Tag Archives: rocky

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

West-Facing Wall

Image August 6, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Sunset light floods a west-facing bowl above a high Yosemite backcouintry lake.

In the recent series of panoramic photographs from the Yosemite backcountry and a follow-up photograph in a more typical orientation, I mentioned this location and its extraordinary exposure to the western sky. Among backcountry locations with which I’m familiar, this one is perhaps the most reliable at producing beautiful sunset light and alpenglow.

For this photograph I decided to simply compose straight on, looking right at the upper (and east) side of the bowl. Even though peak sunset color has not yet quite arrived, the entire cliff face is washed with this warmly-colorful 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: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Windswept Trees, Coastal Bluffs

Image July 3, 2022 G Dan Mitchell 3 Comments

Rugged trees clinging to rocky bluffs above the Pacific Coast shoreline, Point Lobos.

This scene gets a different treatment than other recent Point Lobos photographs, something more in line with the tradition of black and white photography at this location. The foreground tree and its nearby associates are influenced by the strong winds at this exposed location. Branches and whole trees are bent away from the open sea, and their angles are mirrored by the slope of the headland on the other side of the foggy inlet.

In a recent post I mentioned that some attractive Point Lobos subjects are often nearly impossible to photograph because dense trees stand between legal (and safe!) camera positions and the open views. While sometimes I can find a way to photograph under, around, or through these barriers, that isn’t always. possible. I initially went to this spot looking for an open view of the inlet, but when I couldn’t find it I decided to make the trees and boulders the main foreground element.

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

Monterey Cypress, Cormorant Rookery, Fog

Image July 1, 2022 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

Fog obscures a cormorant rookery behind a Monterey cypress tree growing on a rocky promontory.

You might think that I would be done with photographs of this tree and its surroundings by now. But you would be wrong. And, yes, there is at least one more to come. Variations include portrait versus landscape mode, wider near-panoramic aspect ratios, the inclusion of more or less of the surrounding terrain, and in this case some wildlife.

The main feature and primary focus in all of the variations is this gnarled tree growing on a rocky promontory. In this rendition the wide aspect ration allows me to include more of the background. The most interesting part of that to me is the white (guano-covered) rocky knoll barely visible in the fog over the left shoulder of the Monterey cypress tree. This rock is the site of a cormorant rookery, and the young birds (almost as large as their parents!) stand and wait for mom and dad to bring them more food.

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

Cliffside Trees, Fog

Image June 27, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

This is another in this week’s series of photographs from a recent foggy morning at Point Lobos State Reserve, a favorite location where I have photographed for decades. I live a bit more than an hour away, so I can watch the weather and head over there almost at the spur of the moment when conditions look good. And the conditions on this morning were excellent, with the fog being both persistent and often translucent.

Tall cliffs tower above rugged peninsulas, rocky promontories, and coves along the north shore. This is one of the best locations to see Monterey cypress trees that have been challenged and bent by the rocky terrain and the wind. Many of the trees in this photograph grow at the edge of the land and subsist on little more than the thin soil collected in cracks in the rock.

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: rocky

West-Facing Wall

Windswept Trees, Coastal Bluffs

Monterey Cypress, Cormorant Rookery, Fog

Cliffside Trees, Fog

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