Tag Archives: quicksilver

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Blue Dicks Flowers

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Blue Dicks Flowers
A cluster of spring blue dicks blossoms.

Blue Dicks Flowers. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A cluster of spring blue dicks blossoms.

(Note: It has been brought to my attention that I may have misidentified these flowers as blue dicks. I’m checking on it and plan to update. For the record, I’m far, far from being an expert on flower identification!)

These beautiful – but oddly-named — wildflowers are all over the place in the San Francisco Bay Area during the spring months. They first appear during that magical period when the tall grasses are intensely green from winter rains, and then they stick around as the hills begin to turn brown or, as we like to say in California, “golden.” While I see these flowers every season, this was a banner year for them.

I often find individual blossoms or small groups blooming at the end of long, swaying stems. I like to photograph them from the side, often with some appropriate foliage background. But this group was so large and positioned low enough that I could photograph straight down into this nature bouquet, with its flowers in varying shades of blue and splayed out in all directions.

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: Nature

Sunflower

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Sunflower
A wild sunflower in the California hills.

Sunflower. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A wild sunflower in the California hills.

These impressively large flowers pop up in the spring at a local park where I’ve hiked for decades. It doesn’t seem much like the traditional sunflower, but that’s what my searching tells me it is. The plants grow close to the ground, and the flowers are large — perhaps four inches across or more. In my experience there is only a short window to photograph them while they look good.

I think everyone should have a few local outdoor places that they travel too, going back to them over years and even decades. It is exciting to visit far off places, and I’ve been to my share of them. But there is something special about a nearby place that you know like an old friend. At this spot I know exactly where and when to look for very specific types of flowers… and I go back every year to revisit them.

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: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Spring Trees

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Spring Trees
Lush spring growth on trees and undergrowth in Northern California hills.

Spring Trees. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Lush spring growth on trees and undergrowth in Northern California hills.

In much of California, early spring is the “impossibly green” season. New visitors to the state during most of the year are surprised by how dry it can be — there’s a lot of desert and the expansive grasslands go brown before summer begins. But visit in March and April to see a very different California, one that looks green and at times lush.

When I think of this green season, the grasslands usually come to mind first — hills with carpets of intense green, broken by a few trees and some wildflowers. But elsewhere the same transition happens. I made this photograph along an old favorite trail through a little forested vale in a local park where I go to photograph wildflowers.

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: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Blue Dicks Flowers

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Blue Dicks Flowers
The oddly-named blue dicks flowers, which one source claims derives from a shortening of the genus name Dichelostemma.

Blue Dicks Flowers. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The oddly-named blue dicks flowers, which one source claims derives from a shortening of the genus name Dichelostemma.

This poor plant and its striking flower are “blessed” with a name that never ceases to provoke a chuckle or two. I’ve often wondered how the plant got that common name, and when I did a little quick searching while working on this photograph I could find only one answer — and, frankly, I don’t find it all that compelling. As per the description above, the claim is that it derives from the “Dich” in Dichelostemma, the genus name of the plant. I can sort of see that, except… my minimal background in German makes me want to pronounce that differently. On top of that, the flower isn’t really blue!

Having said all of that, it is a beautiful and graceful flower that is common in my neck of the woods and, according to sources I consulted, throughout the “southwestern United States.” The individual flowers grow in a group at the end of a long, slender stem. The location where I most often photograph them features a lot of shady backgrounds and nearby lush greenery.

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.