Tag Archives: forest

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Valley Light, Autumn

Image Leave a comment
Valley Light, Autumn
“Valley Light, Autumn” — Autumn light on trees in El Capitan Meadow, Yosemite Valley.

By now this meadow and its trees and beautiful light seem like old friends. Over the years I have photographed these subjects many times — in winter snow, autumn color, spring greenery, and even in the hot, crowded summer months. Many things have changed during that time. A few trees have fallen and their trunks and branches decay, and a few young, new trees have appeared. Access has become more difficult as the Park Service tries to protect the vegetation, a change about which those of us who remember the “before times” have mixed feelings.

Ironically, the beautiful light streaming down through a gap in the upper cliffs and lighting the trees and meadows is emphasized here by smoke. It being autumn when I made the photograph, it was the season for managed fires, set in order to clear out excess undergrowth and promote a more healthy forest. But still, it was a bit disappointing to arrive in the Valley and find it full of smoke — until I noticed the beautiful effect it had on this 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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Autumn Path

Image Leave a comment
Autumn Path
“Autumn Path” — A trail, covered by fallen leaves, winds through autumn forest, Yosemite Valley.

Yosemite Valley can be uncomfortably crowded, but there are ways to find quiet and tranquility. One is to avoid summer, with its heat and oppressive crowds — all three of the other seasons are more interesting, and less busy. Or get away from the prime iconic sights and sites. Often it takes little more than a few minutes of walking to find yourself in a place with a tiny fraction of the number of people you see in the crowded places.

I have a few favorite such places, typically along quieter trails in less busy parts of the Valley. This one tracks along a peaceful section of the Merced River, and for a week or two in autumn it is filled with subtle autumn colors and the ground is covered with fallen leaves. Yes, there is a trail in this photograph, but you may have to look closely to spot it under all of those leaves!

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Slopes

Image Leave a comment
Aspen Slopes
“Aspen Slopes” — Aspen covered slopes on the east side of the Sierra Nevada.

People new to the autumn aspen “scene” in the Sierra Nevada often ask, “Where is the best place to find the aspens in the Eastern Sierra?” My answer may sound facetious, but it is accurate — “In the Eastern Sierra!” Sure, there are particular places where everyone goes to look and photograph, and many of them are spectacular. But the trees are everywhere. Drive across any Sierra Pass (slowly!) and you’ll find them. Head up or down US305 and watch (mostly) to the west, and you’ll see tons of them. Head up into most any east side canyon and they will be there.

In some other places large swaths of trees change virtually at the same time — in New England, for example. But things are more varied in the Sierra, and the color sustains itself for almost a month. It starts at the highest elevations and more in the north than the south. Then, generally speaking, it works its way from high to low and from north to south — through there are some variations here and there caused by exposure and availability of water. The trees in this photograph are in the transition zone between the dry high desert terrain and the first conifer forests as the elevation rises.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Grove and Pond

Image Leave a comment
Aspen Grove and Pond
“Aspen Grove and Pond” — Autumn aspen trees on the shore of a small Eastern Sierra Nevada pond.

I came to this spot rather late in the day, though that was partially intentional. I knew that rows of aspens here can glow in backlight in the late afternoon, and there is a short window of opportunity between the time that the sun moves behind them and when it drops behind the surrounding peaks. I arrived and quickly went to work, since I had my eyes on several of the groves.

These trees grow in a row on the far side of a beaver pond. You wouldn’t know it from the photograph, but it can be a bit difficult to find a camera position with a clear view across the water — lots of stuff grows along the near shoreline, and much of it is so wet and muddy that it isn’t easy to get to the water’s edge. When I made the photograph the far slopes of the upper valley had already fallen into shadow, and before long the light would disappear from these trees, too.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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