Tag Archives: nevada

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

Tree and Cliff Above Middle Young Lake

September 30, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A tree grows at the rocky edge of a cliff above Middle Young Lake and the forest receding into the late-afternoon western light, Yosemite National Park, California.

Continuing the process of milking my mid-September shoot at Young Lakes for as many photographs as possible, here’s one more. As I wandered around the “side” of the upper lake I saw a meadowy area below the outlet stream that looked interesting, so I followed it to the beginning of a steep drop off towards the middle lake. Here the combination of low-angle back light glancing off or the edges of the rocky outcropping and the distant forest-covered hills fading into the sunny haze caught my attention. It was also interesting to think about the fact that I had just walked past the lake seen at the lower left perhaps no more than 30-45 minutes earlier.

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.

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

Boulders, Trees, and Cliff – Upper Young Lake

September 29, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Early evening light on boulders, trees, and cliffs along the edge of Upper Young Lake, Yosemite National Park, California.

Seeing that this feels like about the 100th photograph in this series from Upper Young Lake, I’m half tempted to title it “Yet Another Upper Young Lake Photograph.” I won’t, but I will keep the commentary short on this one. Shot on the same mid-September evening along the shore near the lower end of the lake, I used a longer focal length for this one and composed it to include a slightly darker and steeper section of the cliffs that rise from one side of the lake.

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.

keywords: boulder, rock, tree, grove, cliff, face, crack, meadow, grass, brush, shore, shoreline, upp

Locations, Sierra Nevada Fall Color

Photographing Eastern Sierra Aspens – A Few More Thoughts

September 28, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 10 Comments

Aspen color season is now underway in the eastern Sierra Nevada mountain range of California – or at least that’s what I hear. I haven’t been over the crest quite yet to see for myself, but others are writing about it and posting photographs, and my previous experience tells me that now is the time. I wrote extensively about this last year (see the article here) so I’ll try to keep this somewhat short, and mainly focus on some ideas about how to approach the whole process if you are planning to photograph the aspens this year.

Photographers who haven’t photographed the Sierra Nevada fall aspen color often have a series of questions – some of which I’ll answer directly and some of which I’ll be cagy about.

When do the trees change colors?

In my experience the first hints of change can may be seen in late September, though I’ve seen a few odd trees here and there get some color as early as the middle of the month. The core of the real “show” tends to be roughly around the first week of October, extending from a bit earlier than that until perhaps mid-October. You can perhaps find a few trees after that at lower elevations and in sheltered areas, but not many. (In a reply found below, Michael Frye says that he finds his best aspens a bit later than this. He knows what he is talking about!)

As I write this near the end of September, 2010… the change is underway. I’ll be going very soon. But before I do… Continue reading Photographing Eastern Sierra Aspens – A Few More Thoughts →

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

Shoreline, Upper Young Lake

September 28, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Evening light on granite slopes and the shoreline of Upper Young Lake, Yosemite National Park, California.

In a way this is sort of a “test shot,” since I haven’t really focused on this portion of Upper Young on previous visits. I want to return and “work” this section of the lake, along with the area between it and the middle lake, and also the upper end of this lake, which I’ve barely visited. I made this photograph during that wonderful late time in the day when the light changes from moment to moment, the colors gradually become more and more interesting, and the slight backlight partially obscures the details of the background slopes.

This particular terrain is perhaps as close as any to what I regard as “my ideal Sierra” – that magical zone just below or at timberline where there are meadows, either open or intimate and separated by rocks and trees, and the light is everywhere, uninterrupted by trees. There are enough plants to give this sort of area an almost lush appearance, especially early in the season and when the light is right. And while I like the higher and truly alpine regions of the passes and peaks, I’d rather hang out in areas like this one where there is a certain amount of greenery and the high elevation harshness is moderated a bit.

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.

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