Tag Archives: meadow

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

Dawn, Pond and Mountains

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Dawn, Pond and Mountains
“Dawn, Pond and Mountains” — Sunrise light strikes Sierra Crest peaks and is reflected in the surface of a subalpine pond.

I recently spent a few days backpacking with long-time friends and few new friends. We headed into the mountains just east of Yosemite and the Sierra crest, spending days in a high place — we were just above 10,000′ the entire time. We camped near this pond, so I was up before dawn to be here for the sunrise show as the first light appeared on the high peaks to our east.

Traveling in the backcountry with non-photographers is always a different experience. During the past few decades I have mostly backpacked by myself or else gone out with other photographers. We photographers have our odd rituals: up in the darkness, breakfast at mid-morning, dinner before the good evening light, then out to photograph and not back until dark. Sometimes I wonder if the others think I’m some kind of ghost.

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

Meadow, Mountains, Morning Mist

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Meadow, Mountains, Morning Mist
“Meadow, Mountains, Morning Mist” — Morning mist rises from a subalpine meadow with trees in the foreground and peaks in the distance.

For a few days in early July I had this usually-crowded Yosemite location almost to myself. The nearby high-country campground was not yet open, and entry-restrictions to the park reduced the number of visitors. I camped just outside the park’s boundaries, and I entered in the mornings before sunrise — there was no line and I could get to my destinations quickly. On a couple of mornings the sunrise destination was this great subalpine meadow.

The meadow runs from east to west, so sunrise and sunset tend to send light down its length. I positioned myself near the west end on this morning, which meant that I was shooting nearly directly into that morning light. Here I placed a group of trees along the right side of the frame, to contrast the dark forms of their trunks and shadows with the lighter distant mountains, details muted by backlit haze.

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: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Pond, Forest, and Fog

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Pond, Forest, and Fog
“Pond, Forest, and Fog” — Fog rising from a subalpine pond drifts through pine forest, Yosemite.

This is one of several photographs I made in this area on the morning after a significant storm moved through the Yosemite high country. It rained for hours and made photography virtually impossible. But it also primed conditions for beautiful morning fog the next day, so I was up very early and out looking for it before sunrise.

Before long I passed a small lake that I’ve known about for decades but rarely photographed. This time the scene was sublime — fog was rising from the surface of the little lake and slowly drifting into the forest. The early morning light (from the now-clear sky) illuminated the scene, but there was no direct sun to overwhelm it. I began photographing, walking slowly along the shoreline and into the forest, eventually tearing myself away in order to seek out some other subjects.

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

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

Fog at Forest’s Edge

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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

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