of the Pacific Ocean. In many sections of this coast the headland ridges descend toward the water repeatedly over huge distances. And because the coast curves a bit toward the east as you travel south, by late morning the sun may be almost directly ahead of you as you compose photographs that include the ocean. I think of this as “the light that is too intense to look at.” Imagine the sun in front of you, the haze glowing brightly, and the details of the scene becoming almost invisible, leaving only the light, atmosphere, and outlines of 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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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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: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

December Surf, Big Sur Coast

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December Surf, Big Sur Coast
Huge December surf, fog, on the rugged Big Sur coast.

December Surf, Big Sur Coast. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Huge December surf, fog, on the rugged Big Sur coast.

This photograph is a square format counterpart to one I shared a few days ago from the same location, photographed on the same wild December day. As I stood on a rock cropping along the Big Sur Coast, huge waves rolled in, alternately revealing and burying the offshore rocks and producing prodigious spray that made the atmosphere above the water almost opaque. Beyond, above, and slightly inland the sun was up, and its backlight reflected off the water and made the fog glow. To say that this was an impressive scene would be an understatement!

I’m intrigued by the various ways we see (perceive, understand, interpret) color. In certain kinds of atmosphere and light, the colors can drain from the scene, leaving us with a virtually monochromatic effect. As was the case with the previous photograph from this spot, this is a color photograph, believe it or not. It was almost impossible to tell in the other photograph, but in this one you may be able pick up a difference between the blue tones in areas of the water and the slightly warmer tones in the backlit fog.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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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: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Winter Surf and Fog

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Winter Surf and Fog
Raging winter surf and low fog along California’s rugged Big Sur coast.

Winter Surf and Fog. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Raging winter surf and low fog along California’s rugged Big Sur coast.

Originally I thought that I might be back at this coastal area or another here in California today. But I’m trying to time things to the light and some incoming “interesting weather” here (potential electrical storms), and the light wasn’t quite cutting it when I got up very early today. It is still possible that I might head out that way before the day is over. California is experiencing a flow of monsoonal moisture today. This is not uncommon in the southern part of the state, but it is somewhat rare to see this here in Northern California. Stay tuned!

This photograph comes from last December, on a visit to the Big Sur coast during my favorite time of year, when the likelihood of big surf and interesting atmosphere and light increases. On this morning the huge surf was enhancing a low fog later right along the coast. (It was sunny just a bit further inland.) The sun was trying to burn off the fog, and the backlight made the atmosphere glow. It isn’t really obvious in this photograph, but the surf was absolutely huge, at times completely overwhelming the offshore rocks. One more thing… I’ll bet you think this is a black and white photograph. It is actually a color photograph!

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question.

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