Tag Archives: stone

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: People, Photographs: Portugal, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Busker, Lisbon

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Busker, Lisbon
“Busker, Lisbon” — A street musician stands in front of a wall near the St. George Castle, Lisbon.

As I have mentioned, we like to walk when visiting cities, and we did a lot of that when we were in Lisbon this summer. Like many European (and the centers of some American) cities, the place is really quite walkable, though we did deal with some hot temperatures… and, of course, the famous hills of this city. The hills figured in this photograph and some others I made on this morning. We decided to go to the area of the St. George Castle. (We did not go in the castle grounds — we explored nearby instead.) We walked… and we bypassed the tempting options to get driven up the hill. This was a lot more work, but we also saw a lot more than we would have if we let someone carry us up there!

We wandered various narrow streets in the upper areas of the hill where the castle is located. At one point I came upon this solo busker, setting up to perform in a place that seemed unlikely to see all that many tourists. It was kind of out of the way, against a wall where a road more or less ended — and, if I recall correctly, we were about the only people around. I slipped a few euros into his basket and make a few photographs, including this one.

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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

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Photographs: Croatia, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Trogir Street, Early Morning

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Trogir Street, Early Morning
Trogir Street, Early Morning. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell

Trogir Street, Early Morning. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A (nearly-) empty early-morning street in Trogir, Croatia.

Trogir, Croatia is located not far from the city of Split. (It is not too far from the Split airport, as any visitor will note after watching and listening to planes on approach over the town.) It is a very old town and quite a striking place, with buildings and narrow streets constructed from local stone. Its history goes back over 2000 years, and these days it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a well-known location from the Game of Thrones franchise and, not doubt partly as a result, a very popular place with tourists. The latter can be an issue, especially in such a small town, and during the daytime it can be really crowded.

My friend and Croatian fellow photographer Franka Mlikota Gabler was visiting while we were there, and she suggested meeting before sunrise for some early morning — and crowd-free! — photography. Aside from people setting up restaurants and shops or making deliveries, or tourists heading out to catch early flights from the Split airport, the place was almost deserted. I photographed this narrow street while it was early enough that the blue hour light still suffused the narrow passageways.

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: Architecture, Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Travel

Doorway, Steps, Morning Light

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Doorway, Steps, Morning Light
Morning light on a weathered doorway, steps, and a small plant — Orvieto, Italy.

Doorway, Steps, Morning Light. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Morning light on a weathered doorway, steps, and a small plant — Orvieto, Italy.

Since I wrote earlier about our stop in Orvieto, Italy I will keep the background brief on this post. Orvieto is a lovely “hill town” in Umbria. The old walled city occupies the relatively flat top of a hill surrounded by steep slopes. It is a popular day-trip destination, though we stayed there a few days and enjoyed evenings and mornings without crowds.

As a very old town, it is a cit of very narrow and winding streets. (The “small bus” ride to our lodgings from the funicular was… something.) The whole place is eminently walkable, and we took advantage of that throughout our visit, wandering to places that we knew we were supposed to visit (including the impressive duomo) and walking randomly up and down whatever streets looked interesting.

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

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

Rooted in Stone

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Rooted in Stone
A mature tree growing in cracks in a fractured Yosemite cliff.

Rooted in Stone. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A mature tree growing in cracks in a fractured Yosemite cliff.

Even as I work on new photographs, I return to old files to see what I have missed — and there is always something to discover. When I look at photographs long after I made them it seems like I can see them for what they are more than for what I expected them to be. I don’t recall the specific circumstances of making the photograph… and sometimes I don’t remember making it at all!

I know I made this on a very quick swing through Yosemite Valley as we returned from a few days in Oakhurst for the opening of a show. At this point, the specific details of visits to Yosemite Valley tend to blur together, since I’ve visited the place since I was about five years old. How many times total? Scores? Hundreds? I can’t say. But I’m still amazed that trees like this one can grow in such unlikely places.

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.

Blog | About | Twitter | 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.