Tag Archives: tree

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

Monterey Cypress, Cormorant Rookery, Fog

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Monterey Cypress, Cormorant Rookery, Fog
Fog obscures a cormorant rookery behind a Monterey cypress tree growing on a rocky promontory.

Monterey Cypress, Cormorant Rookery, Fog. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

Fog obscures a cormorant rookery behind a Monterey cypress tree growing on a rocky promontory.

You might think that I would be done with photographs of this tree and its surroundings by now. But you would be wrong. And, yes, there is at least one more to come. Variations include portrait versus landscape mode, wider near-panoramic aspect ratios, the inclusion of more or less of the surrounding terrain, and in this case some wildlife.

The main feature and primary focus in all of the variations is this gnarled tree growing on a rocky promontory. In this rendition the wide aspect ration allows me to include more of the background. The most interesting part of that to me is the white (guano-covered) rocky knoll barely visible in the fog over the left shoulder of the Monterey cypress tree. This rock is the site of a cormorant rookery, and the young birds (almost as large as their parents!) stand and wait for mom and dad to bring them more food.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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

The Old Cypress

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The Old Cypress
A gnarled old Monterey cypress, Point Lobos State Reserve.

The Old Cypress. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A gnarled old Monterey cypress, Point Lobos State Reserve.

After sufficient decades wandering about in favorite parts of the natural world, I have become personal friends with a few rocks, trees, creeks, and other features in various places. I’m not sure that there’s much logic to which ones caught my attention, and you might pass by quite a few of them without noticing. They could be spots where I first saw something in a particular way, a tree that sheltered me as I waited out a rain shower, a place where I spread out my sleeping bag, a scene where I have paused for years, or almost anything.

This Monterey cypress tree is on that list. It is visible from a short, dead-end spur trail at Point Lobos, and these days you have to duck under low trees and watch out for poison oak as you approach. The tree is on the other side of a little valley at the end of a small cove, and it clings to rocks near the top of a cliff. It teases me by being a bit difficult to photograph. In the best location there isn’t really enough space to set up a tripod, at least not if you want to avoid the poison oak. And just beyond the tree lies a trail, and inevitably a large party passes by at just the moment when I want to make an exposure.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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

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

Spring Oak, Cliff Face

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Spring Oak, Cliff Face
A spring black oak silhouetted against El Capitan, Yosemite Valley.

Spring Oak, Cliff Face. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A spring black oak silhouetted against El Capitan, Yosemite Valley.

Last weekend we were in Oakhurst, along the southern entrance to Yosemite, for the opening of a show featuring Patty’s flower photography. We were close to the park for days, but on most of them we were occupied with activities related to the show — delivering prints, setting up the exhibit, meeting with others involved in the show, attending the opening. Consequently, while the trip was related to photography… it didn’t offer many opportunities to make photographs. But on the final day of our visit we made a quick loop through portions of the park.

As part of this lightening-speed visit we made among the fastest-on-record visits to Yosemite Valley. Since our main goal was a visit to the high country along Tioga Pass Road, we made a single driving loop through the Valley, likely taking no more than an hour. We paused to photograph in just two locations, including near the base of El Capitan where we photographed the black oak trees with their new spring leaves.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

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

Photographs: Nature

Pink Dogwood Blossom

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Pink Dogwood Blossom
A pink spring dogwood blossom.

Pink Dogwood Blossom. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.

A pink spring dogwood blossom.

After posting a long string of recent photographs from rugged and arid desert landscapes along with a series of monochrome flower images, here’s something, well, pretty. This pink dogwood flower is not exactly a native plant here, and we photographed the subject at a large garden in the San Francisco Bay Area. (Most of the dogwood photographs in my archive are the nearly-pure white flowers found in the lower elevations of the Sierra Nevada.)

These beautiful flowers were not easy to photograph during our visit. Because the garden is a public place with ticketed access, it was mid- or late-morning by the time we got to these trees. The light was challenging — many flowers were in full sun, and even in the shady areas bright bits of sunlight fell on the scene. So I spent some time looking for flowers in the softer shadow light and then looked for angles that would place them in front of darker and neutral backgrounds.

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, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

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

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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