Tag Archives: scattered

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Evening Fog, Pacific Ocean

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Evening Fog, Pacific Ocean
Fog begins to appear near dusk along the Pacific Coast below San Francisco.

Evening Fog, Pacific Ocean. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Fog begins to appear near dusk along the Pacific Coast below San Francisco.

Today’s photograph is… quiet… and peaceful. While the world at large is never completely that way, I suppose that the intensity of the craziness has been dialed back at least a bit during the last week or so, and I’m glad for that.

I’ve long had a fondness for this “big landscape with horizon” photographs that don’t really feature any single, central element. Instead they hope to evoke the experience of being quietly in such a place and slowly taking all of that in. The lack of an identifiable primary visual focus is perhaps even the point. I had headed over the hills to the closest section of the coast on this spring day, and as dusk came on the fog gradually began to appear again above the quiet sea.

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

Barren Slopes

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Barren Slopes
Boulders scattered across the slopes of a rocky desert landscape

Barren Slopes. Death Valley National Park, California. March 31. 2015. © Copyright 2015 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Boulders scattered across the slopes of a rocky desert landscape

This bit of landscape is a familiar one for me. An odd hill stands in the middle of mostly level playa and near drifting sand — the hill is composed of a different and darker material and is in other ways not like the surroundings. A number of years ago I discovered that place provides some panoramic views of surrounding terrain that stretch off into the distance, and I often go there early in the morning or in the evening to photograph when conditions seem right.

On this evening I did go there, but decided to wander along its flank rather than go to the top. At the base of the western slopes the rugged and rocky terrain faced the sunset sky, muted by high clouds, and presented a series of shallow valleys leading off into the distance, punctuated by boulders.

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: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite, Post-processing Workflow

Trees, Granite Slabs, Morning Light

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Trees, Granite Slabs, Morning Light
Trees, Granite Slabs, Morning Light

Trees, Granite Slabs, Morning Light. Yosemite National Park, California. September 4, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Trees scattered along granite slabs are backlit by morning light, Yosemite National Park

I am a complete sucker for scenes with scattered trees, separated enough to allow light to pass, that are backlit by morning or evening sun. Among my photographs, they are a bit of a theme, or so I’ve been told, but they are also almost an icon of the Sierra for me. When I think of the term “range of light,” it is most often this light that comes to mind. I know that I’ve always been intrigued by light that makes the atmosphere glow, is so bright that it is hard to look into it.

Early on this morning I began by making a bee line for this rounded granite ridge at the top of a large system of sloping slabs above the lake where we were camped. Initially I was thinking of the location as a place from which to photograph distant subjects in a different direction, but once at this high point, with the sun spilling brilliant light my direction after having just topped the farther ridge, I turned my attention to these trees and rocks, backed by luminous haze and more granite, tree-covered slopes leading toward a higher ridge.

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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Autumn Oak Leaves, Utah

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Autumn Oak Leaves, Utah
Autumn Oak Leaves, Utah

Autumn Oak Leaves, Utah. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. October 24, 2014. © Copyright 2014 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Fallen oak leaves on the moist floor of a Utah canyon

I found these newly fallen autumn oak leaves at the bottom of a narrow canyon in the southern Utah back-country. The spot is a sort of “half Subway” (referencing the iconic location in Zion National Park — though this is not near there) with a tube-like formation cut into the rock on one side of the narrow canyon as the creek is forced to bend around massive rocks. Near the end of this curve is a section of smooth red rock that must have a spring above, since water seems to drip down it continuously.

All of these factors created a very unusual and striking little vignette in this spot. The tan leaves are dry, and lighter than the underlying rock. The rock is actually within the typical range of red canyon rock, though perhaps tending a bit toward burgundy coloration. But the colors a skewed by several other factors. Being at the bottom of a deep canyon, the light here has taken on the warm red quality from reflecting off of the canyon walls. Mixed in with that red is some blue reflected from the band of open blue sky straight above. A close look reveals some sharper reflections from brightly lit areas high on the canyon walls.

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.