Tag Archives: ridge

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

Tuolumne Meadows – Flooding River and Spring Snow

June 10, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Spring snow covers Tuolumne Meadows and the Tuolumne River overflows its banks withLembert Dome, Mounts Dana and Gibbs, and Kuna Crest on the skyline.

These were special conditions that I encountered in Tuolumne on the evening of June 5, the day that Tioga Pass opened for the 2010 season. Tuolumne Meadows was still almost completely covered in snow, except that the river was so full with meltwater that large sections of the meadow were flooded, making parts of it look more like a lake than a meadow. The watercourse in the foreground of this photograph will simply be a grass-covered meadow a few weeks from now, and soon after that will be a great place to look for wildflowers – but on this night it was a fast flowing and cold body of water containing floating bits of slushy ice.

The peaks on the horizon are “old friends” to those who frequently visit Tuolumne – from left to right they are Lembert Dome, Mount Dana, Mount Gibbs, and the end of Kuna Crest where it terminates at Mammoth Peak.

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

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 105mm
ISO 100, f/16, 1/25 second

keywords: yosemite, national, park, sierra, nevada, mountain, spring, nature, tuolumne, meadows, river, snow, pack, overflow, flood, flow, lembert, dome, mount, dana, gibbs, kuna, crest, ridge, peak, forest, sunset, evening, light, reflection, landscape, nature, california, usa, north america, sky, stock

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

Ice and Snow on Tioga Pass and Tioga Lake

June 6, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 5 Comments

Late afternoon shadows fall across the frozen surface of Tioga Lake with Tioga Pass and the snow-covered peaks of Kuna Crest beyond.

On June 5 I made my first “summer season” visit to the Sierra of the year. Usually I mark the start of the post-winter part of the year by heading to Yosemite Valley to experience the waterfalls close up during the peak flow of the meltwater-filled rivers. This year I had time for a one-day trip and I did, indeed, start in the Valley. The waterfalls are close to as big as they get right now, and the Merced River is close to reaching flood stage, with large meadow areas of the Valley already under water. (The latter is actually a normal condition at the peak of the runoff cycle.) However, after shooting in the Valley into mid-morning, I decided to head elsewhere because the crowds were oppressive and because tran-Sierra Tioga Pass Road had opened this very morning.

I’ve been over Tioga Pass Road before on or close to the first day that the route is open, but I haven’t seen conditions like these up there since the mid-1990s. (In 1996, IIRC, the pass didn’t open until July 1 after a very heavy and late winter.) There was still snow almost everywhere along the road. It would be possible to ski or snow-shoe in many areas and, in fact, there were people engaged in just those activities. Melting water was everywhere. In places where I have never seen water before there were roaring creeks, often pouring down next to or even onto the roadway. All lakes and ponds are nearly or completely frozen still. Tuolumne Meadows itself is still completely covered by snow… except where the flooding Tuolumne River has created a giant, fast-moving lake.

I made this photograph at Tioga Lake late in the afternoon after making a traditional visit to the “Who Nellie Deli” in Lee Vining for the ritual fish tacos. Long shadows from nearby peaks and clouds fall across the frozen surface of the lake, the saddle of Tioga Pass is beyond, and in the farthest distance it is still winter on the peaks of Kuna Crest.

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

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 90mm
ISO 200, f/9, 1/1000 second

keywords: yosemite, national, park, sierra, nevada, mountain, spring, nature, tioga, lake, pass, mammoth, peak, kuna, crest, ridge, winter, conditions, spring, early, season, june, 2010, snow, ice, frozen, shadow, rock, boulder, reflection, melt, forest, sky, cloud, evening, road, eastern, landscape, winter, nature, stock

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Erosion Patterns in Afternoon Light, Zabriskie Point

May 27, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Slightly overcast afternoon light on erosion patterns in the Gower Gulch area of Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park, California.

After posting such a long string of close views of the hills at Zabriskie Point… it is starting to become difficult to say much original and new about the photographs in this series! This one was made rather late in the afternoon – about 4:00 p.m. – when the light is usually still too harsh and bright for most photography here. Fortunately, some high and thin clouds diffused the light a bit – but still didn’t take the light too far in the soft direction.

It perhaps goes without saying that this another in my series of long-lens studies of small elements of the large and iconic scene at this location. I’ve photographed this particular bit of folded geology before, and I’m still interested in the combination of soft, almost organic shapes and the crazy patterns of lines and shapes heading every which way. From lower left to upper right the lines shift almost completely.

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

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 200mm
ISO 100, f/16, 1/60 second

keywords: gower, gulch, zabriskie, point, erosion, gully, ridge, hill, crack, dirt, curve, fold, geology, shadow, light, afternoon, overcast, diffuse, death valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, landscape, nature, scenic, travel, detail, stock

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Spring Oaks and Santa Cruz Mountains – Castle Rock State Park

May 11, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Spring Oaks and Santa Cruz Mountains. Castle Rock State Park, California. April 24. 2010.

Spring Oaks and Santa Cruz Mountains - Castle Rock State Park

Panoramic photograph of oak trees with new spring growth above the Santa Cruz Mountains descending towards Monterey Bay – Castle Rock State Park.

This is the first (in order of posting) of a few stitched panoramas I made last month. I’ve thought about this shot for a while. It is from at the top of a staircase section of trail at Castle Rock State Park in California, alongside Goat Rock. From this spot you can see all the way to Santa Cruz, the Monterey Bay, and the Monterey Peninsula hills beyond. On this early spring morning the oak trees were just getting their new leaves, so it was still possible to shoot between the branches and see the distant scene where fog filled the bay.

One idea I’m currently working with – among many others – is creating very wide panoramic stitched images of subjects that would usually be shot in a taller format – especially trees. Instead of photographing the entire tree, this feels to me more like looking through the trees at the scene beyond, closer to how I might actually look at this scene if I were there.

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

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM at 131mm
ISO 100, f/16, 1/60 second
three image stitched panorama

keywords: oak, tree, grove, forest, trunk, branch, silhouette, spring, season, growth, new, leaves, santa cruz, monterey, mountains, hills, ridge, valley, summit, county, bay, distance, haze, goat, rock, castle, state, park, california, usa, red, green, nature, scenic, travel, stock, landscape, flora, foliage, plant, north america, west, coast, bay, area, stitched, panorama

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