Tag Archives: reflection

Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Two Rocks, Tenaya Creek, Spring

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Two Rocks, Tenaya Creek, Spring

Two Rocks, Tenaya Creek, Spring. Yosemite National Park, California. May 9, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Spring runoff water in Tenaya Creek flows over and around two rocks and reflects the colors of spring growth, Yostmite National Park, California.

Starting later than in most years, I made my first 2009 visit to Yosemite Valley on May 9. The plan was to arrive early on Saturday morning (accomplished), photograph spring runoff (accomplished) and dogwoods (accomplished) and spring trees and other foliage (accomplished) and then get a campsite for the night… Oops. The campsites were gone and I ended up a couple of spots too far down the waiting list. So, instead of staying over on Saturday night and shooting a bit more on Sunday morning, I did a round trip from the SF Bay Area. Ah, well – it is worth the drive to spend one spring day in the Valley.

In the late afternoon I wandered on up toward Mirror Lake. I’m not all that enthusiastic about photographing the lake itself, but along the way there are lots of interesting things – this time of year those include dogwood trees and Tenaya Creek, the subject of this photograph. Along the steeper section of the creek close to Mirror Lake, the water was quite high and washing over the tops of some pretty large rocks. When I spotted the greenish surface reflection coming from sunlit trees along the opposite bank of the creek I decided to put the two subjects together – and his was the result.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.
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keywords: california, sierra nevada, travel, Yosemite, valley, national park, tenaya, creek, spring, season, flow, water, blur, rock, boulder, stream, creek, abstract, color, reflection, landscape, nature, scenic, travel, usa, season, runoff, curve, over, around, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Miners Lettuce and Ferns

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Miners Lettuce and Ferns

Miners Lettuce and Ferns. Almaden Quicksilver Park, California. April 12, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A single miners lettuce plant in bloom among ferns, Almaden Quicksilver Park, California.

As a kid growing up in central California I always heard how one could “make a salad” out of miners lettuce, so this is one of the first wild plants I can remember. (By the way, I have no idea if this plant is actually edible – or deadly poison – so don’t go eating it because you saw my post – ask an expert first!) This single leaf and stem of the plant was growing in a very lush section of a trail at Almaden Quicksilver Park every spring during wildflower season.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: green, foliage, leaves, leaf, flower, white, miners lettuce, round, fern, branch, twig, stem, almaden, quicksilver, county, park, santa clara, san jose, california, usa, spring, wet, drop, water, reflection, shade, lush, nature, foliage, stock, close up, macro, plant

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Reflection, Building B-150

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Reflection, Building B-150

Reflection, Building B-150. Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California. March 7, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Night reflection of building B-150 in a rainwater puddle at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California.

This is a more or less a photograph that I had thought about for the past year or so. On a previous visit to Mare Island Naval Shipyard I attempted another photograph using this little rainwater pool to create reflections, but that photograph was not really a success. (It included a different subject, some old trucks and trailers parked nearby.) In any case, as odd as it may sound, a visit to this little puddle was on my agenda for the early March night photography shoot at Mare Island with The Nocturnes, and after I had shot in the more central area of the historic site I wandered down Nimitz Avenue toward this spot where I found “Building B-150” nicely reflected in the water and illuminated by nearby artificial light.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: mare island, naval, shipyard, minsy, night, photography, nocturnes, vallejo, california, usa, minsy, reflection, water, puddle, rain, building, structure, architecture, b-150, metal, light, artificial, street, asphalt, pavement, fence, sky, nocturnal, historic, nimitz, avenue

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Creekside Trail, Central California

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Creekside Trail, Central California

Creekside Trail, Central California. Calero Hills, California. February 21, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A creekside trail through forest of oak and laurel trees at Calero County Park, California.

After a long – but welcome! – bout of rainy weather here in Central California, last weekend I managed to get out for a hike in my favorite local oak/grassland park. It was a cloudy day with very diffused light, but I decided to do a bit of photography with my new camera – but instead of taking my usual complement of lenses I carried only three primes, at 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm. This photograph was made with the 35mm lens and an interesting aspect of the scene for for me was the incredibly rich detail of new growth, old leaves on the forest floor, and the many small branches of trees and brush. (I’m afraid that much of that detail isn’t visible in this small jpg, but there isn’t much to be done about that.)

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: calero, hills, park, santa clara, county, public, path, trail, creek, brook, water, reflection, oak, laurel, tree, forest, grove, leaf, trunk, branch, hike, winter, california, usa, nature, landscape, green, new, plants, growth, damp, stock, foliage, vegetation, root