Tag Archives: shadows

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Utah Autumn Sky

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Utah Autumn Sky
“Utah Autumn Sky” — Early morning autumn sky at Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

This is an example of what you can find when you focus on “the other stuff” — things other than the main subject that you came for. The spectacular and other-worldly summits of Capitol Reef lie out of sight behind my camera position, I turned my camera 180 degrees the other way to encompass this scene. We see a vast (mostly) sandstone Utah landscape, with lenticular clouds above and autumn cottonwood trees lining a stream in the bottom of the valley.

This sky is also an example of that “other stuff” concept. We initially stopped at this point just before sunrise when those clouds were spectacularly colored by red and orange dawn light. That scene was remarkable, but here the sky color has faded almost completely, and the darker tones contrast with the red rock color.

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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Belgium, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Travel

Stained Glass, Eglise de Notre-Dame Des Victoire

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Stained Glass, Eglise de Notre-Dame Des Victoire
“Stained Glass, Eglise de Notre-Dame Des Victoire” — Columns and stained glass windows in the Eglise de Notre-Dame Des Victoire.

We came to the Eglise de Notre-Dame Des Victoire midway rhrough a very long walk in Brussels, last year. The idea was to go beyond the busy central old district where we were staying to see some other parts of the city. (That central district has a lot to offer, but it is not the whole of Brussels.) We came to the church, walked around it outside, then entered. We were almost the only people there, probably because it isn’t on the tourist map.

It is a beautiful church, full of light from its extensive and tall stained glass windows. In some ways it brought to mind La Chapelle of Paris, though here you could just walk into it. (Accessing La Chapelle is trickier due to its location and security concerns.) I made this photograph along one side of the church where morning light was gently streaming through those beautiful windows.

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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

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

Photographer, Manly Lake

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Photographer, Manly Lake
“Photographer, Manly Lake” — A photographer wades in shallow waters of Manly Lake, Death Valley.

As I photographed the landscape another photographer worked her way out onto the shallow water at the edge of Manly Lake. At first I managed to photograph around her, but before long she moved directly into m frame. At this point it occurred to me that she could become the subject of a photograph herself.

Her presence illustrates something that may not be obvious about this desert lake — it is extremely shallow! This makes sense once you think about the nature of the terrain here This is Badwater Basin, a broad playa containing the lowest elevation in Death Valley. It is nearly flat, and differences in elevation on the playa are measured in centimeters. She was able to find places to step that were perhaps only a centimeter or two higher than the water. (From the Department of Awful Puns, it occurred to me that a fun alternative title for this photo could be “Photograph Her, Manly Lake.”)

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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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

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

Cathedral Range

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Cathedral Range
“Cathedral Range” — The distant Cathedral Range rises above Yosemite high country forests and meadows under evening clouds.

This was the scene late in the day during my early July visit to the High Sierra near Tuolumne Meadows and just east of Yosemite National Park. In the right light, this can be my favorite time of day — the sun Is nearing the horizon and the light is softening and turning golden, and shadows stretch across the landscape. I made the photograph next to a high country meadow that opens to a view of the distant Cathedral Range.

The Cathedral Range has a unique personality. It is not on the Sierra Crest, but instead runs more or less northwest to southeast between the the Tuolumne and Merced Rivers. It rises from mostly forested country to culminate in open granite terrain, with some summits that escaped glaciation and are rugged and steep.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.