Tag Archives: national park

Mesquite Dunes, Dusk

Mesquite Dunes, Dusk

Mesquite Dunes, Dusk. Death Valley National Park, California. April 1, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Mesquite Sand Dune folds recede into the distance into the distance beyond foreground desert plants in Death Valley National Park, California.

This is a slightly different take on a scene that I have posted previously. The photograph of the Mesquite Dune complex near Stovepipe Wells was shot near twilight on the first evening of my 2008 visit to Death Valley. My brother and I had just met up at the Stovepipe Wells campground, set up camp and eaten dinner, and noticed that it was far closer to the end of the day than we had realized. We quickly hightailed it down the road a couple miles to an area close to the dunes and had just enough time to make some long lens photographs from the road side as the light faded.

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

keywords: death valley, national park, california, usa, landscape, scenic, travel, stock, mesquite, dunes, stovepipe, wells, sand, folds, pattern, light, pink, blue, green, foliage, dusk, sunset, twilight, footprints, prints, steps, waves, funeral, mountains, range, desert

Panamint Range, Light Beams

Panamint Range, Light Beams

Panamint Range, Light Beams. Death Valley National Park, California. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Light beams over the Panamint Range beyond the salt flats, Death Valley National Park, California.

Last April (2008) I was in DV for few days to photograph all around the area. One afternoon my brother and I drove to the south with a plan of photographing the salt formations near Badwater in the late afternoon and early evening light. As we got there we saw these tremendous light beams (a.k.a. “God Light”) coming through the clouds that had gathered over the ridge of the Panamint range to the west, and illuminating the arroyos along the east side of the range and occasionally the valley floor in the distance.

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

keywords: salt, flats, death, valley, national park, playa, light, beams, god light, panamint, mountains, range, telescope, peak, ridge, atmospheric recession, clouds, sun, light, snow, arroyo, wash, sky, scenic, travel, landscape, stock

Autumn Oak Tree, Upper Yosemite Fall, Rain

Autumn Oak Tree, Upper Yosemite Fall, Rain

Autumn Oak Tree, Upper Yosemite Fall, Rain. Yosemite Valley, California. November 1, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A colorful autumn oak tree stands in a meadow on a rainy day with Upper Yosemite Fall beyond – Yosemite Valley, California.

A photograph from my rainy weekend in Yosemite Valley back on November 1-2, 2008. It rained the entire time I was there, but this was wonderful because these conditions intensified the fall colors and created wonderful atmosphere and effects of mist, fog, and clouds. Here a nearby oak tree with autumn colors is seen with Upper Yosemite Fall faintly visible through the mist, and flowing strongly after coming back to life from the rain.

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

keywords: yosemite, valley, national park, fall, upper, cliff, wall, oak, tree, autumn, fall, season, color, gold, brown, yellow, green, forest, meadow, waterfall, grass, rain, cloud, mist, leaf, leaves, trunk, branch, nature, scenic, travel, landscape, weather, stock, california, usa

A ‘Thank You’ to Jim M Goldstein

Late last year, photographer (and blogger and podcaster) Jim M. Goldstein came up with a great way to reconnect photographers and fans of photography with the experience of the print – “Buying Prints from your Favorite Photographers.”

I was very pleased with Jim’s interest in my work, and with his selection of one of my favorite recent photographs:

Submerged Boulders, Lake, and Cliffs
Sunlight illuminates submerged boulders near the cliff face along the High Sierra Trail – Sequioa National Park.

Since I am a fan of Jim’s work as well, we decided to trade photographs and I ended up copy of his very lovely and mysterious “Primitive Coastline” seascape. And, yes, I’ll post my image of his framed photograph here before long. We met back on a rainy winter evening during the holidays and had a chance to “talk shop” a bit, and it was a joy not only to see his work but to meet him.

Yesterday Jim posted a photograph of my now-framed photograph at his blog, along with some very kind and much appreciated words about my photography.

Thanks, Jim!

(I would also like to take this opportunity to offer my gratitude to landscape photographer and master printer Charles Cramer for his invaluable help finding out how to best “see” this photograph as a print. Thanks, Charlie! :-)


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.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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