Tag Archives: hills

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Spring Wildflowers and Rain

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Spring Wildflowers and Rain
A carpet of spring wildflowers extends across a broad Californai valley as rain falls from passing clouds.

Spring Wildflowers and Rain. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A carpet of spring wildflowers extends across a broad California valley as rain falls from passing clouds.

While visiting Death Valley near the end of March we made a spur-of-the-moment decision to modify our return to the Bay Area by adding an extra travel day and visiting Carrizo Plain National Monument. In wet years this typically dry place erupts in spring color as wildflowers carpet the valley and surrounding mountains — and this being a very wet year a visit seemed appropriate. We made it to the Carrizo, though the full story of weather and detours will have to wait for a later post.

California’s exceptional 2022-23 weather was on view during our visit. It was supposed to be sunny and dry, but we passed through some pretty heavy downpours — and one of those showers is visible in the distance in this photograph. Here a carpet of wildflowers extends across the broad valley toward distant hills.

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

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.

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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

Distant Mountains

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Distant Mountains
The east escarpment of the Panamint Range rises above Death Valley Hills in morning light.

Distant Mountains. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

The east escarpment of the Panamint Range rises above Death Valley Hills in morning light.

As I keep saying when I post Death Valley photographs (yeah, broken record…) the distances there are immense. As a result, atmospheric haze often has a distinct effect on photographs of the larger landscape. This can be challenging — the effect on colors is not always attractive. But it also can enhance the sense of depth in the image. A friend of mine refers to the effect as “atmospheric recession,” though I understand that the better known term may be “atmospheric perspective.” The colors shift, contrast decreases, and fine details can be diminished.

This photograph clearly makes use of the effect. I was photographing across Death Valley from an elevate position with a very long focal length. The low foreground hills are a good distance away, but not so far that they are strongly affected by haze — thus the greater contrast and especially the dark shadows. But the lower slopes of the Panamint are many miles away, and the haze has a big effect of their appearance.

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

Across the Canyon

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Across the Canyon
Morning light on a desert canyon and eroded hills, Death Valley National Park.

Across the Canyon. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Morning light on a desert canyon and eroded hills, Death Valley National Park.

Weeks ago I thought I was “done” with the photographs from my January visit to Death Valley National Park. As usual, I was wrong. I almost always end up returning later to files that I think I’ve picked over, and I inevitably find something that I missed. (I have a theory about this that has to do with how we see photographs right after we make them versus how we view them later on with some aesthetic distance.) I made this photograph on a morning when thick haze to the east softened the light.

The impetus for this return to the file archive was a posted by a friend who was photographing in the park just before the first day of spring. I recognized her camera position as being very close to a place that I had used in January, and when I went back to my files to verify my hunch I ended up plowing through the archive again. The fact that this photograph sees the light of day now is the result of multiple bits of serendipity. I was there to photograph an entirely different subject, and I only spotted this scene by turning away from that subject. I might never have “found” it again if it hadn’t been for the coincidence of seeing my friend’s photograph.

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.