Tag Archives: pond

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Marshland, Winter Sky

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Marshland, Winter Sky
Hazy winter sky over Central Valley marshlands.

Marshland, Winter Sky. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Hazy winter sky over Central Valley marshlands.

This is what I think of as a “quiet photograph.” It is more about the whole of the scene than any particular element or subject, and the relatively centered composition would not be described as “dynamic.” However, that is more or less the essence of the experience in this place at times like this. Things change slowly or not at all. It is quiet. Scenes are often devoid of obvious icons. I would argue that, at least in part, this is what defines the experience of such places.

When I started doing to such places to photograph birds a couple of decades ago, my first visits were full of Big Moments and surprises — seeing some kind of bird for the first time, learning their calls, experiencing the thick winter tule fog. But over time elements that didn’t register initially became primary features of these visits. These included quiet stillness, long waits between remarkable moments, and the quality of light and atmosphere.

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Before Sunrise, Central Valley

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Before Sunrise, Central Valley
Winter pre-sunrise sky and clouds above wetlands and trees, Central Valley, California.

Before Sunrise, Central Valley. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Winter pre-sunrise sky and clouds above wetlands and trees, Central Valley, California.

Yes, I know. That color is too saturated to be real, right? But this is actually what we saw on the winter morning in California’s Central Valley. (I’ll share another photograph of the scene in a few days that will include some regular old blue sky for reference.) It just happened that the conditions were precisely right to create an unbelievably colorful pre-sunrise sky above the Sierra for a short time.

While the possibility of something like this wasn’t entirely unforeseeable, when we headed out a half hour earlier in near-darkness it certainly did not look likely. After the previous cloudy day, it looked like the sky was still covered, and it was almost a half hour later when we reached the edge of those clouds and found the sky more open to the east that we started to see hints of this light. It was like this for a short period before sunrise, and with the rising sun the intensity of the colors quickly diminished.

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.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Imaginary Landscapes, Photographs: Nature

Winter Plants

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Winter Plants
Winter plants growing in a wetland pond, Central Valley, California.

Winter Plants. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Winter plants growing in a wetland pond, Central Valley, California.

Moving away from the recent large-scale landscape photographs, this one focuses on a small group of plants standing in a shallow Central Valley wetland pond. It is my assumption that the plants grow on dry land, but then this particular area floods in the winter and these simple plants become magical against the smooth background of the water’s surface.

This photograph is not exactly a literal reproduction of the plants’ appearance. Of course, no photograph is exactly equivalent to the complex reality of the subject, but here I went a bit further than usual — though still trying to work within the constraints of believability.

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.

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

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

New Year’s Morning

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New Year's Morning
Early morning clouds and flocks of geese fill the sky above the California Central Valley on New Year’s Day morning, 2023.

New Year’s Morning. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Early morning clouds and flocks of geese fill the sky above the California Central Valley on New Year’s Day morning, 2023.

We spent New Year’s Day in a wild place with friends, sharing food and stories, and photographing birds and the landscape in which they live. I can’t think of a better way to greet a new year, which is why we’ve been doing it for perhaps a decade now. The specific location doesn’t matter all that much — it could be almost anywhere — but the tradition definitely does matter!

Photographically-speaking, the day was sometimes challenging. The weather was transitory, between one gigantic departing storm and another storm that would arrive the next day. While we had a lot of wind (not great for bird photography!) and clouds, there were moments of beautiful light. I made this photograph not long after sunrise, when the light on the high clouds was still a bit colorful and thousands of geese filled the sky.

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.