Tag Archives: grass

Meadow, Hills, and Fence

Meadow, Hills, and Fence

Meadow, Hills, and Fence. Calero Hills, California. April 18, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Soft morning light on spring meadow and pasture as fog burns off in the Calero Hills.

I made this photograph on my Saturday morning hike as the fog began to break up over these rolling hills in the Calero Park of southern Santa Clara County. I walk past this scene frequently as it is on a trail that I hike quite often – but this soft light on spring plants is special since it only lasts a few weeks each year.

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

keywords: calero, hills, park, county, santa clara, morning, light, fog, mist, cloud, fold, rolling, flower, grass, fence, meadow, pasture, tree, oak, ridge, mountain, gully, creek, bottom, california, usa, scenic, landscape, nature, stock, spring

California Buckeye, Morning Fog

California Buckeye, Morning Fog

California Buckeye, Morning Fog. Calero Hills, California. April 18, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Weak sunlight filters through fog to illuminate a solitary California buckeye tree.

Since the peak of the “impossibly green season” is happening right about now here in Central California, I started this weekend by visiting two of the oak/grassland parks very close to my home. This photograph was made as I started a short hike at Calero County Park, an area of open grassland and oaks spread across rolling hills. It was very foggy when I started out but soon the sun began to break up the fog. In this photograph the fog was beginning to thin and the buckeye tree is lit by soft filtered light coming through the fog.

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

keywords: california, buckeye, tree, branch, leaf, trunk, alone, solitary, solo, grass, meadow, fog, mist, spring, green, light, sunlight, nature, landscape, scenic, travel, usa, santa clara county, calero, park, hills, morning, stock

Near Leidig Meadow, Lower Three Brothers – Yosemite Valley

Near Leidig Meadow, Lower Three Brothers - Yosemite Valley

Near Leidig Meadow, Lower Three Brothers – Yosemite Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. November 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Forest-rimmed near Liedig Meadow and the lower face of the Three Brothers, Yosemite Valley, California.

Actually, I’m not certain I have the name of this meadow quite right*, but the closest named area I can find on my maps of the Valley is listed as Leidig Meadow – so I’m sticking with this until I get a better answer. This is one more photograph from my November 2008 rainy weekend in The Valley – and like many of the others from this shoot it features diffused overcast light and colors altered by two days of steady rain.

Update: Several people have confirmed that this area is known as Leidig Meadow. Now I just need to determine the origin of that name.

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

keywords: yosemite, valley, national park, leidig, meadow, three brothers, face, lower, forest, trees, autumn, fall, season, plant, grass, green, brown, golden, southside, drive, rocky point, sentinel beach, trunk, leaves, rock, cliff, arch, scenic, travel, landscape, nature, california, usa

Winter Cattails and Grasses

Winter Cattails and Grasses

Winter Cattails and Grasses. Calero Hills, California. February 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Winter cattails and grasses at Calero Hills, California.

At the start of today’s “photo hike” at Calero Park I walked to Castillero Pond. I had the 100-400 lens on my camera, anticipating that there might be some birds to photograph at the pond. When I arrived there weren’t really any interesting bird subjects, but I went ahead and used the long lens to shoot these plants alongside the pond, since the long focal length does a fine job of isolating a subject and throwing the background out of focus.

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

keywords: cat, tail, cattail, grass, blade, stem, leaf, bokeh, blur, seed, fuzz, sun, light, morning, brown, golden, castillero, pond, calero, hills, county, park, santa clara, nature, foliage, landscape, winter, stock, california, usa, dry, drop, droplet