Tag Archives: strata

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Autumn Foliage and Red Rock Cliffs

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Autumn Foliage and Red Rock Cliffs
“Autumn Foliage and Red Rock Cliffs” — Red rock cliffs tower above early autumn color and a creek, Capitol Reef National Park.

It took me several visits to get a feel for Capitol Reef National Park. The appeal of the beautiful sandstone towers, cliffs, and mountains is undeniable, but at first the park seemed sort of… small to me. As I learned more about this part, I think I see why that is and understand that it may be something of a conscious decision. The casual visitor arrives on a road that passes across the narrow width of the park, and then they visit the area around Fruita and one visitor road that enters the park from there. That doesn’t cover a lot of ground.

But much (most, by far) of this park is off the beaten path. It is accessible by vehicle, but only on long gravel roads, some of which involve challenges such as stream crossings. And the areas at the ends of those drives are relatively undeveloped. You are on your own out there, and I think that it intentional… and I approve.

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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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Cedar Breaks

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Cedar Breaks
“Cedar Breaks” — Eroded sandstone strata at Cedar Breaks National Monument.

Cedar Breaks seems to me a bit of an odd spot. It sits on the edge of a high ridge in Utah just south of the Brian Head ski area. While it is spectacular, it is small, and and out of the way, and I think that it gets a bit lost by comparison to the other iconic parks of the state. In fact, it wasn’t a primary destination for us either — it was near a convenient place to spend a few nights on our way between California and points east of here.

But what it lacks in size and fame, it makes up for in spectacular features. A gigantic west-facing gash cuts into the summit of a high plateau. (The difference between that gentle plateau and this feature is remarkable.) Rather than the gigantic solid masses of sandstone found in places like Zion, Capitol Reef, and Arches, here the terrain is softer and the strata seem thinner, giving it a very different character.

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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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Sandstone Cliff Detail

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Sandstone Cliff Detail
“Sandstone Cliff Detail” — A section of a sandstone cliff face featuring fracturing, strata, exfoliation, and water markings.

The textures, forms, colors, and patterns found in Utah sandstone walls amaze me. They can be so complex that I sometimes imagine that I see things like writing or images, but patterns formed naturally over the millennia. Here we can see layering at more than one angle, marks left by dripping and flowing water, the effects of exfoliation, and more.

This bit of wall might usually not get a lot of attention. If I recall correctly (it has been a decade) I found it in an odd corner of a canyon at Capitol Reef — not in a particularly iconic location within the park. Because it was later in the day the high canyon walls blocked the direct sunlight, allowing the softer light to fill that shadows a bit and reveal more details.

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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: The Southwest

Slot Canyon Detail

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Slot Canyon Detail
“Slot Canyon Detail” — Details of the wall of a Utah slot canyon, illuminated by reflected light.

There is a lot I could write about this photograph, the circumstances of making it, and how it ended up here today. First off, it is an older photograph, made years ago. I periodically revisit my old raw file archives, and I always discover photographs that I left behind. In this case, someone else’s photograph from the Southwest triggered me to review my older work from Utah, much of which is over a decade old. So far, I’ve rediscovered about twenty interesting Utah images from that period. Stay tuned!

The photograph came from a productive expedition to Utah during the autumn of 2014. I started out traveling and photographing solo, but eventually joined up with others as I worked in the southern part of the state for weeks. Early on that trip I almost randomly ended up at this location. I drove down a dirt road that looked interesting, found a place to park, and started walking down a shallow stream bed. The route entered a canyon that soon narrowed and turned into a slot canyon. It was only later that I discovered that I had been in a bit of a special place.

Leave a comment or question using the form. (If you are reading this on the home page, click the article title to see the full article and the comment form.

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.