Tag Archives: mountains

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: People In Landscape, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Hikers, Great Glen Way

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Hikers, Great Glen Way
“Hikers, Great Glen Way” — Two hikers at treeline on. a foggy morning along the Great Glen Way, Scotland.

This photograph comes from a section of Scotland’s Great Glen Way between Fort Augustus and Invermoriston This segment includes one of the two highest points on the walk, and is also known for including the “View Catcher” structure. I made the photograph close to that actual high point, on a morning when it was trying to rain and fog was drifting around the peaks and the valley, occasionally blocking the view entirely. As we paused to make photographs — and catch our breath! — another pair of hikers walked by.

The Scottish weather on our trip was actually quite varied. At the start it was, or so we were told, unusually warm and sunny with highs around the 70 degree mark at times. The Scots seemed pleased, if a bit surprised. But things changed a few days into our trek, and there was a fair amount of walking in full rain gear. We hear that this is more typical weather in this part of Scotland.

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: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Forest, Morning Fog

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Forest, Morning Fog
“Forest, Morning Fog” — Soft sunlight appears as morning fog begins to clear above a forested hillside, Santa Cruz Mountains.

One of my favorite kinds of light is found at “the edge of the light” —places that are neither in full sun nor fully shaded. Often I search out these spots, especially when fog is involved. The effect can range from subtle to quite striking when there are strong contrasts between deep shadow and light. Here there is an additional factor — not only are the foreground trees in a bit of that gentle light coming through the fog, but the more distant trees almost disappear into the thicker clouds.

We often hear something along the lines of, “photography is all about the light.” That’s not quite literally true in every case, but there’s no question that interesting light can turn an otherwise-mundane subject into something special. To be honest, this scene would not likely catch your attention at all in typical full sunlight nor in thicker fog — it is that glow on the foreground trees that makes it work.

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

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel

Forest and Loch

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Forest and Loch
“Forest and Loch” — Forest scene above Loch Lochy on the Great Glen Way, Scotland.

Scotland’s Great Glen Way runs between Fort William in the south and Inverness in the north, roughly following the route of the Caledonian Canal connecting a series of “lochs,” or long lakes. To generalize, the route takes walkers (and some cyclists) through several kinds of terrain — along the shoreline of the lochs, on level paths next to the canal, past agricultural areas, through hillside forests, and occasionally to the highlands country. Almost everywhere, with the partial exception of the highlands, everything is green… as in this photograph of a hillside forest, one of the lochs, and distant mountains.

The body of water is Loch Lochy, one of the three lochs on the route. (The others are the smaller Loch Oich and the huge Loch Ness.) There would normally a route closer to its shoreline, but trail work took us up into the mountains on this day, and through many forested sections like this one. The Scottish forests are dense and very green, but they are also managed for forestry. It isn’t unusual to be walking through thick woods and suddenly come upon heavy logging equipment and hillsides denuded of trees. The foreground in this picture is one such area after some years of regrowth.

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.

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Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Ponderosa Pines, Mono Basin

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Ponderosa Pines, Mono Basin
“Ponderosa Pines, Mono Basin” — A group of ponderosa pines on slopes leading toward Mono Lake in distant haze.

Mono Lake is a remarkable place. Lying in a relatively high, desert basin, it covers a huge area. It is so big that it is just about impossible to get a solid impression of its vast size. While you can drive past its west side and access a few spots along the north and south shores, much of it is essentially inaccessible, at least without a lot of very difficult travel. Because its level has fluctuated over time, much of the surrounding area has been submerged in the past, and the evidence of this is everywhere.

The lake itself is set in an even larger basin surrounded by mountains — the Sierra to the west and various desert ranges to the north, east, and south. I made this photograph near the base of one of those, the Mono Craters. Here an extensive ponderosa pine forest spills down from the heights and spreads across the shallower slopes of the basin, eventually fading out within sight of the lake. These trees are some of the furthest vanguards of that forest. Beyond you see the final descent the lake, the lake itself, and in the far distance the faint outlines of distant desert 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.

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