Tag Archives: rock

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Ledge Meets Lake

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Ledge Meets Lake
A ledge llittered with fractured rocks above the shorline of an alpine Sierra Nevada lake.

Ledge Meets Lake. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A ledge llittered with fractured rocks above the shorline of an alpine Sierra Nevada lake.

This little conjunction of rock and water has fascinated me since I first saw it. The lake is in the eastern Sierra Nevada backcountry, above another lake where a group of us went to photograph for a week a couple of years ago. I have a long acquaintance with this upper lake, having first visited it perhaps a couple of decades ago. It is fascinating how my perception of the place changed over time. From that long-ago first visit I only remember that there wasn’t much in the way of obvious campsites here. On later visits I took in more of the alpine surrounds of this lake, which is set in a high bowl. Over several days of repeated visits on the more recent trip I became very familiar with the rocky terrain around the outlet of the lake.

While I’m not completely averse to photographing icons, I spend most of my photographic time in places like this looking for things that I would overlook without careful attention. Seen this way, there are photographic opportunities almost everywhere I look. In fact, I “saw” this little scene it at least four (and counting!) different ways, several of which attentive viewers may recall.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Path Through the Narrows

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Path Through the Narrows
The route through the narrows of a desert canyon twists and turns past rock walls.

Path Through the Narrows. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The route through the narrows of a desert canyon twists and turns past rock walls.

This is another photograph from my time exploring canyons on my recent Death Valley visit. The pandemic shutdown period — even though things were beginning to let up a bit — seemed like a good time to visit areas in the park that are less accessible and where I was more likely to find myself in splendid solitude. A barely saw anyone during my visit to this area, and I was the only person there when I stayed overnight.

Canyons have wildly diverse “personalities” and, like some humans, those personalities are subject to change. This canyon, like some others in this park, alternates between open sections with shallow-angle canyon “walls” and more constricted “narrows.” I made this photograph near the entrance to one of the narrows. At this time of day there was quite a bit of light filtering down from far above, bouncing back and forth between the eroded canyon walls and filling the scene with soft light.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Desert Slot Canyon

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Desert Slot Canyon
Desert canyon narrows curve past sculpted rock walls, Death Valley National Park.

Desert Slot Canyon. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Desert canyon narrows curve past sculpted rock walls, Death Valley National Park.

No, I’m not quite done yet with the photographs from this year’s foray to Death Valley. Visiting the park is an annual tradition for me — sometimes more than once. I often go around the end of winter or beginning of spring, and I would have missed last year’s visit but for the lucky timing that took me there in January of 2020. Since then I had wondered whether the pandemic was going to force a break in the annual ritual, but after being vaccinated it seemed plenty safe to go there and stay (mostly) in uncrowded, out-of-the way places. I was wonderful to be back there!

This is another photograph made in one of the narrows of a canyon that is a bit off the beaten track. (Despite the prominence of some well-known icons in this park, the place is full of other wonders that are far enough from pavement to decrease the number of visitors.) I camped in complete solitude near the entrance to this canyon, and that gave me the chance to explore in in both late afternoon and early morning light. The the narrower sections of the canyon there can be wonderful contrasts between the warmer colors where the canyon walls get a bit of sun and the darker sections that remain in the cool-colored shadows.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Canyon Bend

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Canyon Bend
Contrasting warm and cool colors in a narrow section of a desert canyon.

Canyon Bend. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Contrasting warm and cool colors in a narrow section of a desert canyon.

During my hikes up and down this canyon I made quite a few photographs of these lovely narrows. I camped at the mouth of the canyon, and this made it possible to hike up twice — once late in the day and again the next morning. The appearance of a narrow canyon like this one depends so much on the nature of the light, and that was almost completely different during the two visits.

Several things intrigue me about this particular narrows. Sections of it are quite angled, with the wall on one side slanting away and on the other side overhanging the bottom of the canyon substantially. In other words, you don’t look straight up to see the narrow band of sky, but instead you look off to one side a bit. I assume that this is a partially due to erosion following natural lines of weakness in the geology and partly due to the tendency of moving water to undercut a side of the canyon. Of even more interest to a photographer, the color of the light in this canyon and others like it is quite variable. In the darkest section the only light comes from the very blue sky, and the light here is quite blue. (I actually toned it down a bit in the photograph.) However, where the light comes in a bit more directly or perhaps through a wider gap the color is much warmer, as we see on the far wall beyond that gap in this photograph.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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