Tag Archives: tree

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: San Francisco, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

24th and Folsom, The Mission

February 27, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The corner of 24th and Folsom Streets in the Mission District, San Francisco, California.

This was an afternoon of really interesting light in the Mission District of San Francisco. Although it was mostly cloudy and often gray, at times the clouds thinned and warm, diffused light appeared for a moment or two. One such moment came as I arrived at the corner of 24th and Folsom where this garishly yellow building sat on the corner opposite me and picked up light coming between the buildings.

Anyone who goes to the Mission probably immediately notices that something is “wrong” with this photograph. Where are all of the people and all of the cars!? I saw this composition and set it up – but at first the street was filled with people and cars speeding through the intersection. In fact, during the instant before and after I grabbed this frame there were fast-moving cars in the intersection. (For those who haven’t visited the Mission and who think that this peaceful scene is typical of the area, uh, no. The Mission is a very busy and active place that is usually filled with people.)

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 35mm f/2.0
ISO 200, f/8, 1/320 second

keywords: the, mission, san francisco, california, usa, north america, street, urban, city, 24th, folsom, street, intersection, asphalt, crosswalk, yellow, building, home, sidewalk, tree, light, sky, woman, walking, cross, check, cashing, grand, opening, purple haze, smokeshop, pedestrian, window, urban, downtown, travel, stock

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Horsetail Fall, Sunset (#2)

February 22, 2010 G Dan Mitchell 4 Comments

Horsetail Fall in the final sunset light on a mid-February evening, Yosemite Valley, California.

I was in Yosemite Valley for a couple of days during the middle of February. My main reason for going was not to photograph the seasonal and iconic sunset light on Horsetail Fall, but it turned out that I did just that – twice. Since I have photographed the phenomenon in the past and already have a photograph that I consider a success, shooting it again isn’t at the top of my to-do list. However, I’ll shoot an icon if I think that the conditions might be special. In the afternoon I had been up high enough to get a clear view to the west, and it had looked almost completely clear. This is pretty much a necessary condition for good light on Horsetail, since the very late and low-angle light has to come in from across the Central Valley unobstructed. And, as everyone knows by now, the fall is an intermittent and seasonal event that depends on the right combination of prior snow (or rain) and warm weather to get the creek feeding the fall running in the middle of winter. It turned out that this had also happened, and the fall was running pretty strongly.

So, with all of those pieces apparently in play I decided to head on over to the picnic area beneath El Cap and then wander east until I found a suitable viewpoint. Still a bit ambivalent about shooting Horsetail, one reason I chose this spot is that it allowed me to shoot other subjects in the late afternoon and then arrive more or less at the last moment (around 5:00 p.m.) and still find parking and a spot to shoot. The parking, especially, can be more problematic at the other popular location, located along Southside Drive.

In the end, it was an odd evening for Horsetail. As the sunset continued the fall began to glow, and it looked like it might possibly turn out to be a really special night to shoot this subject. But then a few minutes before the peak of color would have occurred… it was as if someone switched the lights off. Very quickly the color dimmed to much more muted shades and remained so as the light faded. This was my last shot before that turn of events occurred, and this color corrected version (compensating for the otherwise very blue light on the rock face not struck by the sunlight) picked up some nice light and some of the most delicate and beautiful spray I’ve seen on the fall.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: yosemite, national, park, valley, california, usa, north america, nature, winter, landscape, cliff, water, fall, waterfall, creek, el capitan, ledge, crack, tree, skyline, ridge, buttress, mist, spray, horsetail, fire, evening, sunset, light, travel, scenic, mountain, sierra, nevada, range, winter, february, shadow, stock

Photographs: Night, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Building 417, Green Shadows and Red Sky

February 17, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Dilapidated Building 417 under garish green light and reddish sky, Mare Island Naval Ship Yard, Vallejo, California.

I think this photograph probably includes some of the most bizarre lighting that I’ve encountered at Mare Island when doing night photography there. The majority of the light comes from the right, from artificial light that has been roughly color corrected to appear relatively white, at least by comparison to some of the other light colors in this image. The garish green color comes from some add artificial light behind my camera position – the same light that appears in a recently posted photograph of Building 631 with it terribly peeling wooden walls. (One odd touch – note that the shadow of the tree that appears near the center of the lower part of the building is illuminated by this light, explaining the green tree.) The green tones also appear in the stripe of paint along the upper edge of the old loading dock, in the small #417 sign at the peak of the building, and in the less-dark portions of the tree at upper right. Then the sky ends up with odd reddish-brown light reflected on the bottoms of the moving clouds, and a similar tone is found on the wall pattern of the building in the background on the left side of the frame. Finally, though it is hard to see in this small image, there is a bit of sort of grayish-purple in the window frame at the right border of the frame.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: mare, island, naval, ship, yard, historic, vallejo, california, usa, nocturnes, night, photography, structures, red, green, garish, artificial, light, sidewalk, street, lines, cement, wall, loading, dock, corrugated, building, 417, angles, architecture, windows, door, wall, tree, urban, north america, roof, sign, stock, minsy

Photographs: Southern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Central Courtyard, Rain, Curved Window – Getty Center

February 11, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

The central courtyard of the Getty Center on a rainy day as viewed through a curved window from the entrance rotunda.

The typical arrival at the Getter Center is via the tram from the parking area, and after leaving the tram and walk up the shallow stairs most people first enter this round, glass-enclosed space from which I made this photograph during my rainy and foggy visit to the Center near the very end of 2009. I shot this view into the wet and almost deserted courtyard through the curved windows using a wide angle lens. I was thinking about several things as I made this photograph: the angular vertical shapes of the outdoor buildings, the perspective lines of the balconies and the pool receding toward the very foggy distance, and the dissonance of the curved window and especially the curving and sweeping “lines” of the window frames.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: getty, center, los angeles, california, usa, museum, winter, travel, urban, art, rain, cloud, fog, wet, reflection, column, window, pane, curve, floor, tree, table, chairs, umbrellas, mist, building, architecture, structure, balcony, railing, stairs, person, fountain, water, sign, stock, rembrandt, his, pupils, exhibit

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.