Tag Archives: passing

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Desert Canyon, Cloud Shadows

Image Leave a comment
Desert Canyon, Cloud Shadows
“Desert Canyon, Cloud Shadows” A twisting and colorful desert canyon empties in Death Valley under the shadows of passing clouds.

Light is everything when it comes to photographing the desert landscapes of Death Valley. The terrain is always impressive, but the midday light can be intense and harsh, washing out colors and muting details. But in the right light a feature that might look, well, “washed out” in that intense light can become beautiful. Add a few passing clouds to increase contrasts between light and shadow and things get even more interesting.

I don’t know the name of this little canyon or even if it has one. But I do know that there are canyons like it everywhere in this national park. Many are worth exploring, whether or not there is a trail. In many cases you can just walk carefully up the gravel fan to a canyon’s mouth and then follow a wash up among the quiet hills until you run out of time or the terrain becomes too difficult.

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.

Scroll down to share comments or questions. (Click post title first if viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Storm Clouds, Trees in Silhouette

Image Leave a comment
Storm Clouds, Trees in Silhouette
East slope Sierra Nevada trees silhouetted against clouds and rain of a passing autumn storm.

Storm Clouds, Trees in Silhouette. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

East slope Sierra Nevada trees silhouetted against clouds and rain of a passing autumn storm.

This is the wonderful sort of weather that wasn’t in the forecast and which catches you by surprise. It had been a sunny day with just a few clouds floating around when this cell appeared to the east of the Sierra crest. I hadn’t really been paying attention to it until I stopped here and looked toward basin and range country to see streamers of virga (rain that doesn’t reach the ground) falling from the building clouds.

It was late in the day when I made this photograph. The sun was at my back as I looked east, and long shadows from Sierra crest peaks were already falling across my position and these nearby trees. I was in this spot mostly to photograph aspen trees, but this panorama of desert mountain terrain beyond the east slope of the Sierra was arresting.

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 | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Spring Wildflowers and Rain

Image Leave a comment
Spring Wildflowers and Rain
A carpet of spring wildflowers extends across a broad Californai valley as rain falls from passing clouds.

Spring Wildflowers and Rain. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A carpet of spring wildflowers extends across a broad California valley as rain falls from passing clouds.

While visiting Death Valley near the end of March we made a spur-of-the-moment decision to modify our return to the Bay Area by adding an extra travel day and visiting Carrizo Plain National Monument. In wet years this typically dry place erupts in spring color as wildflowers carpet the valley and surrounding mountains — and this being a very wet year a visit seemed appropriate. We made it to the Carrizo, though the full story of weather and detours will have to wait for a later post.

California’s exceptional 2022-23 weather was on view during our visit. It was supposed to be sunny and dry, but we passed through some pretty heavy downpours — and one of those showers is visible in the distance in this photograph. Here a carpet of wildflowers extends across the broad valley toward distant hills.

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 | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: People, Photographs: Urban/Street

A Family

Image 2 Comments
A Family
A passing family group on the street in Manhattan.

A Family. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A passing family group on the street in Manhattan.

As scheduled, it is back to more street photography today. This photograph comes from our late-August visit to Manhattan, which provided us with opportunities to simply go out on walks and observe/absorb the Manhattan vibe. That is, of course, a complex thing, being composed of lots of people, lots of motion, the urban canyons, occasional bits of quiet and stillness, and a lot of things that happen quickly and are gone. The latter, of course, is part of the appeal of street photography.

I recommend urban and street photography to all photographers, including those of you who like think of yourselves and landscape or nature photographers. As a general thing, I think it is good for you and for your photography to step outside your primary genre and to be aware of good photographic work done with subjects quite different than your own. On a very practical level, shooting street forces you to see, think, and react really quickly. Quite often subjects coalesce and disappear in seconds or even fractions of seconds. You don’t have much time to carefully consider, so you work on the basis of instinct. And that is a useful skill to develop, even if you usually work at a more sedate pace. Street also reminds us of how we make photographs of things that we don’t have time to fully evaluate or understand. For example, while I call this photograph “A Family,” I can’t know that it is a family group. And while I might make be tempted to make other assumptions about this trio… I have no way at all of knowing whether I’m right or wrong. It is better, I think, to just ask questions.

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 | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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