Tag Archives: ridge

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Owens Valley, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Autumn Snow Storm, Eastern Sierra

October 6, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

An early autumn storm drops snow along the summit of Wheeler Ridge, Sierra Nevada

This is not a photograph of eastern Sierra Nevada autumn aspens, a subject that has been quite visible in my stream recently. However, it is as much a photograph of autumn in the Sierra as is another photograph of those trees. During October we often seen the beginning of the grand changing of the gears that moves us from summer to winter. At times it may seem like summer will stick around forever, especially on one of those beautiful, crystal clear autumn days when the light simply glows. But inevitably these days cannot last and soon the first Pacific weather fronts arrive. The first few may only leave a dusting of snow, but the message is unmistakable — winter is coming.

This was such a weekend in the eastern Sierra. On the first day it was sunny and warm, and there was barely any sign that a change was imminent. Yet that night the change most certainly arrived, and when I awoke early in the morning it was in the low thirty-degree range at my camp and snow pellets were falling. Looking outside, through the clouds I could see that the surrounding peaks were covered with a thin coat of snow. After a bit of early morning photography I began my long drive back home, heading up US 395 along the eastern escarpment of the Sierra. Conditions were very changeable, and this scene quickly went from being completely obscured by clouds and rain to clearing conditions with only a remnant of the precipitation along the summit of immense Wheeler Ridge above Long Valley.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Granite Ridge, Trees

September 21, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Tall trees on top of a granite ridge, Yosemite National Park

This has been a period of unprecedented drought in California as a whole and particularly in the Sierra Nevada. In the fourth of this series of drought years the Sierra is showing the strain. Creeks have stopped flowing, lake levels are significantly low, trees are under stress and dying throughout the range. This summer the annual wildfire season began much earlier than usual, and many fires spread quickly and took longer to contain. We certainly saw all of these effects during our week-long photographic sojourn in the Yosemite backcountry. Until we had a couple of days of (welcome!) rain near the end of the trip, the smoke was a major factor. On many days we had smoke so thick that we were concerned about our health, and the pall often made photography somewhat challenging. Fortunately, even on the smokiest days there were times when it was clear, too.

However, it is possible to see how to make photographs even in smoky conditions. On the plus side, some smoke can soften the light a bit, and the haze can enhance the atmospheric recession effect, which can emphasize the distances between subjects in front of the camera. The haze in this photograph comes partially from wildfire smoke. Here it muted to sometimes-difficult highlights on the granite, and it softened and muted the distant forest across the valley.

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

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Morning Light on Granite Ridge

September 14, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Early morning light strikes trees on the ridge of a glaciated dome above Tenaya Canyon, Yosemite National Park

Yosemite is known for many things — the Valley, waterfalls, and other familiar sights — but above all it should probably be known simply for granite. (Apologies to geologists ,who know that “granite” is a simplification, but I’m going with it.) The cliffs and domes of Yosemite Valley are well known, but I’m especially thinking of the higher regions of the park, where one is hardly ever far from granite slabs, granite boulders moved about by ancient glaciers, granite stream beds, granite faces, granite ground into sand…

This is one of those locations where it is possible to look in the right direction and focus your attention on a particular area… and see almost nothing but granite. Here a glaciated granite ridge, topped by sunlit trees, is backed by a glaciated granite wall in shadow, with a glacial granite canyon lying between the two. The surfaces of such places are fascinating. A close look at the sunlit ridge reveals large granite boulders, with trees and small strips of meadow. Below that ridge is a large expanse of exfoliating granite slabs with trees eking out a living on little more than bare rock.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Trees, Glaciated Ridge

July 21, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A small group of trees in morning light atop a glaciated Sierra Nevada ridge.

This photograph includes many of the things that say “Yosemite” to me: the broken granite ridge of glaciated granite, the bluish morning haze, the small group of trees with space between them, ridges receding into the distance. Other things say “Sierra Nevada” to me, but these seem closely connected to the high country of this particular part of the Sierra.

This is a location that I (and, no doubt, quite a few others) have photographed many times, in a variety of conditions of light, atmosphere, weather, and time of year. I almost always stop here when I cross the Sierra through the park. On this morning I wasn’t making a stop while in transit to another place — this area was my destination. I had several photographs in mind when I arrived, ranging from more distant landscape to intimate scenes of glacial erratics and granite slabs. I knew that if I walked a short distance up hill and climbed a small hill that I could get a higher vantage point and look back at these trees and across this ridge and the morning light illuminated them from behind.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: ridge

Autumn Snow Storm, Eastern Sierra

Granite Ridge, Trees

Morning Light on Granite Ridge

Trees, Glaciated Ridge

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.