Tag Archives: tree

Photographs: Fall, Photographs: Fall Color, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Small Aspen, Trunks, and Rocks

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Small Aspen, Trunks, and Rocks
“Small Aspen, Trunks, and Rocks” — A small aspen tree grows along a rock face beneath taller trees.

As a fall color photograph, this is a bit subtler than some of the others I have recently shared. Instead of walls of brilliantly colorful aspen groves we have a single small tree along with a few other even “quieter” bits of autumn color. But the truth, of course, is that autumn in the Sierra is mostly not about those aspens, as spectacular as they are. The arrival of autumn with drying meadows, old leaves on the ground, and more is subtle but undeniable.

This little vignette is along a rock wall high in an Eastern Sierra canyon. The route is, for a distance, lined with rocks and with aspens that grow at their base and from cracks in the rock. I pass by here every autumn and inevitably stop to photograph — so these trees and rocks are “old friends” of mine at this point.

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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

Charlie’s Tree

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Charlie's Tree
“Charlie’s Tree” — Trees growing on the side of a granite dome, Yosemite.

This tree (along with a companion hiding behind it) is situated in an especially picturesque location at the base of a granite dome, where it grows out the upper edge of a pile of rocks. At just the right moment the sun moves around from behind and above the dome and illuminates the tree from behind. (You may have seen this tree in another photograph I recently shared, one that takes a wider view of the scene.)

There are many reason s that I like this tree, but one is that it always reminds me how easy it is to overlook something interesting. It is along a road that I have driven for decades. For years I whizzed past this spot without noticing it at all. Then I saw a photograph of this tree by Charles Cramer, and since then I do notice it. I often stop and look, and if the light is decent I’ll make a photograph or two — but in the end it will always remain “Charlie’s Tree.”

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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Photographs: Europe, Photographs: France, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

St. Pierre Cathedral, Autumn Tree

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St. Pierre Cathedral, Autumn Tree, Montpellier
“St. Pierre Cathedral, Autumn Tree” — A nearly bare autumn tree in front of the St. Pierre Cathedral, Montpellier, France.

This is another photograph from our walk past the impressive St. Pierre Cathedral in Montpellier, France when we visited this past December. Our walk first took us the monumental south end of the cathedral, an imposing structure with two gigantic columns supporting an exterior arch. From there we continued around the east side, where it was still mostly quiet. Rounding the north end, we saw much more vegetation, including this tree with the last few autumn leaves.

I decided to go with a monochromatic interpretation of this photo of a detail of the north end of the cathedral. The main challenge was in how to make the leaves more visible, but we do have more leeway in post with black and white. Here I essentially applied a filter (as we used to do at the time of exposure) to brighten the tones of the 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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Germany, Photographs: Travel

Pfarrkirche St. Anna

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Pfarrkirche St. Anna, Munich
“Pfarrkirche St. Anna” — Pfarrkirche St. Anna (St. Anna parish church), Munich

We would never have come across this fascinating church if we hadn’t gone out for a walk with Patty’s virtual-German brother and his wife during our December visit to Munich. (they are Americans who have lived and worked in Germany for decades.) They took us on a long, looping walk through some neighborhoods that aren’t exactly tourist hotspots. I liked the juxtaposition of the winter-bare tree and the architecture of the church.

I’m all for visiting the important, popular spots in cities like this when traveling. But we also really like to just get out and walk and discover things on our own. That might not be the best approach if your time is extremely limited, but if you have a bit more flexibility it pays dividends. (By the way, as near as I can tell, the term pfarrkirche more or less means a “parish church” in this context.)

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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


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