Tag Archives: forest

Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Volcanic Ridge, First Light

July 7, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Dawn light illuminates the Jeffrey pine covered ridge of a volcanic dome in the Mono Craters complex, California.

I have a favorite personal spot where I often stop on my way to photograph at South Tufa at Mono Lake. It is spot that you would likely pass right by since, save for a bit of a panoramic view, there is nothing immediately impressive about it, and because you would probably be on your way to someplace else, namely the formations at South Tufa.

On this late June morning I took a break from photographing in the Tuolumne/Tioga Pass area to shoot a bit around Mono Lake, where I had it in mind to shoot certain high desert subjects that I’ve worked on in the past. As I shot those other subjects I’ve often looked up at this particular ridge, been impressed by it, and wondered how to make a photograph of it. When I pulled up at this spot I first intended to shoot a scene that appears to the west, but it turned out to not be quite what I imagined it might be on this morning. Ah, well – that happens! So I turned my camera in a different direction and photographed a somewhat different subject as dawn approached with some very interesting clouds in the sky to the east. As I worked on this I kept glancing up at this volcanic ridge, thinking that the clouds behind it might silhouette the trees along the skyline… but still finding the light too flat and boring. I actually made a photo or two, but wasn’t enthusiastic about it. I turned back to the other subject. A few minutes later I looked back up at this ridge and saw that the first light of early morning sun was glancing across the ridge and lighting up the Jeffrey pines that grow on its slopes. I quickly pivoted around and made a few exposures of the scene in the “good light.”

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM at 168mm
ISO 100, f/8, 1/15 second

keywords: jeffrey, pine, forest, mono, county, craters, northwest, coullee, upper, dome, ridge, skyline, dawn, light, morning, early, sky, clouds, cinder, pumice, rhyolite, scree, rock, volcanic, geology, landscape, scenic, travel, california, usa, north america, mountain, hill, stock

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

Shoreline Trees and Boulder, Morning

July 6, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Morning light glances across the surface of Tenaya Lake, sprinkled with pollen, and illuminated shoreline trees and boulder, Yosemite National Park, California.

Shortly after the sun cleared the surrounding peaks, the morning light slants across the pollen-covered surface of Tenaya Lake to illuminate two small trees and their larger neighbors, along with a small peninsula and some shoreline boulders. This is an area in which I have photographed in the past, but this time I arrived much earlier in the day and the water level was still considerably higher than later in the season due to the heavy snow melt run-off that had peaked only a week or two earlier.

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.

(Basic EXIF data may be available by “mousing over” large images in posts. Leave a comment if you want to know more.)

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

Cascade Creek – Trees and Mist

June 30, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

The spring torrent of cascade creek fills its narrow canyon with mist behind trees growing among the rocks.

I’ve been sitting on this second photograph of Cascade Creek, shot back near the beginning of June, trying to make some decisions about cropping and so forth. I finally have decided that I think I like this somewhat unusual (for me, at least) square format for this image.

Cascade Creek crosses beneath Big Oak Flat Road as it descends toward the Merced River and Yosemite Valley. For a few weeks during the spring snow melt season it can turn into a powerfully flowing stream, whose power is amplified by the steep descent and narrowness of the rock channel it follows.

(Basic EXIF data may be available by “mousing over” large images in posts. Leave a comment if you want to know more.)

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

Flooded Tuolumne Meadow, Mounts Dana and Gibbs, Evening

June 20, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

Evening light on snow-covered Mounts Dana and Gibbs reflected on the surface of the flooding Tuolumne River, Tuolumne Meadows.

Tioga Pass opened this year on June 5, a bit later than usual. The late opening was due to a slightly greater than average amount of precipitation this past winter and a cold and wet May. As a consequence, there was a lot of snow on opening day, and lots and lots of run-off water.

I made this photograph in the evening in Tuolumne Meadows as the late light was just leaving the tops of the trees below Lembert Dome and beginning to color the summits of Mounts Dana and Gibbs with warm “golden hour” light. The Tuolumne River was so full that it had flooded large sections of the meadow – parts looked more like “Tuolumne Lake” than Tuolumne Meadow. Because the meadow was still covered with snow, the surface of the flooded areas was full of ice and slush. The overall appearance was closer to that of a winter scene, even though the calendar said early June.

(Basic EXIF data may be available by “mousing over” large images in posts. Leave a comment if you want to know more.)

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.