Tag Archives: round

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Round Valley, Autumn Snow

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Round Valley, Autumn Snow
Sun shines on autumn-dry pastures and cottonwood trees in Round Valley as early autumn snow falls on Mount Tom

Round Valley, Autumn Snow. Eastern Sierra Nevada, California. October 4, 2015. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sun shines on autumn-dry pastures and cottonwood trees in Round Valley as early autumn snow falls on Mount Tom

After a few early October days and nights photographing fall subjects in Bishop Canyon, on my final morning in camp I woke up to temperatures in the middle thirties and snow pellets, with the surround peaking shrouded in clouds that occasionally parted to reveal new snowfall. I got up, headed out to make a few photographs, and worked for a couple of hours before the storm arrived in earnest, with rain and snow up higher. At this point, photography was becoming a less attractive and even possible project, so it was time to bail out and start my long drive home. I stopped in the town of Bishop long enough to get coffee and breakfast, and then I was off on what would be a rather long drive home — multiple trans-Sierra passes having been closed by the storm.

My plan was to move along efficiently and not stop too much, but nature had other ideas. I had hardly gone ten miles before I looked to my left and saw these beautiful cottonwood trees in the middle of golden-brown pastures, with a huge storm brewing over the flanks of Mount Tom and the rest of the Sierra. I pulled over and found a high spot and waited for the right conditions of light and clouds — enough clearing to make out the shape of the mountain with its crown of newly fallen snow plus some light on the pasture and the trees.

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 and Amazon.
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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Owens Valley, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Round Valley Cottonwood Trees

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Round Valley Cottonwood Trees
Round Valley Cottonwood Trees

Round Valley Cottonwood Trees. Eastern Sierra Nevada, California. October 6, 2014. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn cottonwood trees beneath the eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevada, Round Valley

I’ve long been captivated by this area at the base of the Sierra Nevada’s eastern escarpment not far from the town of Bishop, California. As you drive south near here you descend a very long grade toward Bishop, and at the bottom of the grade the route crosses a very large valley where the eastern edge of the range seems to retreat far to the west, and a broad valley rises from the lowlands towards much higher peaks. But along the northern edge of this valley the escarpment lives up to its name and is quite sudden and steep.

The valley seems agricultural, with cattle often grazing on the grasslands among the large cottonwood trees. In the late afternoon, and especially in fall when the trees change colors, the backlight coming over the crest lights the trees from behind and from the right point of view they can stand dramatically against the shadowed eastern slopes of the range.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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

Autumn Morning, Round Valley

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Autumn Morning, Round Valley
Autumn Morning, Round Valley

Autumn Morning, Round Valley. Eastern Sierra Nevada, California. October 11, 2013. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light on the pastureland and trees of Round Valley and the eastern Sierra Nevada

This lovely pastoral location sits at the base of the eastern Sierra, and is as much a part of the Owens Valley as it is a part of the Sierra. It is green and lush in the spring and early summer, it takes on some of the typical California golden color later on, and its brown grasses and colorful leaves produce a beautiful sight in autumn. It is not at all a “destination,” but it is a place that I always look forward to seeing when I pass up and down the east side of the range.

There are two particularly beautiful lighting conditions that occur here. One, which I’ll share in another photograph a bit later, occurs in the afternoon. The sun drops behind a tall ridge along the upper section of the valley, leaving the steep slopes of the eastern Sierra escarpment in shade while brilliantly lighting the autumn-colored cottonwood trees from behind. The other lighting, which is seen in this photograph, comes in the morning, when low angle light crosses the meadow, creating long shadows and gradually lighting up the backdrop of the Sierra.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Chicago, Photographs: Urban/Street

Marina City

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Marina City
Marina City

Marina City. Chicago, Illinois. August 2, 2014 © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Detail of Chicago’s Marina City Building

In a city of architecture that attracts attention, both from its form and on account of its visibility, the Marina City buildings stand out. The are cylindrical forms standing in a group and housing a variety of things from offices to apartment and even a parking garage. I like to think of the architecture as being a sort of Early Jetsons style. ;-)

It is not surprise that I had noticed them on earlier Chicago visits, and I had regarded them as sort of landmarks from which I could orient myself in this part of downtown. This time I got to take a closer look at several points, including during our boat trip past architectural features along the Chicago River. By the way, they don’t really tilt like this…

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.