Tag Archives: sunset

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Ridge, Last Light

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Ridge, Last Light
The last evening light strikes the top of a Sierra crest ridge

Ridge, Last Light. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The last evening light strikes the top of a Sierra crest ridge.

As a photographer of landscapes I like to think of myself as being something of a connoisseur of sunsets. Hey, I’ve seen a few of them! There is not denying that it is a special time of the day, just like dawn, when the landscape undergoes a rapid and often striking transformation, made more notable against the backdrop of daytime light that changes very slowly. As the day comes to an end the changes accelerate — shadows lengthen, the sun approaches the horizon or other blockage, the color of the light warms, and distant clouds and other features begin to affect the local scene. Quickly the light disappears, leaving some alpenglow if you are lucky, and then the transition slows again as darkness falls.

Over several evenings it became obvious that this ridge above our camp was the last one to get the sunlight. Since we were camped to the east of the Sierra Nevada crest, there was little full-on sunset light here. However, given the curved shape of the upper canyon and the high peaks on the crest, there were a few spots like this one that were open to the light coming from far to the west. On this evening some clouds assembled above the ridge, creating a more dramatic backdrop.

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 and Amazon.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Clouds, Evening Sky

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Clouds, Evening Sky
Sunset clouds above the Sierra Nevada crest, John Muir Wilderness

Clouds, Evening Sky. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sunset clouds above the Sierra Nevada crest, John Muir Wilderness.

Sierra skies will please or distress you, depending upon your relationship to them and to light. Many visitors absolutely love the days-long stretches of perfect blue skies that occur here, frequently uninterrupted by any clouds at all. (These conditions are among those that give rise to the “Range of Light” designation for these mountains.) On the other hand, photographs often find these “perfect” conditions to be boring, and you might be surprised to hear us complain about too much blue sky!

Our late-August arrival at this location was accompanied by rain during the afternoon on the day we hiked in — no downpours, but enough to gently soak everything and persuade us to put on parkas and set up tents. On the second day we had a few more clouds… but that was pretty much it. The rest of our stay (with the exception of our walk back out, when it did rain again) featured — you guessed it — one of those “days-long stretches of perfect blue skies.” So, after days of such aggravatingly perfect weather, we were absolutely thrilled when these lovely sunset clouds drifted over our valley in the evening on our last full day, glowing with gentle color against the deepening blue of the evening sky.

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 and Amazon.

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

Crescent City Sunset

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Crescent City Sunset
Sunset over beach, sea stacks, and Pacific Ocean at Crescent City, California

Crescent City Sunset. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sunset over beach, sea stacks, and Pacific Ocean at Crescent City, California.

This photograph came about in a somewhat odd way, if I recall correctly — though it isn’t the first to happen in a similar impromptu manner. This area of California’s north coast is beautiful and spectacular. We were there mainly to photograph in the redwoods, hoping that the oft-photographed foggy conditions would coincide with the rhododendron bloom. We got the bloom… but not the fog. It was about as clear up there as it ever gets. This sometimes made for slightly awkward photography. The foggy conditions can (or should I say, “could?”) extend the duration of photography, but without at times we found ourselves out of things to photograph.

My memory is that something like that happened on this evening. We had been photographing in redwoods south of Crescent City, with some success, but the light quickly passed through the ideal stage (enough of it, but not too much direct light) and became too dark to photograph, especially giving a bit of wind that was interfering with long exposures. So we headed back to town… only to see a sky over the Pacific that looked like it could evolve into something special. We headed out to the edge of the water, and I “made my stand” at this spot overlooking this large rock connected to the mainland by a narrow spit of sand. (Aside from the beauty of the scene, there was one strange moment. As I stood behind my tripod, some slightly inebriated fellow holding a beer can walked up and wobbly inquired, ” Is that the Canon 70-200?” It obviously wasn’t at that point. Then, “WERE you using the 70-200 earlier?” OK, yes, I had been. “Thanks,” he replied,” that’s what I thought. That means my buddy owes me another beer.”)

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 and Amazon.

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

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm

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Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm
A sand storm blows a cloud of dust into desert mountains at sunset

Dunes, Mountains, Sand Storm. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A sand storm blows a cloud of dust into desert mountains at sunset.

This early-April afternoon and evening produced remarkable conditions in Death Valley. I had seen the advance warnings of high winds and sand storms so I was already thinking of the potential conditions beforehand, but late in the day I noted that dust clouds were already visible far to the north. But the wind-driven sand and dust wasn’t the only interesting element — a weather front was also moving through, stacking up spectacular clouds, some of which were managing to drop some rain.

We did a big loop northward along the eastern slopes of the valley, climbing a ways into the Amargosa Range before coming back down to the valley, where the winds continued and dust and sand were blowing everywhere. We stopped in the thick of it, and I thought about a technique I often use in these conditions: photographing with a long lens from inside the vehicle. But that presented two problems: opening a window even a crack quickly let in piles of sand, and the subjects I was interested were in all directions. So I got out, cowering in the leeward side of the vehicle, and photographed as the sand blew, clouds to the west began to thin, and sunset light struck the mountains to my east.

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 and Amazon.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

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