It was a quiet moment at the Pacific Ocean shoreline on the upper Big Sur coast. It would not last, of course, as the area is overrun by visitors during the warmer months. I go very early in the morning to beat the crowds, and I had a couple of good hours before the Monterey and Carmel tourists finished breakfast and drove down the coast. (If you want to see the Big Sur coast in relative solitude, try a winter weekday morning.)
Continue reading Shoreline Rocks, Offshore Islands
At times I like to make photographs that contain as little detail as possible, photographs that might suggest more than they tell. The most distinct feature in this scene is the darker island at the left. Beyond that we see (barely) one more island and then nothing. Any further detail is masked by the thick Central Valley tule fog.
It was a remarkably foggy day. I drove over there from my home about two hours away, and the last half hour or so of the drive was in fog so thick I could barely see the roadway. I had initially hoped that I might get a bit of sunrise color and then a late-morning clearing, but neither happened. If anything, the fog got thicker after noon!
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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email
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On the right day, in the right conditions, these wetlands can sometimes feel like they are all about the sky. Standing next to a large pond that extends into the distance, the sky above and its inverse reflective twin stretch out in front of you. They meet at the horizon, with may be defined by a thick line of vegetation, as here, or the water and the sky may merge into a single thing.
It may not be immediately apparent, but a conjunction of atmospheric effects is behind this photograph. Above, the sky is filled with thin blue-gray clouds. Lower down in the distance, a rather thick fog bank still lurks. The foreground reeds are catching a beam of direct sunlight, almost appearing stark against the background of clouds and fog ad their reflection in the pond.
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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Sometimes landscape photography is slow and contemplative — the landscape stands almost still and there is time to pause and consider. But sometimes the landscape changes as quickly as any other subject, and transient conditions only last a moment. This was one of the latter moments. Thick tule fog had blanketed my position, but it quickly cleared above this pond, and brilliant light struck the little grass-covered islands.
Fog can fundamentally alter a landscape. Sometimes it simply mutes more distant subjects and allows foreground elements to stand out. It can also lend a sense of quiet mystery to otherwise mundane scenes. It may just sit there, changing little for long periods of time. And then, suddenly, the sunlight begins to break through and all kinds of beautiful effects of light may appear.
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 | BlueSky | 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.