Tag Archives: grove

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

Aspen Transitions

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Aspen Transitions
“Aspen Transitions” — A small stand of old aspen snags surrounded by young trees transitioning to autumn colors, Eastern Sierra Nevada.

Photographers sometimes debate the “best” moment to photograph autumn aspen color. Some say it is when the first trees start to show golden color. Others prefer the stage where every color from green through yellow, orange, and red is visible. Then the green leaves fall and only the wild autumn color remains. But there’s also something compelling about the post-peak stage when leaves have fallen and stark white trunks are more visible. This photograph is from the “every color”stage. You can follow the “aspen color rainbow” from the closest green trees to intensely colorful trees farther up the valley.

This color range is not the only “transition” in this photograph. Aspens do not last forever — old trees die and new ones quickly spring up. I’ve gone back to burned groves months after a fire to see new shoots already emerging from the roots of the burned trees. Look closely at this photograph and you’ll see a row of old aspen snags near the front of the scene. Perhaps they were burned in a fire years ago, but now they are almost obscured by the colorful new trees.

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

Aspens in Green and Yellow

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Aspens in Green and Yellow
“Aspens in Green and Yellow — A grove of tall aspen trees in transition from summer green to autumn gold, Eastern Sierra Nevada.

Recently I wrote that I have not been able to visit the Eastern Sierra this season (as of this writing) while I work through a health issue. It is disappointing to miss the aspen color season this year, but I’m fortunate to have a huge archive of photographs from previous autumns. Recently I dug back into that archive and found some older photographs that I never worked up for public presentation. This is one of them.

Sometimes the trick with aspen photography, and fall color photography in general, is finding ways to make some kind of compositional sense out of wild colors and abundant details. I often stop and stare at forests like this one, trying to find the section in which some sense of order may emerge. It is usually there, but it can take a while to find it. Here I think that the combination of the large gesture of yellow leaves and the underlying patters of vertical trunks makes it work.

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

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

Monterey Cypress, Fog

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Monterey Cypress, Fog
“Monterey Cypress, Fog” — Summer fog drifts across monterey cypress trees at Point Lobos State Reserve.

This was a wonderful morning at Point Lobos in more than one way. It was my escape from the oppressive inland heat — here is was 58 degrees with thick fog rolling across the landscape. It was not at all crowded, at least not at first, since I managed to arrive when the reserve opened. I spent the morning ambling slowly along trails near bluffs along the north shore, where Monterey cypress trees cling to the edges of the cliffs above the ocean.

This photograph was more of a challenge than it might appear. The textures and colors of the trees were quite attractive, but the gently glowing fog was quite a lot brighter. This is one of those photographs that I expose for what I intend to do in post, and not to try to “capture” the literal scene in the camera. I was faced with the (common) challenge of an extremely wide dynamic range, so I exposed for the bright fog and planned to bring back the details in the shadows among the trees in post.

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.

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Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Wetland Pond and Trees, Dawn

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Wetland Pond and Trees, Dawn
“Wetland Pond and Trees, Dawn” — A line of trees along a levee between wetland ponds silhouetted against winter Central Valley sunrise sky. with the Sierra Nevada in the distance.

I made this photograph in a quiet corner of a place where I often photograph in winter. Trees grow along a levee separating a small pond from a much larger body of water where migratory birds sometimes land. I had a brief window of sunrise light on this morning, as clouds from an arriving weather system moved overhead and on toward the east, darkening the sky except for a narrow strip above the distant Sierra Nevada.

I have photographed these trees before, though in quite different light. Birds often are found here, though not typically the larger geese and cranes. (By good luck, a line of geese passed along the trees as I made the exposure, but you might have to look for them.) More common birds are the various “little brown birds,” plus some raptors and the occasional owl.

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.