Tag Archives: red

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Aspen Grove, Boulder Mountain

4 Comments
Aspen Grove, Boulder Mountain
“Aspen Grove, Boulder Mountain” — Brilliantly colorful fall aspens on Boulder Mountain, Utah

The aspen groves on Boulder Mountain, in the Dixie National Forest between the Utah towns of Boulder and Torrey, was a target of our recent Utah visit. Earlier this year we had crossed the shoulder of this mountain in early April before the trees had leafed out, and we had been amazed at the extensive groves and had wondered what they must look like in autumn. After seeing earlier autumn foliage in western Utah, we were expecting great things here, too.

It turned out that the highest elevations aspens – and Boulder Mountain is a high elevation site – had really passed their prime by the time we arrived, this being an earlier than usual year for aspen color. Nonetheless, even with bare and nearly bare trees up high, there was still a lot of color is some of the lower groves and even the higher groves still held small pockets of brilliantly colored leaves. Among the first we encountered was this grove that led up the slopes to a high ridge. Trees near the bottom of the aspen forest here were still very colorful, mostly golden-yellow, but with a bit of red-orange mixed in.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Sandstone Canyon Walls and Brush

Leave a comment

Sandstone Canyon Walls and Brush - Brush including some autumn foliage stands against a bright red sandstone cliff, Capitol Reef National Park
Brush including some autumn foliage stands against a bright red sandstone cliff, Capitol Reef National Park

Sandstone Canyon Walls and Brush. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Forest, Utah. October 7, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Brush including some autumn foliage stands against a bright red sandstone cliff, Capitol Reef National Park

This area was yet another surprise – though perhaps only because I’m a California guy still very much in the early stages of discovering the landscape of Utah. We had driven a long route down a good part of the length of Capitol Reef National Park, climbed over the higher portion of the north-south ridge, and were heading back to our lodgings some distance away. As we drove across this new (to us!) landscape we descended into a long, narrow canyon that had some of the most beautiful red rock walls I had yet seen.

Such canyons provide a wealth of photographic opportunities and require some slightly different thinking about timing and about light. In so many situations, we look for the “good light” at the edges of the day, in the very early morning and then again in the evening. However, in these canyons that is not the only good time to search of the light. At times that are later in the morning and earlier in the afternoon, the higher sun strikes the upper walls of such canyons and reflects beautiful light down into the canyon bottoms, like that may be colored by the rocks from which it reflects. In this spot it was not very bright, but the light was beautiful! Because we were “on our way” from one place to another we almost didn’t stop, if you can believe that!

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Utah Fall Color, Meadows

Leave a comment

Utah Fall Color, Meadows - Colorful autumn foliage of aspen and other trees near a meadow in the Dixie National Forest near Cedar City, Utah
Colorful autumn foliage of aspen and other trees near a meadow in the Dixie National Forest near Cedar City, Utah

Utah Fall Color, Meadows. Dixie National Forest, Utah. October 5, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Colorful autumn foliage of aspen and other trees near a meadow in the Dixie National Forest near Cedar City, Utah.

The opportunity to photograph this wild fall color resulted from the second “random ride” of the afternoon – with “random ride” being a family description of a drive that ends up going where no one would have predicted. After a brief afternoon visit to Cedar City, Utah to take care of some minor business involving coffee, we headed back up into the mountains to the east of town. Driving along, I spotted another road that branched off in a potentially promising direction, and without so much as a glance at the map I turned right and headed up a canyon.

Since I spotted some interesting color right away, and because the road looked like it would climb to elevations where I knew the color was good, I continued on it. The hunch paid off. As we ascended, wide open vistas appeared across a panorama ranging from south to north, and new and interesting colorful foliage continued to appear. We finally ended up at location where the road crossed one of the most colorful autumn foliage displays I have seen. After photographing a nearby grove of trees right above us, I turned my camera the other direction and found this composition that includes a wild assortment of colorful autumn trees (mostly but not entirely aspens) leading down to the edge of a small meadow.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Escalante River, Early Fall

Leave a comment

Escalante River, Early Fall - Early fall colors begin to come to the trees lining the Escalante River, Utah.
Early fall colors begin to come to the trees lining the Escalante River, Utah.

Escalante River, Early Fall. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. October 6, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early fall colors begin to come to the trees lining the Escalante River, Utah.

If I have any regrets about this photograph, it might be that if I had been there a few days later the entire cottonwood-covered river bottom might have been the color of the leaves on the one brilliant foreground tree. But seriously, it was a stunningly beautiful scene. The trees here ranged from regular old green to quite brilliant yellow and gold, and the partly cloudy skies sent alternating cloud shadows and sunny breaks hurrying across the landscape. As I set up on this hill above the river valley, I would look back over my shoulder to spot the next break in the clouds, try to predict where and when it would cast its light, and then make several exposures as the light traversed the scene from near to far, first illuminating the foreground trees, then the red cliff faces, and finally the towers at the far end of the valley.

The terrain in this area is truly stunning. After dropping down a steep descent and traversing rolling waves of sandstone, the road makes a brief descent to the river bottom. It then begins to rise and is soon traveling along a length “hogback” with sheer drop-offs on both sides, and the river valley far below.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.