Tag Archives: point

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

Morning Fog, Rugged Shoreline

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Morning Fog, Rugged Shoreline
Morning fog clears from coastal mountains above the rugged Big Sur shoreline.

Morning Fog, Rugged Shoreline. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning fog clears from coastal mountains above the rugged Big Sur shoreline.

This photograph (and a few others from this trip) illustrate how sometimes a combination of planning and luck come together… and even overcome a bad decision or two. I had checked the forecast the previous evening and it looked like there would be fog along the coast, making a quick visit potentially rewarding. I decided that I’d get up early and head that way. But in the morning one thing led to another, and I was quite late (by photographer standards) getting out the door and on the road. I wondered if perhaps I had missed the timing, and I even considered heading somewhere else.

As I approached the coast I saw that the fog was obstinately sticking around, and it was foggier than I had expected! I headed south, looking for places where the fog was beginning to thin, and this was my first serious stop. Here the rugged coast was already clear, but the fog was just offshore and still covering the taller hills, including the far peak above the distant peninsula. I made a few photographs here and then headed on to a few more spots before returning when the light became too harsh. (As I turned around and headed home I noticed that the influx of tourists was just starting… and that the best light and conditions had passed while they were enjoying breakfast!)

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

In the Panamints, Morning

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In the Panamints, Morning
Patterns or early morning light and shadow on the ridges of the Panamint Range, Death Valley National Park.

In the Panamints, Morning. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Patterns or early morning light and shadow on the ridges of the Panamint Range, Death Valley National Park.

There do not appear to be any icons whatsoever in this photograph, and you might be hard pressed to identify the scene as being in Death Valley. There are no visible sand dunes, no salt flats, no devils playing golf. But the fact is that terrain like this is characteristic of more of this immense national park, a place full of beautiful and spare desert mountain landscapes.

This scene is high in the Panamint Range, the mountains that run roughly north-south to the west of Death Valley proper and which separate it from the Panamint Valley. This is truly amazing country once you get to know it, a place characterized by plenty of evidence of its mining past, lots of country that is rarely visited today, and incredibly long views across a vast landscape stretching from Nevada to the Sierra.

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

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

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

Death Valley, Morning Haze

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Death Valley, Morning Haze
Early morning haze obscures distant mountains and valleys, Death Valley National Park.

Death Valley, Morning Haze. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early morning haze obscures distant mountains and valleys, Death Valley National Park.

The truth of the matter is that I’ve become a bit obsessed with this view. I’ve photographed in morning and evening, in warm weather and in the middle of winter. (It gets cold on these ridges, even in Death Valley National Park.) On one occasion I was forced to turn back by snow on the route. I’ve seen utterly glorious light here, and I’ve encountered light so flat and gray that it wasn’t really worth photographing. Sometimes when I visit the park I tell myself that I won’t go here… and then at some point I almost inevitably end up making the trip.

Most often I’m completely alone here, though on a few occasions I’ve encountered one or two others. This place, and others like it, are remarkable at any time, but even more so when I experience them in solitude. Those mountains in the hazy distance are perhaps 30 to 40 miles away. Behind me the view stretches all the way to the snow-covered Sierra, and off to my left lie peaks well beyond the Nevada border. And everywhere in this vast expanse the landscape is laid bare, raw and visible.

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 | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

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

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

Lower Panamint Mountains

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Lower Panamint Mountains
The lower reaches of the Panamint Mountain Range at the edge of Death Valley.

Lower Panamint Mountains. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The lower reaches of the Panamint Mountain Range at the edge of Death Valley.

This photograph is my excuse to return to an old theme of my posts about Death Valley National Park. For a place with a reputation so connected to aridity and heat, the clear evidence of the role of water in the formation of this landscape is abundant. In fact, it is hard to locate any place in the park where water had not played an important role. (The repetitive pattern of dips and rises on any drive across “level” roads here is a fine reminder of the importance of flowing water.)

I made this photograph from a vantage point high in the Panamint Mountain Range, from which I could look down at the vast alluvial fans formed by material that was once above the present-day upper reaches of the range. These fans go on for miles, and the amount of material they contain is nearly incomprehensible. More durable material still sticks up above the surface of the material, and washes and gully cut across their surface nearly everywhere.

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 | 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.

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