Tag Archives: state

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

Three Pelicans in Flight, Waddell Beach

December 5, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Three pelicans, blurred by their motion, fly just above the wet sand of a Pacific Ocean beach.

It has been a busy week and it promised to remain busy next week as well, so I decided to make a quick trip over the hill to the Pacific coastline north of Santa Cruz this afternoon with a vague plan to shoot some seascapes and whatever else might come up. The weather today was a type of typical central California winter weather – some tule fog in the morning that cleared to hazy light… perfect for photography in my book! I was hoping for something like this on the coastline, too.

When I arrived I found that it was even more murky along the coast (and colder!) than back home. I finally ended up at the beach where Waddell Creek enters the Pacific and pulled over to stop before turning around and starting back. At just that moment two large groups of pelicans were coming in from the south and landing among sea gulls on the beach. I quickly put the long lens on the camera and very soon the group of birds took off and headed across the shoreline in front of me.

Most often I try to make wildlife photographs as sharp as possible, but at the moment the birds took off that just wasn’t going to be possible. I had a 400mm lens on the camera, the light was very murky, my ISO was still at 100… and the birds were in flight now! So I tracked them as they flew past, blurring the background surf and sand and letting their wings blur as well. In the end, I feel that this blurry shot in which everything seems to be in motion better suits the subject and perhaps conveys the atmosphere of the scene better than sharper photos might. (I later adjusted everything and captured a few more traditionally sharp pelican shots – and in this light they strike me as pretty boring!)

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: pelican, bird, marine, pelagic, brown, pacific, ocean, sea, coast, shore, shoreline, beach, sand, wave, surf, motion, fast, low, fly, blur, wing, formation, water, reflection, shadow, beak, bill, flight, california, usa, nature, travel, scenic, stock, waddell, big basin, state, park

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

Sea Lions and Gulls, Sunset – Point Lobos

November 28, 2009 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

Sea lions and gulls on offshore rocks at sunset in heavy surf – Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

As I photographed this group of offshore rocks in heavy surf near sunset, a group of gulls suddenly came into the scene and tried to land on the sea-lion-covered rocky island. The season beginning at about this time of year until early spring is my favorite for photographing the California coastline – the time when the great Pacific Ocean weather fronts roll through and bring huge surf conditions.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: point, lobos, state, park, reserve, carmel, monterey, peninsula, big, sur, california, usa, ocean, sea, pacific, coast, shore, scenic, stock, travel, nature, gull, bird, fly, land, lion, marine, mammal, surf, wave, spray, wild, mist, reflection, sun, sunset, yellow, orange, light, foam, silhouette, beam, stock

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

Offshore Squall and Layered Clouds, Point Lobos

November 26, 2009 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Black and white seascape photograph of a passing offshore squall and layered clouds at Point Lobos State Reserve, California.

This is a somewhat subjective impression of a scene that I witnessed last weekend late in the day along the California coastline as a small weather front passed Point Lobos, causing the weather to quickly switch from sun to brief showers and back to sun. Here the foreground water is in shadow, rain is falling from a luminous stratified cloud and being illuminated from behind. Conditions changed rapidly and this effect was gone in a moment.

This image belongs to a category I like to describe as “imaginary landscapes.” The scene is real and nothing has been added nor taken away, but the photograph has been post-processed in order to create a more subjective view of the scene that I had in mind – it corresponds to something I saw in the scene, but I did not restrict myself to trying to produce an objectively “real” version of the scene.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: point, lobos, state, park, reserve, carmel, monterey, peninsula, big, sur, california, usa, ocean, sea, pacific, coast, shore, scenic, stock, travel, nature, off, shore, storm, clouds, layer, form, shower, squall, passing, seascape, weather, rain, light, sun, reflection, sky, stock, black and white, monochrome

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

Rocks, Spray, and Gulls – Punta de los Lobos Marinos

November 25, 2009 G Dan Mitchell 1 Comment

Two gulls on offshore rocks, engulfed in ocean spray and illuminated by the light of the setting sun, Punta de los Lobos Marinos, Point Lobos State Reserve. California.

Shooting almost directly into the setting sun, I photographed the wild spray as a weather front departed, leaving waves, wind, and spray it its wake. I was amazed that the two birds remained perched and completely immobile as the wind and surf raged around them.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: point, lobos, state, park, reserve, carmel, monterey, peninsula, big, sur, california, usa, ocean, sea, pacific, coast, shore, scenic, stock, travel, nature, sea, gull, bird, spray, mist, punta, de, los, lobos, marinos, rocks, island, sunset, light, gold, orange, silhouette, shadow, light, beam, foam, wave, suff, chop, water, stock

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.