Tag Archives: snow

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New York City

Winter Reflections, Central Park

Image February 22, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Lake edge with ice and reflections. — “Winter Reflections, Central Park” — Trees reflected in a strip of water at the edge of a frozen lake, Central Park.

I photographed this little scene on a cold morning walk through New York’s Central Park this past December. We were fortunate to have light snow one morning, and that changed the appearance of the city and the park. It had already been cold enough to freeze most of The Lake’s surface, but the light snowfall covered imperfections. In this spot fallen leaves rested on new ice and the reflected the silhouettes of nearby trees.

The concepts of “nature” (and even of “wilderness”) are complex and, I think, not entirely fixed. Sometimes we accept the notion that these things mean “devoid of evidence of humans.” But there’s a problem with that idea — it suggests that humans are independent of the natural world. Finding the natural world in places like this — even if you can perhaps hear car horns in the distance — is a reminder that nature is everywhere and we are a part of it.

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” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Travel

Winter Scene, Central Park

Image February 19, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

“Winter Scene, Central Park” — A winter scene in Central Park, Manhattan

We visited New York City during the holidays at the end of 2024. We got lucky and had just the right sort of minor snow storm — one that left perhaps an inch or two of snow on the ground, lending atmosphere to he place, but which wasn’t serious enough to snarl traffic. Here in Central Park the meadows were covered with shallow snow.

We went out for a morning walk to meet our oldest son and grab a bite to eat. After that we headed north and ended up passing through the lower portion of the park on the way to our hotel. Here the trees were winter-bare, and their silhouettes contrasted with the hard-edged forms of the buildings beyond.

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Central Park, Trees, Snow

Image February 16, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

I seem to attract “interesting” weather when I visit New York City. Part of this may be my predilection for visiting in August when, as any New Yorker knows, the weather is atrocious. (There’s a reason that August is a traditional vacation month for residents of the city.) For years we also tended to visit over the holiday break, when the weather can be very cold, at least by California standards. I made this photograph during our recent December visit.

I have been told by people who live there that snow isn’t that common until after the New Year. But we had a morning of light snow just before Christmas. To be honest, it was a treat for us, and we went for a couple of long walks in Central Park to enjoy the wintry scene. The photograph looks through a grove of winter-dormant trees towards the tall buildings of Manhattan.

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.

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Migratory Geese, Wetlands

Image January 11, 2025 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Our little band of photographers gathered once again on New Year’s Day to greet the new year together and photograph migratory birds and the often-foggy Central Valley landscape. This photograph holds what I think of as the main elements of this winter landscape: birds, a bit of fog, sky, trees, and grasses. (OK, cattle and crops are part of the scene, but not in this photograph.)

There are various natural cycles to observe when photographing these birds. The most obvious is annual — they return from the arctic every autumn and around the start of spring. There’s a cycle during that period, too. At first they are often harder to find, settling into remote areas of the valley and being more uneasy around humans. As the season goes on they seem to be a bit easier to locate as they collect in gigantic flocks, and the become extremely active in the final month before their departure for points north.