Tag Archives: silhouette

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

Backlit Autumn Oak Tree

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Backlit Autumn Oak Tree
“Backlit Autumn Oak Tree” — Branches and leaves of an autumn black leaf oak tree in Yosemite Valley.

My Autumn color hunting season in the Sierra Nevada runs from roughly the very end of September through the beginning of November, as color moves from the highest east side regions to the foothills and valleys of the Western Sierra. A trip to Yosemite Valley right around Halloween is traditional, and this year was there on that date.

While California’s western Sierra isn’t known as a fall color hot spot, there is a lot of beautiful color if you know where and when to look. In Yosemite Valley, much of the color comes from bright yellow big leaf maples, golden-brown black oaks, and yellow-to-red dogwoods. The tree in the photograph is a large oak growing in a Valley meadow. I photographed directly backlit by the sun, just before it moved behind a high cliff.

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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

Dawn Fog and Wildfire Smoke

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Dawn Fog and Wildfire Smoke
“Dawn Fog and Wildfire Smoke” — Fog hovers over a meadow, wildfire smoke fills the sky as trees are silhouetted by first dawn light above the Sierra Nevada crest.

In the mountains I usually awaken while it. is still dark outside, and on my most recent visit I was camped in a forest. So I have virtually no idea of the specific conditions I will find when I head out. Will there be clouds? Frost? haze? I won’t know until I get to a location and the light begins to appear. I can anticipate the range of possibilities to some extent ,but occasionally I am completely surprised. That was the case on this morning when I emerged from the forest campground, arrived at a meadow, and found it filling with beautiful ground fog.

Such conditions often are very transitory — all it takes is a little breeze or a slight increase in the temperature and fog is gone. So I quickly headed to a spot I know of where I thought some trees might be silhouetted against the pre-sunrise sky and fog. It was my lucky morning… the fog continued to thicken and spread for a while, and I managed to make this photograph of those trees and a distant Sierra crest peak as the fog drifted my way.

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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: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Dawn Sky, Mono Basin

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Dawn Sky, Mono Basin
“Dawn Sky, Mono Basin” — Tufa towers in Mono Lake waters reflecting the dawn sky.

It is difficult to resist a visit to immense Mono Lake when I visit the Eastern Sierra, even when it isn’t the main goal of my trip. OK, it is actually just about impossible to resist making at least a quick stop there. In early July I spent a few days around the Sierra crest along the eastern boundary of Yosemite National Park, and one morning I decided to head down to Mono Lake before dawn and spend a few hours photographing in the early light.

I hade this photograph near dawn, when the pre-sunrise light was deeply coloring the sky, which was reflected in the waters of the lake. I love how the apricot-olored sky near the horizon fades to blue far above. The distant mountains are on the far side of this gigantic lake, many miles away, and this cluster of tufa towers stands a good distance out in the water.

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

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(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)

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

Mountains, Meadow, and Morning Mist

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Mountains, Meadow, and Morning Mist
“Mountains, Meadow, and Morning Mist” — Ridges leading to Sierra Crest peaks tower above a meadow with rising morning mist.

Tuolumne Meadows runs roughly on an east-west axis along Tioga Pass Road. Consequently, sunrise and sunset light shine along its length. Standing at the west end in the morning the sun rises just left of Mount Dana in the summer. It takes a while for the sun to rise high enough to clear the peaks, but when it does the light is intense.

I made this photograph on such a morning. After photographing a different pre-dawn subject, I headed here with a vague plan to photograph meadow subjects. From this vantage point, the sun’s backlight across the great distances produces striking atmospheric recession on the layers of mountains and ridges between the Meadows and the Sierra Crest.

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

Join the discussion — you are welcome to leave a comment or question. (Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.)

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(All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.)