Tag Archives: tufa

Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Mono Lake Shoreline, Evening

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Mono Lake Shoreline, Evening
The last light on hills beyond the Mono Lake shoreline

Mono Lake Shoreline, Evening. Mono Basin, California. October 4, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The last light on hills beyond the Mono Lake shoreline

I’ve long been fascinated by the view across this section of the Mono Lake shoreline. It contains a lot of things that I consider essential to the Mono Lake experience — tufa “towers” (though these are more like islands), the shallow shoreline with its curving edges, the larger islands and buttes, the distant mountains in the east, the immense open sky, and the textured and reflecting surface of the water.

In a way, this photograph was sort of (but not exactly!) the result of “killing time” between photographing two other subjects. I had been at a nearby area with colorful aspen trees, and had finished up there — the light was gone sooner than expected when high clouds moved in. At that point I knew that the full moon was going to rise close to sunset, so I decided to find a location along the Mono Lake shoreline to photograph it. I arrived there too early — better than too late! — and had some time to photograph other things as I waited for the moon. I went ahead and set up tripod and camera with some urgency as I noticed to last sunlight on some of those distant hills.

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 and Amazon.
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Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

From Tufa To Mountains, Dawn

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From Tufa To Mountains, Dawn
Predawn light above high desert mountains, reflecting on the surface of Mono Lake

From Tufa To Mountains, Dawn. Mono Lake, California. July 26, 2017. © Copyright 2017 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Predawn light above high desert mountains, reflecting on the surface of Mono Lake

Mono Lake is famed for several things, among them the remarkable tufa towers found in several locations along the shoreline of this great land-locked lake east of the Sierra Nevada. And, yes, this photograph includes a few of those towers — a small group that lies far enough from the shoreline to make them less accessible and interesting to most photographers. (No, that isn’t Nessie — or a band of Nessie lookalikes — at the lower left corner.)

But tufa towers are not my primary or strongest association with this place. Mine include more ephemeral things — the sense of huge space, the expanse of the sky (accentuated by the distance and smallness of surrounding mountains), the deep quiet that is broken only by the sounds of birds and wind. In my experience, to understand those things about this place you must find a quiet place away from other people and perhaps just “be” there quietly, long enough to let its stillness begin to affect you, too. On this morning I arrived in Mono Basin before dawn, ending up at a spot that is not typically regarded as being iconic. Being early, I was in no hurry, so I set up my camera and tripod and just looked for a while before beginning to make photographs of the predawn light from beyond the eastern mountains as it reflected on the breeze-ruffled surface of the lake.

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 and Amazon.
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Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Tufa, Wildfire Smoke, Mono Lake

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Tufa, Wildfire Smoke, Mono Lake
Tufa formations, the vast expanse of Mono Lake, and smoke covered desert mountains

Tufa, Wildfire Smoke, Mono Lake. Mono Lake Basin, California. September 18, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Tufa formations, the vast expanse of Mono Lake, and smoke covered desert mountains

This nowhere near the first time I have photographed from this location, though it is the first time I have worked with conditions like these. Quite a bit earlier this morning I began to photograph before dawn, quickly realizing that the thickening smoke from a nearby wildfire was blanketing Mono Basin and creating atmospheric effects ranging from very dark sky, to clouds illuminated from behind, to drifting layers. After photographing near the lake I headed to a higher elevation area to the north, photographed there, and then headed back down toward Mono Lake.

As I descended I soon began to enter the fringes of the drifting smoke clouds. Lit from behind, the clouds glowed from within and softened the edges of elements of the landscape. Coming past this spot along the edge of the lake I noticed that some tufa structures formed a near semicircle near the shore, giving a bit of definition to a scene that was otherwise quite soft.

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

Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature

Tufa, Sky, Passing Birds

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Tufa, Sky, Passing Birds
A small flock of birds flies above tufa towers and the vast expanse of Mono Lake beneath summer morning sky

Tufa, Sky, Passing Birds. Mono Lake, California. July 15, 2016. © Copyright 2016 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A small flock of birds flies above tufa towers and the vast expanse of Mono Lake beneath summer morning sky

It is easy to think of the tufa towers and being the iconic features of Mono Lake, and arguably they perhaps are. They are certainly the destination for many visitors to the lake, and I have often been to them before dawn to photograph the first light striking their forms. A small group of the towers are included in this photograph, too, though I don’t feel that they are necessarily the predominant feature here.

When I think of Mono Lake, other things come to mind before the tufas. One of the first associations is the immense space encompassed by the lake itself, the larger basin that contains it, and the huge expanse of sky overhead. Very close to that are two related non-visual associations — a great stillness (interrupted only perhaps by a few birds) and a profound silence. For me, this is a place to approach quietly and without hurry.

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 and Amazon.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Email

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