Tag Archives: tree

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Autumn Oak Grove, El Capitan Meadow

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Autumn Oak Grove, El Capitan Meadow

Autumn Oak Grove, El Capitan Meadow. Yosemite Valley, California. November 2. 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn colors come to the oak groves in El Capitan Meadow with Cathedral Rocks in the distance – Yosemite Valley, California.

I think I hit this meadow at pretty much the peak of the fall color this year when I visited during the first week of November. The light rain that was falling also helped saturate the colors. El Capitan Meadow is near the base of El Capitan and is full of beautiful, large oak trees and meadow grasses and plants. Beyond the edge of the meadow the lower face of Cathedral Rocks (on the south side of the Valley, opposite El Capitan) is visible.

keywords: autumn, fall, season, el capitan, meadow, grass, leaves, oak, tree, grove, forest, yellow, brown, gold, cloud, rain, cathedral, rocks, cliff, face, mountain, mist, fog, trunk, branch, silhouette, yosemite, valley, national park, california, usa, landscape, scenic, travel, nature, stock

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Burnt Forest – Yosemite Valley

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Burnt Forest - Yosemite Valley

Burnt Forest – Yosemite Valley. Yosemite National Park, California. November 1, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Burnt trees in a managed fire area of Yosemite Valley.

Now that I understand that fire is a natural and important part of the life cycle of forests, I no longer find burned areas to be ugly – in fact I think that they can be quite compelling scenes. The start quality of charred trees and soil is interesting, and soon the new growth in the burned areas comes in and wildflowers can be abundant. The NPS now has a policy in Yosemite of allowing naturally occurring fires to burn (as long as they don’t threaten structures) and of purposefully starting “managed fires” in places like the Valley.

During my raining early -November weekend in The Valley I stopped in this recently burned forest, initially to photograph new growth of ferns on the forest floor against the dark colors of the trees. After I worked that idea I saw these lower branches on forest trees that had been burned and decided to photograph them as well.

keywords: fire, burn, forest, managed, controlled, trunk, tree, branches, char, brown, blackened, yosemite, valley, national park, nature, california, usa, fall, autumn, season, sierra, nevada, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Oak Leaves and Blue Sky

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Oak Leaves and Blue Sky

Oak Leaves and Blue Sky. Calero Hills, California. November 22, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Oak branches and green leaves against a perfect blue sky, Calero Hills, California.

I was out playing with the long lens (100-400mm) yesterday when I made this photograph of overhead oak branches. Handheld at 400mm. (For those who are concerned about the sharpness of the Canon EF 100-400 L zoom… this shot could provide some reassurance. :-)

keywords: oak, tree, branch, leaf, leaves, acorn, twig, bud, blue, sky, azure, nature, foliage, plant, calero, hills, santa clara county, park, san jose, california, usa, stock, green

Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Autumn Oaks, Cliff, and Mist – El Capitan Meadow

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Autumn Oaks, Cliff, and Mist - El Capitan Meadow

Autumn Oaks, Cliff, and Mist – El Capitan Meadow. Yosemite Valley, California. November 1, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Autumn colors on oak trees in El Capitan Meadow with mist-shrouded cliffs beyond – Yosemite Valley, California.

I’m starting to feel like I’ve worked this series to death, but there are still a few more from my early November rainy weekend in Yosemite Valley. This was photographed in El Capitan Meadow just before the front arrived and the real rain began. (I was safely – well sort of safely – tucked away in a Curry Village cabin when the storm really blew in.) In any case, when I made this photograph it was raining lightly and the combination of rain and mist was both saturating the autumn colors and obscuring clear views of the Valley walls.

keywords: autumn, fall, season, color, gold, yellow, oak, tree, grove, el capitan, meadow, grass, leaf, branch, trunk, cliff, face, mountain, mist, fog, cloud, forest, yosemite, valley, national park, sierra, nevada, landscape, scenic, travel, nature, stock