Tag Archives: monochrome

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

Salt Flats Near Badwater, Evening

April 13, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Black and white vertical format photograph of evening on the salt flats of Badwater Basin, Death Valley National Park, California.

Yes, I’m still mining the Death Valley photographs from my late March trip. And there are more to come… :-)

This photograph was made in evening light on the salt flats of Badwater Basin, not far from the “official” Badwater area – but far enough away that there were only a couple other photographers out here enjoying the solitude and the beautiful evening light. A few weeks earlier this area had been flooded by unusually heavy rains in Death Valley. From all appearances (and from photographic evidence that I’ve seen) the photographers who were first on the scene had to do a bit of wading to get out onto the salt flats. Some of them were rewarded for their efforts with wonderful and unusual images, including reflections of the Panamint range in the circular pools between the polygons of raised salt.

By the time I arrived the area was no longer flooded, though it was clear that the playa beneath the drying salt crust was still wet. In places some of the water appeared in cracks and in other spots walking on the salt felt a lot like walking on winter pond ice. During the flooding, the usually tall ridges between the salt “polygons” seem to have dissolved. Typically they are perhaps up to a few inches tall and contain large cracks. At the time I arrived, the counter had apparently been set back to zero – and the salt surface was almost completely flat, though it is obvious that the polygon outlines were still visible and beginning to rise a bit. The vertical ridge leading away from the camera position in the lower portion of the frame is a good example.

I went with black and white in this rendition since the sky had not really lit up yet – in other words, color wasn’t necessarily the main feature of the scene. I also liked what I could do with the clouded sky and the distant ridge in black and white.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 35mm
ISO 100, f/16, 1/25 second

keywords: salt, flat, polygon, pattern, landscape, nature, geology, hills, mountains, sky, dark, clouds, evening, dusk, sunset, haze, atmosphere, light, shadow, badwater, basin, death valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, travel, scenic, black and white, monochrome, texture, curve, stock

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

The Grandstand, Racetrack Playa

April 7, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

Black and white photograph of “the “Grandstand” formation standing in the middle of the Racetrack Playa, Death Valley National Park, California.

The Grandstand is a striking formation located a distance out onto the flat expanse of the Racetrack Playa, the location of the famous “moving rocks” in Death Valley National Park. The formation is located not far from where the road first reaches the playa and it is only a short walk. As I recall, it is just the tip of a large “hill” that is mostly buried beneath the very deep silt that was washed down from the surrounding mountains to form the playa. It has a shape this is vaguely “castle-like,” with several “turrets” that tower above the flat surrounding terrain and invite quite a few visitors to climb to the top. (The Grandstand is located at nearly the opposite end of the playa from the location of the largest concentration of moving rocks.)

I think that the Grandstand makes an interesting photographic subject, even though the thing most people come to see and photograph is the phenomenon of the moving rocks. I often plan to stop there and photograph in mid to late afternoon – when light on the rocks is interesting and photogenic, but before the “good light” begins further south on the playa and it is time to photograph the rocks and their tracks. It can also be a compositional element in photographs of the rocks at the south end of the playa, especially when you shoot with a long lens.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 55mm
ISO 200, f/11, 1/320 second

keywords: death valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, nature, scenic, travel, landscape, the, grandstand, hill, rock, boulder, formation, race, track, racetrack, playa, sky, clouds, black and white, monochrome, geology, stock, light

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Sunlit Wall with Textured Glass

March 22, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Black and white photograph of a sunlit wall with textured glass windows along a street in San Francisco, California.

Yet another of the “it is sort of street photography and sort of urban landscape” photographs, this one made on a walking loop that took me through a good part of downtown San Francisco, and finally through the Tenderloin to the Civic Center. I made several photographs of the obscure glass windows of this street-level window along the sidewalk. In this one I wanted to work with the converging lines of the window frame and the vertical lines of the bits of wall between the windows.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
ISO 200, f/11, 1/200 second

(Note: This was accidentally posted a day earlier along with another photograph. Reposting it today puts the block back on schedule.)

keywords: black and white, monochrome, perspective, converge, lines, frame, window, pane, textured, obscured, sticker, worn, distressed, bright, sunlit, sunlight, light, shadow, shape, structure, architecture, concrete, wall, ground, sidewalk, street, urban, city, downtown, san francisco, california, usa, north america, abstract, form, stock

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

Horsetail Fall, Early Evening

March 5, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

The silver strand of Horsetail Fall and water reflecting on surrounding cliffs in late afternoon light, Yosemite Valley, California.

I’m thinking it is pretty nearly impossible to make a truly original photograph of Horsetail Fall – though I won’t completely rule out the possibility.

In any case, here I decided to start photographing the February spectacle a bit before the colorful sunset light showed up. At this point the beam of light on the cliff face around the fall is a bit larger, lighting the rocks to the right of the fall as well as the fall itself. During this season there has been enough precipitation and the weather had warmed enough to not only get Horsetail flowing but to also create some seepage down the face of the cliff next to the fall. As a matter of fact, the reflections from this wet rock caught my attention more strongly at first than did the fall itself. A second process was at work here as well: a stiff breeze from the west was blowing across the path of the falling water, catching it, and blowing thin clouds of spray across the buttress to the left of the fall itself.

I have posted several short articles on photographing this seasonal Yosemite Valley icon:

“Thinking About Yosemite’s Horsetail Fall” (2012)
“Photographing Horsetail Fall – Random Thoughts About Photographing an Icon” (2011)
“Horsetail Fall – It’s That Time Again” (2011)
“Thinking of Photographing Yosemite’s Horsetail Fall?” (2009)
Search results for Horsetail Fall at my blog (results will include the above-listed articles and more)

One of the best sources of current season information about the Horsetail Fall photography potential is photographer Michael Frye, who frequently posts general information and updates each winter.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.