Tag Archives: granite

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Lakeshore, Trees, Benches

Image Leave a comment
Lakeshore, Trees, Benches
A series of tree-covered rocky benches rises from the shore of a small subalpine lake

Lakeshore, Trees, Benches. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A series of tree-covered rocky benches rises from the shore of a small subalpine lake

As I have mentioned previously, one of the pleasures of photographing from a backcountry base camp is that it provides opportunities to get to know the landscape more intimately. I have the opportunity to revisit locations in different or better conditions, and over the course of the visit I learn more about the landscape as I explore it.

This spot is a case in point. All of us went into this general area — perhaps a 10-15 minute walk from our camp — starting near the beginning of our stay. It is a complex landscape of small lakes, cut through by granite benches, and covered with meadows and an open forest of small trees. Our first approach was by the most obvious trail, but later in the week we began to discover alternatives. One of those alternative approaches brought us to this spot, where an elevated camera position permitted a view down toward the edge of this grass-line lake and beyond to the series of rising hills covered with trees.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook |
Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Outcropping, Reflection

Image Leave a comment
Outcropping, Reflection
A shoreline granite outcropping is reflected in the still surface of a subalpine lake

Outcropping, Reflection. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A shoreline granite outcropping is reflected in the still surface of a subalpine lake

I have recently written about and shared a few images from this summer’s 9-day Sierra backcountry photographic adventure. The short story is that a group of us, as we do every year, headed into a backcountry location, set up a base camp, and photographed the surroundings for about a week. The “founders” of the group have been doing this for close to two decades — I gradually became part of the group about a decade ago or so.

One of the many advantages of working this way — setting up a base camp and working outwards from it — is that we can more thoroughly explore and photograph the surrounding area. When backpacking I would mostly pass through locations, rarely staying for more than a night. This gave me an evening and a morning, but with a base camp I can can “work” an area for a full week, often returning to a location to find better conditions. This year our camp was within a short walk of many small, intimate lakes. The daily question was often, “Which lake this time?” I visited the lake in this photograph several times, and each time learned more about it. On this occasion, in the evening, the water was still and reflected the form of the granite outcropping on the other side of the lake.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Timberline Lake And Reflections

Image Leave a comment
Timberline Lake And Reflections
A timberline lake in 20 Lakes Basin reflects the face of a tall granite ridge

Timberline Lake And Reflections. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A timberline lake in 20 Lakes Basin reflects the face of a tall granite ridge

This scene gets up close and personal with the crest of the Sierra Nevada, along the boundary country just northeast of Yosemite National Park. The lake is just below the tree line, so the forest here is very sparse and the trees small. Just beyond the lake the terrain becomes so rocky that the trees basically end.

I hiked here early on mid-July morning, starting at dawn and having the trail and this lake almost entirely to myself — at the height of Sierra summer tourist season! (One group did pass by on a nearby trail, but otherwise no one else was there.) The reflections in this lake of the steep and rocky terrain beyond are marvelous, and I considered a square format crop that eliminates the “distracting” sky and peak — and I still may do that!

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Slabs and Domes, Clearing Storm, Evening

Image Leave a comment
Tuolumne Meadows in evening light as afternoon storm clouds begin to clear

Slabs and Domes, Clearing Storm, Evening. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Tuolumne Meadows in evening light as afternoon storm clouds begin to clear

This was an evening of dramatically evolving light, alternately brilliant and blah! Thunderstorm weather in the Sierra is such a tricky and transitory thing, and there are frequent swings from “meh” light to astonishing light. When the storm conditions are at their peak, the light can be very flat and “gray,” with little contrast — and it can be a challenge to find ways to make effective photographs. (Not impossible, mind you… just challenging!) But these conditions often bear the seeds of remarkable and dramatic light, especially as the storms begin to clear. Breaks in the cloud cover often send beams of light — frequently warm, saturated golden hour light — across parts of the landscape, and this light may highlight specific features against a backdrop of contrasting darker scenery and dramatic clouds.

These effects can appear (and disappear) quite quickly, and landscape photography in these conditions becomes anything but a leisurely and meditative process. In fact, it is more a matter of “photograph now or it will disappear!” In truth, things happen so quickly that they often disappear before there is time to set up a camera and make a photograph. The light on the foreground meadow and its protruding granite slabs and boulders came in at a low angle from the west, here more clearing was taking place. I was fortunate in that it not only highlighted the foreground formation but also lit up the more distant granite domes, which stand out against their darker surroundings.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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