Tag Archives: shoreline

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

Autumn Haze, Big Sur Coast

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Autumn Haze, Big Sur Coast
Autumn haze hugs the rugged Big Sur coastline.

Autumn Haze, Big Sur Coast. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn haze hugs the rugged Big Sur coastline.

One of the things that I’ve missed during the past few months is the opportunity to experience landscape on the grand scale. Given the impediments to long-distance travel during the pandemic, a lot of my photography has been done very locally — on daily walks, on hikes in nearby natural areas, and so forth. For this reason — in addition to all of the other usual reasons — a recent day trip down the Big Sur coast was a special joy.

I think of this as a fairly “quiet” image. Yes, this is a stupendously rugged coastline and, yes, that is the Pacific Ocean. But it was a mostly quiet and calm day, without the crowds that are often found along this section of the California coast, and here the coastal haze muted the colors and the outlines of the headlands and buttresses along this section of the Pacific Coast Highway.

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: Fall, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Two Shores, Autumn Light

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Two Shores, Autumn Light
Autumn light and atmosphere above water and California mountains.

Two Shores, Autumn Light. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn light and atmosphere above water and California mountains.

Have I mentioned that I like atmospheric haze? Light coming from straight in front of the camera position? Reflections? The large landscape? Strong contrasts between light and dark? Well, I do.

I made this photograph while driving back from an early morning visit to California’s Central Valley. I’ve probably passed this location hundreds of times, and while I always look I rarely stop. I have mixed feelings about the place. On one hand it provides some monumental vistas and at times — such as spring, when the hills are emerald green — the scene is beautiful. On the other hand, it is a reservoir, formed by damming a lovely and, some would have argued, historic valley. (I have a long history with this place. I recall traveling across the now-submerged valley with my father in the pre-reservoir days when we took trips to Yosemite.) This time the light and atmosphere caught my attention, and I had to find a way to reverse course and get back to this overlook to make a few exposures.

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

Yellow and Orange

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Yellow and Orange
A river of orange and yellow autumn aspen trees flows down to the shoreline of a Sierra Nevada lake.

Yellow and Orange. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A river of orange and yellow autumn aspen trees flows down to the shoreline of a Sierra Nevada lake.

This will be (I’m virtually certain!) the final photograph of the larger landscape of 2020 from this Eastern Sierra Nevada location in the Inyo National Forest, a spot that is arguably perhaps too iconic at this point. How did I end up here again, you ask? This was not my original objective when I headed over the crest in early October, but the wildfire smoke essentially corralled me into this canyon system — my intended locations were simply way too smoky for photography or for camping. Planning is useful in landscape photography… but so is adaptability and a readiness to make the best of the conditions at hand!

It turned out — my good fortune! — that the aspen colors here were close to their peak and that it was a better than usual year, with colors running the gamut from green, through yellow and orange, to red. The colors in this little scene include that full range, with deep greens from conifers, subtle yellows on the lakeside bushes, and the full span from yellow to red among the aspens. And, by the way, while my landscape photographs of Eastern Sierra aspens are more or less done for the season… I do have a few more close-up photographs of the colorful leaves.

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

Shoreline Aspens, Autumn

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Shoreline Aspens, Autumn
Colorful autumn aspen trees line the shoreline of a Sierra Nevada lake.

Shoreline Aspens, Autumn. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Colorful autumn aspen trees line the shoreline of a Sierra Nevada lake.

Near the beginning of the second week of October I had the opportunity to travel to the Eastern Sierra Nevada. The plan was to travel solo, camp in some fairly deserted campgrounds, largely keep my distance from other visitors, and spend some time photographing the fall color. The word from others who had been there a few days earlier was that the fall color was perhaps better than usual, and I didn’t want to miss it. I headed over the crest at Sonora Pass and almost immediately encountered truly awful wildfire smoke that only got worse as I continue south. Eventually it became tolerable near Bishop, so I headed into the mountains and set up camp.

Photography was fine the next day, as the smoke had thinned a great deal. It was still there, but not oppressive. However, that evening it returned with a vengeance and I spent the night wondering how much damage it was doing to my health. The next morning I was up way before dawn, and I decided to at least try on nearby “sure bet” subject, where I had thought about photographing from a particular location in ways that might minimize the visibility of the smoke. I arrived and, sure enough, it was smoky, though less awful than the night before. I set up above the lake behind this beautiful pair of aspens, and mostly composed in ways the eliminated the long views, instead comprising the warm orange and reddish tones of the aspens with the cool, blue colors of the lake.

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

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