Earlier today I posted my first photos of fall color from the 2012 season, so it seems like a good time to re-share my overview of photographing the Eastern Sierra aspen color, “Sierra Nevada Fall Color – Coming Sooner Than You Think!” The article gives a general outline of where you might look for aspen color in areas from about Carson Pass south to just below Bishop, and also goes into some ideas, both technical and aesthetic, about how you might photograph this subject. I first posted the article three years ago, and I’ve updated it each year since then.

The “coming sooner than you think” part of the article’s title seems especially appropriate this year. Although one can never be absolutely certain how the color change will play out or when it will start and end, there are signs that things may be a bit different this year. The main thing is that some color seems to have appeared a bit earlier than usual. I found some interesting color (though distinctly short of peak color) on a three-day backpacking trip into McGee Canyon on September 14-16 this year – and that seems significantly earlier than I normally expect. I have also heard some second- and third-hand reports of a bit of interesting color already developing in a few other aspen areas.

(9/25/12 update: Various sources who have been in the Sierra since I wrote the original post or who are there now are generally reporting that the color transition has indeed begun a bit ahead of schedule this season. While the progress of aspen color can never be precisely predicted, I’d plan on erring on the side of arriving a bit early this year – in fact, that’s precisely what I plan to do!)

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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