Tag Archives: mountains

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

The Storm Clears

Image November 30, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A Sierra Nevada summer storm clears at sunset.

Before I get too far into the background of this photograph, has anyone else noticed that the ways to title a photograph of (yet another) clearing storm are… limited? That aside, this was one of the most spectacular Sierra backcountry evenings I have experienced. After essentially two days of rain, some of it extremely heavy, the storm finally began to break up in the late afternoon, and we were able to venture out. I began by photographing post-storm fog drifting around the valley, but before long the thinning clouds to the east began to put on a wildly colorful show. As that finished I turned my attention back toward the ridge to our west. The fog and clouds there were breaking up, too, and the very last sunlight of the day back-lit clouds above the crest.

This was not an easy photograph, both to “capture” at that moment and to work with in post. As you may be able to imagine, technical challenges included a very wide dynamic range, great contrasts in coloration, the position of the drifting fog, and more. Among other compensations, now when I look at this photograph I am transported back to the sights and sensations of that wonderful evening.

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: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New England, Photographs: Panorama

White Mountains Panorama

Image November 29, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Peak autumn color along New Hampshire’s Kancamagus Highway.

This is not my typical photograph — and in more than one way. I have already written that this year marked our first photography of the famous New England fall color, but another difference is probably less apparent. This is an iPhone photograph! I’ve been carrying various iPhones for years, but I rarely use them photographically for anything more than quick snaps and record shots. But we recently upgraded to the iPhone 14, and on this trip I decided to see what I could do with the thing. Its ability to make quick — and quite decent — panoramas, even in some challenging lighting conditions, is remarkable.

Aside from that technical issue, this photograph also exemplifies some of what makes East Coast fall color experience so different from the Sierra Nevada color that I have photographed for years. Most obviously, entire forests are almost exclusively hardwood trees, their color stretches almost unbroken across miles of terrain, and the colors are so varied. I’m still processing the experience and thinking about the relative attractions of this kind of autumn photography compared to kinds that are more familiar from my years in the Sierra.

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Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New England

Autumn Lake, New Hampshire

Image November 25, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Since this year’s New England visit for fall photography was our first, we decided to combine some sure-bet locations with enough time to go out and explore. Our sure bet was in New Hampshire’s White Mountains region, and it was as spectacular as the descriptions suggested. With the help of good luck and good advice, we managed to be there at exactly the peak of fall color. After our first day visit to an obvious, iconic location, we started to push out the boundaries a bit, turning up various roads that took us elsewhere, and discovering interesting things in the process.

We stopped at this lake during a long, looping drive that took us further north. The tall ridges of the White Mountains aren’t seen here — this is a region of rolling hills that is appealing in a different way. We stopped at this lake because it provided open views and the water came right up to the roadway. Once we got out and went to work we saw more ways to photograph it. In addition to the obvious nearby trees and the reflection of those trees and the sky, the distant hills are also blanketed by autumn colors.

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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

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Autumn Aspens, Rocky Ledge

Image November 23, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A line of aspen trees, with backlit peak color, on a rocky ledge, Eastern Sierra Nevada.

These trees defied one of my working assumptions about Eastern Sierra Nevada autumn aspen color, namely that the high-elevation clusters of smaller trees growing in challenging surroundings usually turn and then drop their leaves earlier in the season. I know that’s often true, because I have seen it for myself in many locations. But this year seemed different, and in places where I have seen bare trees before the middle of October there were quite colorful groves this time. This line of trees was up very high in very rocky terrain, yet it managed to produce enough color to glow like flame in the morning back-light.

This wasn’t the only location where I saw this surprising change. I’m pretty familiar with groves along the June Lakes Loop, including some that are well above the loop and only accessible in some relatively difficult ways. I have photographs of those trees from previous years, and they peaked and then dropped leaves early. Yet this year, as I drove that loop on the last day of my visit, at the end of the third week of October, the same trees were producing vibrant gold colors. All of this reminds me that while the trees tend to follow the same general schedule from year to year, each season has its own personality.

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G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: mountains

The Storm Clears

White Mountains Panorama

Autumn Lake, New Hampshire

Autumn Aspens, Rocky Ledge

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