Tag Archives: old

Winter Oak and Fog

“Winter Oak and Fog” — An old winter oak tree silhouetted against clearing fog glowing in morning sunlight.

Plans change. On this morning I was going to take a walk in the neighborhood, but low fog seemed to be sticking around longer than usual so I decided to go for a more extensive hike at a location that I thought might be interesting in these conditions. I drove that direction and saw the fog doing all sorts of interesting things — so I abandoned my hiking plans and instead devoted the morning to chasing that boundary between the fog and the sunlight. I caught a glimpse of this tree as I passed a crossroad.

I was on a narrow road with no turnouts, so I continued for a distance until I found a place where I could turn around and head back to the tree. Arriving there I discovered that the best viewpoint didn’t permit parking, but I spotted a pull-out nearby on the other side of the road. This entailed more driving to find a suitable turn around point. I finally got back and parked my vehicle and got out with my gear… just as the first blue sky was starting to appear behind this lovely old oak tree as the fog began to thin.


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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The Pegnitz, Nürnberg

“The Pegnitz, Nürnberg” — Buildings along the Pegnitz River in Nürnberg, Germany.

While we were in Heidelberg, Germany back in November and early December, we took several side trips. Early on we spent three nights in Alsace, and we visited Munich before we moved on to France. Midway through the stay we took a side trip to Nürnberg, the site of one of the largest and best known German Christmas markets. While there we saw much more than just the holiday festivities — there is a lot to see in this city.

Nürnberg is a very large, modern city, but it is built around the original old town, a central area within the original city walls. (Much of the old town was destroyed in WWII, and today it holds some old buildings, some modern reconstructions, and a lot of newer buildings.) The Pegnitz River runs through the center and bridges frequently cross it. It seems to be a pretty sedate river, and the water is still enough to reflect the old buildings that stand along its banks.


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.

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Shades of Blue

“Shades of Blue” — Details of a blue wall with shutter, Equisheim, Alsace.

I think of these photographs as a sort of “found geometry” — patterns of color and texture and lines that can be viewed abstractly if you prefer. When I travel I’m usually on the lookout for these little vignettes, which are everywhere once you start looking for them. This one is simply a wall of a building in the little Alsatian town of Eguisheim.

Beyond their abstract qualities, these subjects can also hold a lot of history if you look closely. Eguisheim is a very old town, and very old towns contain a lot of, well, very old stuff. But they also are usually continuously updated, repaired, and spruced up. We can let new things go for a while without maintenance, but these old structures require a lot of attention. Here someone has obviously taken the time to paint the walls in multiple colors. But before long the old walls wear out and chip and crack.


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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Heidelberg Castle, Bridge, and Altstadt

“Heidelberg Castle, Bridge, and Altstadt” — A boat on the Neckar River sails under die Alte Brücke and past the Altstadt and Heidelberg Castle.

Heidelberg is almost always our “home base” when we travel to Europe, annd our trips frequently start with a visit to our relatives there. At this point we almost feel like we know the place, at least their neighborhood and the Altstadt area in the photograph. The “old town” area stretches along the Neckar river and includes several features visible in the photograph — the “old bridge” (or Alte Brücke) and the Heidelberg castle, among htem. I made the photograph from the Philosophenweg, or philosopher’s way, a footpath in the hills next to the river.

Our previous visits have been in the summer, when the weather in this part of Europe is pretty warm. This time, however, we went at the end of autumn and it was distinctly wintry! Temperatures hovered around freezing, it was cloudy virtually the entire time, and we even had brief snow!


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.

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