Tag Archives: landscape

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

Blue Mountains

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Blue Mountains

“Blue Mountains” — Desert mountain ridges, obscured by morning haze, extend into the distance.

If you have been following my 2023 photographs from Death Valley — I visited in March — you may recognize the contours of these distant mountains from a couple of monochrome images I shared earlier. I was at a high elevation location along the east side of the valley to photograph the playa at sunrise, but from time to time I turned my attention the other direction to look at these ridges extended into the distant haze.

One pleasure of viewing the world from such a location, high above the surrounding landscape, is that we sometimes see so far that eventually the features simply disappear into the distant haze. Here the haze was so thick — and back lit — that details were lost, leaving only the counters of the main features of the landscape.

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

Rock Abstraction

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Rock Abstraction
“Rock Abstraction” — An imaginary landscape of rock, Point Lobos coastline.

I feel that there is always a tension in landscape photography between showing things as they literally are, showing them as we might wish they were, and using them as departure points for more imaginative explorations of what they suggest to us. This photograph falls squarely into the latter category. As I looked at the remarkable patterns in these shoreline rocks, I thought about how I have seen similar patterns in paintings. So I decided to push reality a bit and head in the direction that those works suggested.

Once again, this photograph illustrates how I/we can find new things in old places. I made the photograph at a coastal spot that I have photographed since I was a young kid with a cheap black and white camera, imagining himself following in the footsteps of Adams and Weston — who also photographed exactly here. Decades later I still return and ind new things and new ways to see them.

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: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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

The White Stone

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The White Stone
“The White Stone” — A white stone rests among many-colored pebbles, Point Lobos.

I had a free morning in mid-April, so I headed over to Point Lobos, barely more than an hour’s drive from here. I might have gone on down the Big Sur coast, but road washouts have closed that route for now. So Point Lobos it was! I arrived to gray weather — high fog and not much in the way of interesting, directional light. But eventually the clouds began to pull back toward the coast and soft, directional light appeared.

Point Lobos always rewards a slower pace. There’s a lot to see here, and even more to see if you linger and start to notice things that you might miss by passing through quickly. The edges of this cove are lined with rocky strata that gradually dip into the water. Winter surf pushes all sorts of interesting stuff up onto the shoreline, and I enjoy walking slowly here and seeing what I can find. The small colorful pebbles are everywhere, but the larger white rock was the special find.

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

Dune Shadow

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Dune Shadow
“Dune Shadow” — A plant stretches out from the shadow of late-day light on sand dunes, Death Valley.

On some of my Death Valley visits I photograph dunes many times — at dawn and at sunset, and especially if there is a dust storm or interesting clouds. But on this trip I really only made one serious foray into the dunes, since other rarer features distracted me — most notably the reemergence of a remnant of prehistoric Lake Manly. But it wouldn’t have seemed like a real Death Valley visit without at least one dune adventure.

I made this photograph late in the day, just before the shadows of the Cottonwood Mountains angled across the valley and” dimmed the lights.” (No matter how many times I photograph there, I am still always surprised by how quickly this happens.) Despite first appearances, things do live in the sand, and here an old plant (barely) grows in the shelter of a small dune. Beyond, more dunes stretch across the valley floor, then a gravel fan rises toward desert mountains.

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 | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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