Tag Archives: morning

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Wetlands Pond, Morning Light

Image Leave a comment
“Wetlands Pond, Morning Light” — Morning sun on a wetlands pond as winter tule fog clears.

The experience of photographing these Central Valley winter landscapes is full of magical instants — combinations of scene, atmosphere, and light that appear and disappear so quickly that they are easily missed. In one direction thick fog might obliterate the view, while in another direction the sunlight may be emerging and bathing the scene in warm light. This was one of those moments — a distant fog bank almost obscures trees, while the reed-covered islands are bathed in direct morning sunlight.

From what I hear, the residents of California’s Great Central Valley are not exactly thrilled by tule fog. When the conditions are right it can last for days or even weeks, holding temperatures to the 30s and 40s and remaining gray and damp. But I love those conditions for photography, and a forecast of fog is often enough to persuade me to drive four hours round-trip to be there.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | BlueSky | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Levee Road, Clearing Fog

Image Leave a comment
“Levee Road, Clearing Fog” — Morning tule fog clears and the sun comes out along a Central Valley levee road.

Every New Year’s Day a group of us gather to greet the literal dawn of the new year and make photographs. This year Patty and I turned it into a three-day event, arriving on New Year’s Eve and hanging around through the morning of January 2. This isn’t your typical place to celebrate New Year’s Day — it is a quiet, isolated place in portions of of California that is likely not on most peoples’ maps. But there is beautiful light, quiet, and frequently the sun rising through tule fog.

It was quite foggy when we arrived before dawn on this morning, but not the incredibly thick fog that makes travel dangerous. In fact, the layer of tule fog was shallow enough that we could see the pre-dawn sky overhead. The fog began to thin soon after sunrise, and here along the levee road the intense color of early morning light was winning the battle with the remaining 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.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Mono Lake, Morning

Image Leave a comment
Mono Lake, Morning
“Mono Lake, Morning” — Pahoa and Negit islands silhouetted against early morning lake reflections with desert mountains in the distance.

I have shared a few other Mono Lake photos made at this elevated location some distance from the lake. This camera position gives a different and broader sense of the lake and its surroundings. It is a huge body of water — there’s far more water on the far side of the islands than between them and the near shore. The desert mountains are many miles beyond the far edge of the lake. All in all, Mono Basin is a place of immense space and great distances.

I photographed very early in the morning. I had gone to this location to photograph something else, but by turning my camera 180 degrees the lake was in the frame. It was a generally clear morning with some high clouds, but the great distances still turned the atmosphere a bit blue with haze, and that haze mutes the details of the distant basin and mountains.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Geese, Morning Clouds

Image Leave a comment
Geese, Morning Clouds
“Geese, Morning Clouds” — A flock of geese in flight against morning clouds, Central Valley, California.

Sunrise often produces remarkable light, especially when the right sorts of clouds are present. These clouds were a bit unusual for this location, where I usually either encounter thick tule fog or high clouds produced by large scale weather patterns. These morning clouds were lower than usual, but not ground fog, and having a bit of the “mackerel sky” look. I photographed them as the first light arrived and a flock of migratory geese passed overhead.

I photograph a lot of different subjects, but in the late fall and winter months the migratory birds become a major focus. It is easy to miss their arrival if you live in a city, but in rural parts of California their presence, often in astounding numbers, is pretty obvious. I photographed these in an otherwise nondescript agricultural area in the Central Valley.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.