Tag Archives: surf

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

Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset

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Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset
Coastal cliffs, sea stacks, and beach reflecting the light of a Northern California Pacific Ocean sunset

Sea Stacks, Cliffs, Sunset. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Coastal cliffs, sea stacks, and beach reflecting the light of a Northern California Pacific Ocean sunset

This photograph illustrates — as do so many others! — the many situations in which a photograph is the result of some combination of planning, experience, patience, “seeing,” and just plain good luck. In the morning I had photographed a few hours north of here at Prairie Creek Redwood State Park. As I worked that area, in the back of my mind I was calculating the driving time (plus eating and photographing time) that would put me at a particular spot along the coastline above Fort Bragg a bit before sunset. It is a spot that I have photographed before and one that both challenges and appeals to me. I knew the features of the spot, but there was no way to know what the conditions might be — in fact, I thought there was a pretty good chance that it might be fogged in.

As I approached this area, passing through inland mountains, it was apparent that fog was going to be an issue. Even inland the coastal fog was obscuring the upper slopes. Arriving at the coast I found “blah,” gray light. But there I was, knowing that this would be my last stop of the day, so I thought I might make something work in black and white. Then I noticed something interesting — the fog bank ended in the distance to the northwest right along the coastline, and right along the horizon there was a thin band of glowing, reflecting water. It occurred to me that this thin band would likely expand toward my position as the sun dropped toward the horizon, and that there could be a short period of special light. Before long the glow on the water came closer and the nearby waves began to pick up some sunset color. Then, as the bottom of the sun started to emerge below the edge of the cloud shield, the mist began to glow and the sun’s light came directly at me between the shadows of sea stacks, something can happen only for a few days during a brief interval or two each year… and only on days when the coastal weather conditions permit it.

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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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Redwood National & State Parks

Pacific Surf, Morning Fog

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Pacific Surf, Morning Fog
Light fog hugs the shoreline near a far Northern California beach

Pacific Surf, Morning Fog. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Light fog hugs the shoreline near a far Northern California beach

The redwoods aren’t quite the whole story in this far northwest corner of California. There is this ocean… and a rather remarkable coast. There are other things, too — lots of bucolic farmland, quaint little towns and more. While the redwoods were my main “target” on this visit, I did stop to photograph a few other things, too.

On my way north I had come to this beach just before sunset, but since it had been a very long day and I wasn’t “seeing it” as I passed by, I just kept going. But, as I often do, I filed the location away in my memory as being one with some potential. On my third morning I started down the coast towards Fort Bragg, and after stopping briefly at some redwoods I came down the hill to this beach again, where I saw one of my favorite shoreline conditions, thin fog, partially thrown up by ocean spray and hugging the coast.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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

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

Clearing Fog, Point Sur Shoreline

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Clearlng Fog, Point Sur Shoreline
Sun shines on the shoreline near Point Sur Lighthouse as morning fog thins

Clearing Fog, Point Sur Shoreline. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sun shines on the shoreline near Point Sur Lighthouse as morning fog thins

Most of the photographers I know have their “home territory,” the “local neighborhood” where they have photographed for a long time and to which they like to return. For some it may literally be their neighborhood, and they may photograph right around where they live, perhaps even within walking distance. For others it might be a place they no longer live but which they regard as “home” when they go back. My photographic home is rather large, and for almost my entire life it has included California territory from the Pacific coast and redwoods through the Sierra Nevada. Within this larger area, I have to think that the California coast is probably the strongest “home” for me. I’ve gone since my family moved to the San Francisco Bay Area when I was four-years-old, and we used to visit state beaches and explore tide pools and coastal trails at Point Lobos.

I still live close enough that I can get up early, drive to the coast, photograph for a few hours, and be home by early afternoon. That’s exactly what I did today. I always check weather forecasts before heading over, and today’s imagined that the coastal fog would break up around 8:00 AM. Wrong. But, no problem, I simply headed a bit farther down the coast, looking for that region of special light on the border between thinning fog and hazy sunlight. I found that boundary and made this photograph of a familiar area where the rocky headlands and beaches lead toward the old Point Sur Lighthouse. There was plenty of filtered sunlight, and still a few cloud shadows when I made the photograph.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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

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

Coastal Cliffs, Mist And Shadows

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Coastal Cliffs, Mist And Shadows
Morning light illuminates ocean mist between cliffs descending to the Pacific Ocean

Coastal Cliffs, Mist And Shadows. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light illuminates ocean mist between cliffs descending to the Pacific Ocean

While spending a February morning and early afternoon photographing along the Big Sur coastline I passed by a rather famous and often crowded spot. Having visiting and photographed there many times, I wasn’t all that interested in stopping this time. However, I did look as I passed by, and I thought I saw some interesting light and spray down at the base of these cliffs.

By the time I saw it, there was no time to stop, so I continued on a bit, found a turnout, reversed direction and came back to look more closely. At this morning hour the western-facing cliffs are usually still in shadow, but the sun begins to rise high enough to send beams of light between them, lighting the mist and spray from surf and intensifying the color or the near-shore waters.

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