Tag Archives: morning

Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Volcanic Ridge, First Light

July 7, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Dawn light illuminates the Jeffrey pine covered ridge of a volcanic dome in the Mono Craters complex, California.

I have a favorite personal spot where I often stop on my way to photograph at South Tufa at Mono Lake. It is spot that you would likely pass right by since, save for a bit of a panoramic view, there is nothing immediately impressive about it, and because you would probably be on your way to someplace else, namely the formations at South Tufa.

On this late June morning I took a break from photographing in the Tuolumne/Tioga Pass area to shoot a bit around Mono Lake, where I had it in mind to shoot certain high desert subjects that I’ve worked on in the past. As I shot those other subjects I’ve often looked up at this particular ridge, been impressed by it, and wondered how to make a photograph of it. When I pulled up at this spot I first intended to shoot a scene that appears to the west, but it turned out to not be quite what I imagined it might be on this morning. Ah, well – that happens! So I turned my camera in a different direction and photographed a somewhat different subject as dawn approached with some very interesting clouds in the sky to the east. As I worked on this I kept glancing up at this volcanic ridge, thinking that the clouds behind it might silhouette the trees along the skyline… but still finding the light too flat and boring. I actually made a photo or two, but wasn’t enthusiastic about it. I turned back to the other subject. A few minutes later I looked back up at this ridge and saw that the first light of early morning sun was glancing across the ridge and lighting up the Jeffrey pines that grow on its slopes. I quickly pivoted around and made a few exposures of the scene in the “good light.”

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 70-200mm f/4 L USM at 168mm
ISO 100, f/8, 1/15 second

keywords: jeffrey, pine, forest, mono, county, craters, northwest, coullee, upper, dome, ridge, skyline, dawn, light, morning, early, sky, clouds, cinder, pumice, rhyolite, scree, rock, volcanic, geology, landscape, scenic, travel, california, usa, north america, mountain, hill, stock

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

Shoreline Trees and Boulder, Morning

July 6, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Morning light glances across the surface of Tenaya Lake, sprinkled with pollen, and illuminated shoreline trees and boulder, Yosemite National Park, California.

Shortly after the sun cleared the surrounding peaks, the morning light slants across the pollen-covered surface of Tenaya Lake to illuminate two small trees and their larger neighbors, along with a small peninsula and some shoreline boulders. This is an area in which I have photographed in the past, but this time I arrived much earlier in the day and the water level was still considerably higher than later in the season due to the heavy snow melt run-off that had peaked only a week or two earlier.

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.

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

Shoreline Reflections, Trees and Rocks

July 3, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

During peak snow melt many Sierra Nevada lakes overflow and flood surrounding meadows and forest. Although the water level was lower at the end of June when I made this photograph than it had been three weeks earlier during my first visit of the year, many areas in the margins of the lake were flooded. (This, of course, makes the mosquito population very happy – and human visitors less so!) The early morning sun back-lit these closely spaced trees and the rocks ringing this quiet flooded area along the shoreline.

I have visited this lake for many years. I’ve long been intrigued by this particular spot, where flat granite slabs line the shoreline, allowing the lake to expand and contract across shallows as the season progresses. Later in the season this spot can be dry, but early season in this wetter-than-usual year the water flooded this small pool and what might otherwise be shoreline trees were on a rocky peninsula. Those trees have been a subject for other photographers— being aware of this I wanted to avoid a photograph that imitated their beautiful work. I arrived in the early morning, when the air was still and cool and the water smooth. I walked about a bit and just looked, then came to this spot, where the complex patterns of the trees and their reflections in the water fill the frame, creating for me a sense of stillness and calm and quiet.

This photograph was a prize winner in the Yosemite Renaissance 2013 show in Yosemite Valley. Prints are available. Email me and/or see the Sales link at the top of this page.

This photograph is the subject of one of my “Photograph Exposed” posts, in which I share more of the story behind the image.

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 and Amazon.

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

Cascade Creek – Trees and Mist

June 30, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

The spring torrent of cascade creek fills its narrow canyon with mist behind trees growing among the rocks.

I’ve been sitting on this second photograph of Cascade Creek, shot back near the beginning of June, trying to make some decisions about cropping and so forth. I finally have decided that I think I like this somewhat unusual (for me, at least) square format for this image.

Cascade Creek crosses beneath Big Oak Flat Road as it descends toward the Merced River and Yosemite Valley. For a few weeks during the spring snow melt season it can turn into a powerfully flowing stream, whose power is amplified by the steep descent and narrowness of the rock channel it follows.

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