Tag Archives: island

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

Cove and Beach Near Davenport, Evening

December 13, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Black and white photograph of two people standing on a bluff above the Pacific Ocean and overlooking a cove and beach near Davenport California.

Although I have continued posting photographs at a rate of one per day, I have only managed to get into the field to shoot a few times since early November. Yesterday I found time to make it over to the Pacific coast late in the day. I was looking for the foggy, misty, and somewhat gray conditions that are common this time of year, at least when the air has not been cleared by a passing storm. I wasn’t disappointed. While the sky was clear overhead, the air was very moist – my equipment became damp from condensation as I worked.

Since my time was a bit limited – the sun was going down! – I went more or less straight to this spot where I have photographed in the past. (At first I considered going a bit further north to shoot from high bluffs, but I realized that the shot I had in mind from that location would be better earlier in the day.) When I arrived the sun was just dropping below the horizon, but that is what I wanted – I wasn’t looking for one of those brilliant “sun dead ahead” shots. I wanted the post-sunset soft light and enough darkness that I could work with longer exposures.

I parked and walked the short distance to this spot at the head of this cove. The composition is sort of tricky. The “right” (in my view) arrangement of the offshore rock and the surrounding bluffs can only be seen from a very small area – too far right or left and elements start to collide. In addition I wanted that little bit of more distant shoal along the right side of the frame to suggest that the coast continues, and I wanted that flat bit of bluff with a bit of post sunset light at the left. It was a bonus when the two people – probably photographers! – showed up on the top of the left bluff and thoughtfully posed for me as I made long exposures!

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

Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Black Point and Negit Island, Mono Lake Shoreline

December 4, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The north shoreline of Mono Lake leads from foreground offshore tufa past the base of Black Point to Negit Island and beyond.

You would never know it from this black and white photograph of the austere desert landscape around Mono Lake, but I was there to photograph… fall aspen color! Earlier in the day I had photographed further south along the eastern slopes of the Sierra, gradually working my way north with a plan of heading back to the “west side” over Tioga Pass at the end of the day after doing a last bit of fall color photography near Conway Summit and Dunderberg Road in late-afternoon light. By mid-afternoon I had made it to Lee Vining for an espresso stop at Latte Da and a break to check some email and so forth. Soon it was time to get into position for the low angle sun that would light the aspens a bit later, so I headed north out of town.

The road north from Lee Vining skirts the west shore of Mono Lake. Before leaving the lake there is a turn-off to another road that passes along the north shore of Mono Lake and can take you to places such as Black Point. I often stop at this turn-off since it provides a slightly elevated view of the larger terrain around the lake including the low hills to the east and Mono Craters and higher mountains to the south. On a typical blue sky mid-afternoon I might not make any photographs, but something about the light and the forms of the shoreline, Black Point, and Negit Island leading into the distance convinced me to make a few exposures, using a long lens to compress the distance.

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

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Broken Window and Cinder Blocks, High Line Park

October 3, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A broken window in a brick wall with cinder blocks behind, High Line Elevated Park, New York.

This odd window set against a solid cinder block wall was alongside the High Line Park in the Chelsea area of Manhattan. I am always intrigued by odd brick patterns, including those where someone has painted the bricks. The image of the smashed window “opening” to a solid wall was also compelling, and in a larger print there are some very interesting patterns, colors, and textures in the broken glass and the bits of paint on the window.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Tree and Rocks, Lower Young Lake

September 24, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A small tree growing on rocks near the shoreline of Lower Young Lake, Yosemite National Park, California.

I first saw this small tree growing in the cracks of rocks near the shore of the lake the morning before I made this photograph. At that time the tree looked interesting but the light was not so great. So visiting this tree again was on my agenda for the following morning and I got there a bit earlier. I made a number of exposures of this scene, and I’m still not certain which one(s) I think work the best – so there is a chance that one or more additional photographs of this subject may appear before too long.

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

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.