Tag Archives: landscape

Fog at Forest’s Edge

Fog at Forest Edge
“Fog at Forest’s Edge” — Morning fog drifts among forest trees after rain, Yosemite National Park.

There is enough of a story behind this photograph that I will eventually post an article about it in my “A Photograph Exposed” series. It involved an afternoon and evening of heavy rain, a subsequent morning of fog and mist, moisture-enhanced colors, and a subject that I have almost intentionally chosen not to photograph much at all for decades. It is, obviously, a scene where a forest meets a wet meadow, photographed on a morning when fog drifted from that meadow and through the trees.

I was up early — likely around 4:00AM — since I suspected that there might be fog and mist on this morning after heavy rain. As I drove over a pass to get here there were piles of hail everywhere from the previous evening’s storm. Soon I came to a familiar small lake — the one that I almost never photograph — and I saw fog rising from the lake and drifting into the trees.

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

Join the discussion — you are welcome to leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)

Light and Dark

Light and Dark, a narrow Death Valley canyon.
“Light and Dark” — A canyon wall lit by reflected sunlight is seen through a dark section of canyon narrows, Death Valley.

Having photographed in the red rock canyons of Utah, I suspect that I have a bias toward that sort of beautiful, warm-toned landscape. In Death Valley I often look for, and enjoy finding, canyons with similar smooth surfaces… though that Utah red rock isn’t something you’ll see very much here. The narrow canyon in this photograph is perhaps more typical of the Death Valley landscape, with much rougher and more angular rocks.

I have written frequently about how wonderful canyon light is and how much it contrasts with the harsh and brilliant light of the desert landscape outside the canyons. In the deepest and narrowest sections the shadowed light becomes quite blue since the blue of the sky that is the main source of illumination. In this photograph we see the contrast between those blue foreground shadows and the warmer colors of the more distant canyon wall that is more open to the light.

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

Join the discussion — you are welcome to leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)

Kosovo Mountains

Kosovo Mountains
“Kosovo Mountains” — Mountains haze in Kosovo— the “Accursed Mountains.”

This photograph comes from a wonderful day in the “Accursed Mountains” of Kosovo west of Pec. It is full of great memories, though short on specific location details. We headed into the mountains from Pec, following a narrow and rugged river valley. Eventually we passed through a mountain town and continued to ascend. We took a narrow side road and eventually got out and walked… right to the Montenegro border. From there we somehow ended up at a remarkable “lodge” where we had a stupendous lunch on a grand outdoor covered deck.

I made the photograph at the lodge, looking back up towards the summit of these beautiful mountains and directly in to the haze- and sun-filled atmosphere. Side note: I read that there is some difference of opinion regarding how these beautiful mountains came to be known as the “Accursed Mountains.” From what I saw and from some subsequent reading, it would not surprise me if this area becomes a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts.

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

Join the discussion — you are welcome to leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)

Morning Light, Big Sur Coast

Morning Light, Big Sur Coast
“Morning Light, Big Sur Coast” — Morning light, haze, and surf along the Big Sur Coast.

After a period of travel (Portugal, Spain, Belgium, NYC this time) it is always great to get back to photographing the natural world here in California. This week I heard that a couple of friends were in the Carmel area, less than an hour-and-a-half away, so we decided to meet up for some morning photography along the Big Sur coast. There’s no cell service where we were going, so we agreed to some coordinates on Google maps and set an early arrival time. I showed up, but couldn’t find them, so I made some photographs while waiting…

…including this one of the surf, morning light, and thin fog. As I photographed I noticed a couple of figures moving out onto the headland at the far right. I don’t usually include people in my landscape photography, but I’m not against it either, so I changed the framing a bit to incorporate them. It was only later in the evening, at home and working on photographs at my computer, that I zoomed in on the figures and realized that they are Franka and Dave, the friends I was searching for! (We did eventually connect, by the way.)

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

Join the discussion — you are welcome to leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)