Tag Archives: shoreline

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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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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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sequoia-Kings Canyon, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Outcropping and Reflection

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Outcropping and Reflection
The reflection of a massive outcropping at the edge of an alpine lake nestled in a rocky Sierra Nevada basin.

Outcropping and Reflection. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The reflection of a massive outcropping at the edge of an alpine lake nestled in a rocky Sierra Nevada basin.

Back in the summer of 2013 a group of us spent a week base-camped within a five minute walk of this feature and an entire landscape filled with equivalent wonders. It was a high place (roughly 12,000′) filled with lakes and surrounded by forests of small trees and rocky slopes and peaks. We spent that week getting to know this area intimately and photographing it in all kinds of light and conditions.

I suppose that most people must have a carry in their minds a visual symbol for their special places — perhaps a giant tree, a waterfall, a coastal bluff, and so on. When it comes to the Sierra Nevada, the image that comes to mind is usually a high place much like this one, where the trees begin to thin, lakes are often rockbound, and talus slopes rise to alpine ridges and peaks.

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: Nature, Photographs: Sequoia-Kings Canyon, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Alpine Lake, Storm, and Rainbow

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Alpine Lake, Storm, and Rainbow
A trail crosses a rise beyond an alpine lake as rain begins and a rainbow appears against stormy skies, Kings Canyon National Park.

Alpine Lake, Storm, and Rainbow. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A trail crosses a rise beyond an alpine lake as rain begins and a rainbow appears against stormy skies, Kings Canyon National Park.

This photograph comes from a wonderful trip into the Kings Canyon backcountry seven summers ago. A group of five photographers who have been doing such things for almost twenty years (I’ve been going along for a decade) packed in to a remote location at 12,000′ and set up a basecamp. We spent a week there photographing the heck out of the nearby landscape of granite, lakes, and peaks — and enjoying the camaraderie that comes from working together in the wilderness.

By the time I made this photograph I had settled thoroughly into the routines of living and photographing in such a place. I’ve often photographed while hiking through the Sierra, but working from a base-camp gives me time to explore more carefully, to get to know the character of a place, and to experience it in a variety of conditions. Although it was the tail-end of a drought season, we had rain from time to time, and on this afternoon I photographed an area full of lakes as the afternoon showers arrived.

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.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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.