Tag Archives: light

Photographs: Agriculture, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Dormant Trees and Fog

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Dormant Trees and Fog
Dormant trees in Central Valley winter tule fog.

Dormant Trees and Fog. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dormant trees in Central Valley winter tule fog.

This is the second in a series of photographs I made of this Central Valley orchard on a very foggy winter morning. On a typical morning with these conditions, there comes a time when the fog begins to move and thin and the light begins to come through the fog and make it glow. (This is tule fog, which forms at night when the moisture level is right, and ends up producing a thin but often very dense layer of low fog.) I had been photographing birds in thicker fog, and when the thinning process began I moved to this location where I thought the trees might be an interesting subject.

In some ways it is an easy matter to photograph a subject like this one. It is naturally mysterious and compelling, both from the fog itself and from the vaguely anthropomorphic forms of the dormant trees. However, once I begin to work with such a subject, things invariably start to become more complicated than I expected — how to create a balanced composition? What camera position gives the most interesting juxtaposition of trunks? How much to focus on trunks and how much on the upper branches How to deal with inevitable intrusions of branches into the scene. My solution is a combination of looking and thinking, relying on intuition, and trying many different approaches.

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

Snags, Late Winter Fog

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Snags, Late Winter Fog
A group of dead trees next to a riparian meadow on a foggy Central Valley winter day.

Snags, Late Winter Fog. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A group of dead trees next to a riparian meadow on a foggy Central Valley winter day.

Like several other photographs I have recently shared, this one comes from the Central Valley of California and was also made in the winter. However, this one is from a few years ago and in a slightly different location than my usual haunts in the valley. I made the photograph late in the migratory bird photography season, actually just after the main flock of geese had departed and when the place seemed downright lonely without them! That feeling was amplified on this particular visit, as it was right after the initial March 2020 lockdown, when so much about the trajectory of the pandemic was still unknown. We didn’t yet understand how it was spread or even how serious it was. At that time we were still paranoid of any contact with others, and I recall seeking out the most isolated gasoline station I could find on my way home.

The specific location is of a sort that fascinates me. Much of this valley is no longer exactly natural, being given over to huge agricultural areas. While the sense of vast space remains, what lies beneath it is largely affected by humans. However, in a few places the landscape is not so conducive to agriculture, and the land feels wilder. This is such a place, a shallow depression following the path of a creek which may be dry in summer but can flow rather powerfully in wet winters. I paused on a levee next to the area and photographed across a few old snags and into sun-lit fog.

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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Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Winter Sky, Birds, Sun

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Winter Sky, Birds, Sun
Winter sunlight momentarily breaks through winter high clouds and tule fog as migratory birds pass, Pacific Flyway.

Winter Sky, Birds, Sun. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Winter sunlight momentarily breaks through winter high clouds and tule fog as migratory birds pass, Pacific Flyway.

This photograph holds one brief instant of nearly miraculous light… from a morning on which the light was generally much less than miraculous. I was in California’s Central Valley largely because I wanted to photograph in foggy conditions. These are common here at this time of year, when tule fog rises overnight and creates a thin but often very dense layer of fog. Most people prefer to not be out in these conditions — the driving can be nerve-racking — but the landscape can be very beautiful when it all works out just right.

The potential was certainly there as I drove to my destination. The fog suddenly became very dense perhaps twenty minutes before I arrived, but it was shallow enough that the setting full moon was clearly visible in the pre-dawn sky. However, a higher layer of clouds spread over the sky and fog that might have glowed in sunrise light simply went gray. Eventually the thinning tule fog lined up with a few momentary breaks in the higher clouds and some light shone through. During this one brief instant the sun was visible, surrounded by a halo of lighter clouds, and a pair of geese flew past, barely visible in the 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.

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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: Architecture, Photographs: New York City

The Oculus

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The Oculus
The central skylight of the Oculus, World Trade Center, New York City.

The Oculus. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The central skylight of the Oculus, World Trade Center, New York City.

Almost exactly two years ago we were in New York City for a week spent visiting relatives, making photographs, eating out, and generally wandering about as we pleased. Yes, this was before the Great Transition that came in March of 2020. (We recently visiting New York City again in the post-transition world, and it isn’t the same experience at all. I’m looking forward to a time when it is once again.) To be precise, we were there for most of the period between about Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

At some point — perhaps while on a long walk or possible at the termination of a subway ride — we ended up in Lower Manhattan in the vicinity of the World Trade Center, where this fascinating Oculus structure is located. It is a combination of shopping area and transit terminal, but it is also an arresting architectural presence. Its organic, rib-like structure contrasts with the cubic forms of most of the surrounding buildings. Inside, especially if you lift your eyes above the lower floor shopping area, it is a remarkable interior space that, in many ways, suggest some sort of light-filled cathedral.

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 | 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.