Tag Archives: haze

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm

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Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm
A plant-covered sand dune with a sand storm in the background.

Plants, Dunes, and Sand Storm. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A plant-covered sand dune with a sand storm in the background.

Perhaps this photograph is about the sand dunes. Perhaps it is about the raging sand storm. Perhaps it is about the plants on the small dunes in the foreground. Or about all of the above. The conditions were, by objective standards, pretty atrocious. A gale was whipping up the sand and blowing it toward the dunes and then up into the sky. You might wonder why the foreground seems relatively clear. The wind was blowing from slightly behind me and most of the dust was being picked from the dunes and blown away from me.

About two months earlier I had photographed in almost this exact spot, and the green transition of these plants on this visit was striking — back at the end of January they looked very dry. But now, even though there has not been all that much rain in this part of Death Valley in the interim, the seasonal greening was underway.

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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Badlands, Desert Valley

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Badlands, Desert Valley
The view across eroded badlands hill and up a broad wash toward desert mountains.

Badlands, Desert Valley. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

The view across eroded badlands hills and up a broad wash toward desert mountains.

This scene has intrigued and challenged me for quite a while, and this is certainly not the first time I have photographed it. I is near an area where I frequently photograph in Death Valley, and for a variety of reasons I typically arrive at this spot after completing work in nearly locations. The view opens suddenly from a high perspective at a turn in the route, and I hardly ever pass without stopping.

As can be the case in the desert landscape distance, atmospheric contact, lighting, and subjects of low contrast are both pluses and minuses. Landscapes that may look well-defined in person are not always easy to translate to a photograph. This time I decided to render this subject in monochrome, which gives me more control over some of these parameters and try to register the depth of the scene.

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 to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Butte, Morning Haze

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Butte, Morning Haze
A desert butte and mountins stretch into the distance in morning haze, Death Valley National Park.

Butte, Morning Haze. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A desert butte and mountains stretching into the distance in morning haze, Death Valley National Park.

With all that haze, this may not be your typical Death Valley photograph, but it is my favorite kind of light. I love haze, backlight, and scenes full of interesting shapes, curves, and lines. I’m also fond of including elements that are barely visible, as is the case with the furthest hills beyond the rounded butte.

The photograph is an example of the “don’t forget to look behind you” school of photography. We naturally focus on the main subject in front of us, the one that brought us to a place. But frequently something else is lurking nearby, often to one side or behind us. That was the case here, as this scene was almost 180 degrees opposite the very different subject that I had been photographing before I turned around to see this view.

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 | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Red Cliffs, Dawn

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Red Cliffs, Dawn
Red Cliffs, in dawn light, in front of Death Valley and distant desert mountains.

Red Cliffs, Dawn. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Red Cliffs, in dawn light, in front of Death Valley and distant desert mountains.

During my January visit to Death Valley National Park I ended up exploring this scene over a period of several days. My ability to travel more widely in the park was limited by storm-related road closures, so I took a closer look than usual at areas nearer main attractions. The first time I was in this area I missed the good light but saw potential, so I returned later on scout more thoroughly. (That led to a lovely, solitary hike up a long wash that doesn’t seem to get many visitors.) I went back for a third time, arriving well before sunrise and photographing until the light became less compelling.

There’s a whole lot of “Death Valley stuff” in this photograph. The foreground includes eroded badlands terrain with multi-colored soils. Above this a band of rugged red cliffs catches the day’s first direct sunlight. Further in the distance immense salt flats are still in shadow, and near the limits of visibility another big mountain range rises through the atmospheric haze.

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 | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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