Tag Archives: rock

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

Equipment, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Wildlife

Harbor Seal Family

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Harbor Seal Family

Harbor Seal Family. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. April 26, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A family trio of harbor seals rests on an offshore rock at Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

I photographed this family group (at least they sure acted like a family!) on an offshore rock just above the surf line on the late April weekend when I almost had the whole of Point Lobos State Reserve to myself. (I wrote about this earlier – a marathon had closed the coast highway and almost no one else was in the park.) I think the seals were a bit less wary than they might be because of the very small number of people in the park – actually, I was the only person near them for a good long time. I had a great chance to observe them uninterrupted, and from two slightly different locations – after shooting from this spot I moved far to the right where I could shoot back at the far side of the rock.

I found it interesting that they were very aware of my presence and seemed to pay more obvious attention to me than I have seen in the past. The lighter color seal on the right stared right at me for long periods of time on several occasions, even though I was quite a distance away and standing nearly motionless. Once or twice all three gazed my direction. I wasn’t sure who was observing who! The darker seal on the left seemed to be the least active, only occasionally rolling around and scratching the back (yes, they do this!) of the others, especially the smaller one in the far middle in this shot.

I’m still working out the best ways to photograph creatures like these. Learning their habits a bit helps, as does arriving at the right time – in terms of season, time of day, weather, and the good fortune of being there on an uncrowded day at Point Lobos. I’d like to get shots from a lower angle, but this can be difficult. I think the seals are much less likely to be close to the shore in such places.

I have a very large number of photographs of this group, and I may post more eventually.

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: harbor, seal, young, parents, family, eyes, three, rock, shore, water, seaweed, kelp, flipper, white, gray, brown, ocean, sea, coast, wildlife, nature, whiskers, spring, rest, lie, group, point lobos, state, reserve, park, california, usa, monterey, peninsula, carmel, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Textures

Detail #2, Rocks, Point Lobos

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Detail #2, Rocks, Point Lobos

Detail #2, Rocks, Point Lobos. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. April 26, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Detail of rock forms near tidepools at Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

This is the second a series of two photographs of this small section of twisted, convoluted rock texture right next to the water not far from Weston Beach at Point Lobos State Reserve.

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: detail, rock, formation, shape, texture, form, geology, brown, gray, shore, shoreline, sea, coast, tidepool, rock, point lobos, state, reserve, park, nature, abstract, stock, monterey, peninsula, carmel, california, usa

Equipment, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Textures

Detail #1, Rocks, Point Lobos

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Detail, Rocks, Point Lobos

Detail #1, Rocks, Point Lobos. Point Lobos State Reserve, California. April 26, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Detail of rock forms near tidepools at Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

I spent a mostly foggy and cloudy day at Point Lobos State Reserve south of Carmel, California during the last weekend of April. (I wrote elsewhere about the miraculous coincidence of my visit with the Big Sur Marathon, which delayed my arrival at the park a bit but ultimately meant that I was virtually the only person in the entire park!) I started at the actual “Point Lobos” – the punta de los lobos marinos area – and gradually worked my way south along the waterline. After stopping to photograph a family if harbor seals I decided to more closely inspect some of the twisted and colorful rock formations and textures and I ended up making some photographs of them, along with some semi-macro shots of shells and other shoreline detritus.

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: detail, rock, formation, shape, texture, form, geology, brown, gray, shore, shoreline, sea, coast, tidepool, rock, point lobos, state, reserve, park, nature, abstract, stock, monterey, peninsula, carmel, california, usa