Tag Archives: pattern

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street, Photographs: Wildlife

Raccoons and Brick Wall, Mare Island

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Raccoons and Brick Wall, Mare Island

Raccoons and Brick Wall, Mare Island. Mare Island Naval Ship Yard, Vallejo, California. August 30, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A group of nocturnal raccoons emerges from beneath a brick wall with boarded up windows and doors at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

I’ll have to admit that wildlife photography was more or less the furthest thing from my mind when I was shooting this scene of an artificially lit weathered brick wall in the core of the historic Mare Island Naval Ship Yard near the end of August. The thing that interested me in this shot was the shape of the pipe attached to the outer wall of this building against the bricks, along with the way it snaked between various windows and doors. So I set up the tripod and made a couple exposures. While making the second one I suddenly thought I saw something move – which seemed completely unexpected. Although it was much darker that it appears in this shot, I eventually saw a furry shape emerging from a gap between the sidewalk and the building… and then another…and another. Eventually there may have been as many as a half dozen raccoons in this little cluster of critters.

It may be hard to see them in this reduced size version of the photograph, but they are the small fuzzy area near the lower right below the valve on the wall. On the full size image it is possible to make out a few paws and the vague outline of their faces.

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
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keywords: raccoon, animal, nocturnal, pack, group, emerge, hole, under, building, brick, wall, boarded up, pipe, sidewalk, concrete, panels, window, door, reflection, night, photography, pattern, structure, historic, mare, island, naval, ship, yard, vallejo, california, usa, abandoned, dilapidated, run, down, valve, industrial, wildlife, wood, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove

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Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove

Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. August 21, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Beneath the canopy on a foggy afternoon in the Monterey Cypress forest at Allan Memorial Grove, Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

(Since this is simply the black and white version of the photograph I just posted earlier, I’m including largely the same text here that I included with the color rendition.)

I am always intrigued by the patterns of the trunks and lower branches of the Monterey cypress trees when I walk through the Allen Memorial Grove at Point Lobos. I’m also intrigued – and challenged – by the nearly monochromatic nature of the scene, especially when fog mutes the light as it did on this afternoon. On the other hand, the fog also softens and diffuses the light and decreases the contrast between the light parts of the trees and the shadows.

It was in such conditions that I made this photograph in August on a very foggy – and getting foggier! – late afternoon. When I made the exposure I was pretty sure I would make a black and white print from this scene but I also kept open the option of a color version. When I worked up the two versions later I was surprised that to find that I liked the color version more than expected, so I made prints of both the color and black and white versions and lived with them a bit.

In the end I decided that this black and white version works best as a print… I think. (I also have to point out that this photograph relies a lot of the inclusion of a ton of fine detail that just plain isn’t going to be visible in the small jpg version I can post online. Ah, well!)

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
Twitter: http://twitter.com/gdanmitchell
Friendfeed: http://friendfeed.com/gdanmitchell
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gdanmitchell

keywords: monterey, cypress, tree, forest, grove, trunk, group, branch, afternoon, fog, pattern, point, lobos, state, reserve, california, usa, peninsula, big sur, carmel, pacific, coast, ocean, nature, flora, park, allen, memorial, trail, hike, walk, landscape, travel, scenic, stick, twig, stock, black and white

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove

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Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove

Monterey Cypress, Allan Memorial Grove. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. August 21, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Beneath the canopy on a foggy afternoon in the Monterey Cypress forest at Allan Memorial Grove, Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

I am always intrigued by the patterns of the trunks and lower branches of the Monterey cypress trees when I walk through the Allen Memorial Grove at Point Lobos. I’m also intrigued – and challenged – by the nearly monochromatic nature of the scene, especially when fog mutes the light as it did on this afternoon. On the other hand, the fog also softens and diffuses the light and decreases the contrast between the light parts of the trees and the shadows.

It was in such conditions that I made this photograph in August on a very foggy – and getting foggier! – late afternoon. When I made the exposure I was pretty sure I would make a black and white print from this scene but I also kept open the option of a color version. When I worked up the two versions later I was surprised that to find that I liked this color version more than expected, so I made prints of both the color and black and white versions and lived with them a bit.

In the end I decided that the black and white version works best… I think. I’ll post it next. (I also have to point out that this photograph relies a lot of the inclusion of a ton of fine detail that just plain isn’t going to be visible in the small jpg version I can post online. Ah, well!)

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
Twitter: http://twitter.com/gdanmitchell
Friendfeed: http://friendfeed.com/gdanmitchell
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gdanmitchell

keywords: monterey, cypress, tree, forest, grove, trunk, group, branch, afternoon, fog, pattern, point, lobos, state, reserve, california, usa, peninsula, big sur, carmel, pacific, coast, ocean, nature, flora, park, allen, memorial, trail, hike, walk, landscape, travel, scenic, stick, twig, stock

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Kitchen Windows, Fort Mason

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Kitchen Windows, Fort Mason

Kitchen Windows, Fort Mason. San Francisco, California. August 8, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Kitchen windows of a Fort Mason restaurant, San Francisco, California.

A few weeks ago I was at Fort Mason, along the waterfront of San Francisco Bay between the Marina and the Fishermans Wharf area, and I had a few hours to wander around and make photographs. Near the end of my wandering I passed by this window on the side of Greens Restaurant and was attracted by a bunch of features: the basic geometric pattern, the barely visible “stuff” inside the window, the superimposition of subjects reflected from the building behind me, and the wonderful mess coming from the upper left part of the window.

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.

Web: G Dan Mitchell Photography
Twitter: http://twitter.com/gdanmitchell
Friendfeed: http://friendfeed.com/gdanmitchell
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keywords: kitchen, window, restaurant, greens, reflection, pane, frame, pattern, form, texture, architecture, urban, city, fort, mason, vent, light, book, utensil, bowl, pot, roof, corrugated, red, brown, rust, vent, building, street, sill, wall, san francisco, california, usa, travel, landscape, detail, bay, waterfront, pier, public, park, stock, screen, distort, historic, landmark