Tag Archives: hill

Oaks and New Grass, Evening

Oaks and New Grass, Evening

Oaks and New Grass, Evening. Calero Hills, California. January 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early evening on the first day of 2009; winter oak trees and new grasses in the Calero Hills, California.

Vertical format photograph from the same location as the previous landscape orientation photograph posted earlier. This was shot in slightly foggy conditions near dusk in along a favorite trail in the Calero Hills.

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:oak, trees, grove, forest, meadow, grass, brown, gold, green, new, trunk, branch, fog, mist, ravine, hill, slope, calero, santa clara, county, park, central, california, usa, nature, landscape, scenic, travel, season, stock

New Years Day 2009: Oak Trees and New Grass, Winter

New Years Day 2009: Oak Trees and New Grass, Winter

New Years Day 2009: Oak Trees and New Grass, Winter. Calero Hills, California. January 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early evening on the first day of 2009; winter oak trees and new grasses in the Calero Hills, California.

As in my tradition, I started the new year with a hike today – in this case a short hike in my favorite local Calero Hills. It was late in the day and foggy when I got there, so the conditions were what I think of as typical California winter weather. These trees are on a hillside on a trail that I frequently travel. This is a typical California scene in that you see simultaneously what would be regarded as two separate seasons in many other places – the last colorful leaves of autumn and the first new grass of spring.

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: oak, trees, grove, forest, meadow, grass, brown, gold, green, new, trunk, branch, fog, mist, ravine, hill, slope, calero, santa clara, county, park, central, california, usa, nature, landscape, scenic, travel, season, stock

Storm Cell over the Pacific – Rocks, Surf, and Bluff

Storm Cell over the Pacific - Rocks, Surf, and Bluff

Storm Cell over the Pacific – Rocks, Surf, and Bluff. Near Davenport, California. December 15, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Coastal rock formations glisten in the rain as an evening squall approaches a shoreline bluff on the Pacific Coast north of Davenport, California.

A landscape orientation photograph of more or less the same scene I posted earlier this week, though this photograph includes a bit of the distant bluff a bit further south along the coast and the early sunset light is just barely beginning to illuminate the base of the rain cell near the right side of the frame.

keywords: bluff, cliff, hill, rock, formation, pool, evening, squall, storm, cell, rain, cloud, downpour, shower, pool, tide, wave, surf, shore, coast, beach, strata, reflection, sun, light, pattern, moss, pacific, ocean, coast, sea, wet, santa cruz, davenport, highway, one, scenic, weather, landscape, seascape, travel, stock

Fog and Surf, Point Lobos

Fog and Surf, Point Lobos

Fog and Surf, Point Lobos. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. November 30, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Black and white photograph of winter surf, fog, and coastal hills at Point Lobos, California.

When I heard that there would be huge surf along the coast today I headed straight for the Monterey Peninsula and Point Lobos. I was not disappointed! The first – for me at least – winter surf of the year brought huge offshore swells that crashed against and over the rocky shoreline at Point Lobos. A light coastal fog, augmented by spray from the surf, completed the picture.

I used a 9-stop neutral density filter and a polarizing filter on a long focal length lens so that I could get a very long exposure that would allow the waves and surf to diffuse to produce the misty effect you see here.

Obviously, our eyes don’t get to make 10 second exposures during the daylight! I think of a photograph like this one as being “subjectively accurate” rather than objectively accurate. In other words, while this exact image can’t exist in our real world experience, I think it evokes something about our response to such a scene that is true.

keywords: point lobos, fog, mist, cloud, surf, wave, ocean, sea, bay, rock, stacks, hill, mountain, forest, shore, state, park, preserve, reserve, california, usa, monterey, peninsula, big sur, coast, landscape, seascape, scenic, travel, stock, black and white