Tag Archives: Place

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

View From A High Place

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“View From A High Place” — Looking out at Death Valley and the Grapevine Mountains from a viewpoint in a high canyon.

Elsewhere in California on this early winter day the skies were cloudy and rain was in the air. But in Death Valley the skies were (partly) blue and the temperatures were comfortable. We had a little extra time between stops so we headed up to this popular little canyon late in the day. On the way back down we came across this place where the dark canyon opened in the bright valley.

There is a lot of “Death Valley stuff” in this photograph. The distant playa is just above sea level, and in places is covered by impressive sand dunes. The distant desert mountains tower thousands of feet above the lowlands. Because there is little to no vegetation on them, their geology is laid bare. The dark foreground walls are near the opening at the bottom of a grand desert wash.

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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: France, Photographs: Travel

Detail, Wrought Iron

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Detail, Wrought Iron, Montpellier, France
“Detail, Wrought Iron” — Details of wrought iron work at the Chateau d’Eau, Montpellier, France.

During our December visit to Montpellier, France we visited the Promenade du Peyrou, a large public square on a hilltop. The plaza was filled with a Christmas market, of course. Montpellier’s very own Arc de Triomphe stands at one end of the plaza, and the Chateau d’Eau (water tower) at the other end. This detail is part of the latter monument.

The water tower (of which I have shared photographs previously) sits at the end point of an ancient Roman aqueduct. It features the columns you see on the left, but look more closely and there is some wonderful wrought iron work – with a combination of very sharp pointed shapes and soft, gentle curves.

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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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Photographs: Europe, Photographs: France, Photographs: Travel

Chateau d’Eau

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Chateau d'Eau, Montpellier
“Chateau d’Eau” — Chateau d’Eau (water tower) at the end of the Roman aquaduct at Place du Peyrou, Montpellier, France.

On our first full day in Montpellier, France we went for a long walk, heading gradually uphill from the central square near our hotel and eventually arriving at this impressive monument, the Chateau d’Eau. (In American English, we’d say “water tower.”) Behind it — and not visible in this photo — an old Roman aqueduct extends into the distance. The tower is at its termination and I assume that the aqueduct once supplied the pond with water.

The area around the structure is quite interesting, and there was a lot to see. Behind my camera position is the Place du Peyrou, a large public square on the top of this hill — where the town’s Christmas Market was in full swing . Beyond that is the Montpellier’s own Arc du Triomphe.

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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: People In Landscape

Evening Overlook

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Evening Overlook
Two people watching the early evening view of immense desert mountains from a high overlook.

Evening Overlook. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Two people watching the early evening view of immense desert mountains from a high overlook.

Late in the day during my recent Death Valley visit I went to this overlook. It is more typically a place to photograph the sunrise, which comes from camera-left and illuminates the big ridges in the distance. But I had a free evening, not a morning, so I figured it was worth a shot. I arrived before sunset, and I made this photograph before the sun had dropped behind the western ridge, though the haze and high clouds softened the light a bit.

I’ve never been able to quite describe in words the experience of standing on a very high point in such a vast landscape. From here one can look 5000′ down into Death Valley or look 6000′ up toward the highest peak in the Panamint Range and simultaneously feel “on top of the world” and very, very small in the presence of such immensity.

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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