Tag Archives: upper

Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Mono Lake Basin, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Volcanic Ridge, First Light

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Volcanic Ridge, First Light
Volcanic Ridge, First Light

Volcanic Ridge, First Light. Mono County, California. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dawn light illuminates the Jeffrey pine covered ridge of a volcanic dome in the Mono Craters complex, California.

I have a favorite personal spot where I often stop on my way to photograph at South Tufa at Mono Lake. It is spot that you would likely pass right by since, save for a bit of a panoramic view, there is nothing immediately impressive about it, and because you would probably be on your way to someplace else, namely the formations at South Tufa.

On this late June morning I took a break from photographing in the Tuolumne/Tioga Pass area to shoot a bit around Mono Lake, where I had it in mind to shoot certain high desert subjects that I’ve worked on in the past. As I shot those other subjects I’ve often looked up at this particular ridge, been impressed by it, and wondered how to make a photograph of it. When I pulled up at this spot I first intended to shoot a scene that appears to the west, but it turned out to not be quite what I imagined it might be on this morning. Ah, well – that happens! So I turned my camera in a different direction and photographed a somewhat different subject as dawn approached with some very interesting clouds in the sky to the east. As I worked on this I kept glancing up at this volcanic ridge, thinking that the clouds behind it might silhouette the trees along the skyline… but still finding the light too flat and boring. I actually made a photo or two, but wasn’t enthusiastic about it. I turned back to the other subject. A few minutes later I looked back up at this ridge and saw that the first light of early morning sun was glancing across the ridge and lighting up the Jeffrey pines that grow on its slopes. I quickly pivoted around and made a few exposures of the scene in the “good light.”

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.

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Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM at 168mm
ISO 100, f/8, 1/15 second

keywords: jeffrey, pine, forest, mono, county, craters, northwest, coullee, upper, dome, ridge, skyline, dawn, light, morning, early, sky, clouds, cinder, pumice, rhyolite, scree, rock, volcanic, geology, landscape, scenic, travel, california, usa, north america, mountain, hill, stock

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Soberanes Canyon, Morning Light

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Soberanes Canyon, Morning Light
Soberanes Canyon, Morning Light

Soberanes Canyon, Morning Light. Garrapata State Park, Big Sur, California. May 1, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light and morning fog fill the upper reaches of Soberanes Canyon, Big Sur, California.

I’ve driven past the trailhead for Soberanes Canyon many times. The trail starts at a curve in the Coast Highway above a popular portion of the rugged beach at Garrapata State Park. This time, as I came past heading south I noticed brilliant light in the steep canyon above the trailhead caused by light shining down from the tops of the peaks through the slightly foggy atmosphere. I didn’t stop right away – I had a different objective further down the coast in mind – but I made a mental note to take a look on my way back north, thinking that I’d probably be back within a half hour or so.

I did return shortly. I parked, loaded up the photo gear, and headed up the trail towards the canyon. I wanted to try to make a photograph that captures the intensity of the light-filled atmosphere created when a steep canyon like this is filled with slightly hazy air – the light is so bright that you almost cannot look at it, but when you do look the light seems almost palpable and the receding ridges of the canyon form interesting patterns before the furthest of them virtually disappear into the light. My first stop was at a small footbridge crossing a creek. This might have made a beautiful photograph – with lush green plants and wildflowers lining the small, rushing creek and the mountains beyond – but I couldn’t find a composition that would work, do so I continued on a bit. Soon I came to a more open area where the trail curved above the floor of the canyon near a cactus-covered slope, and from here the view into the upper reaches of the canyon was unobstructed.

As I framed up several compositions of the ridge patterns of the canyon the light continued to change – one moment it was smooth and undifferentiated, but the next a bit of fog would come through and brilliant clouds would sit on top of the ridge. In the end I wasn’t completely satisfied with the result – but I’m going to think of this as work in progress, and I’ll be back to try to photograph this canyon and these conditions again.

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.

G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM at 84mm
ISO 125, f/11, 1/400 second

keywords: ridge, atmospheric, recession, distance, canyon, mountain, hill, steep, fog, mist, haze, morning, light, back light, upper, reaches, brush, chaparral, garrapata, state, park, california, usa, north america, big sur, coast, pacific, ocean, highway, trail, scenic, travel, landscape, nature, valley, stock

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

Beneath the Bay Bridge

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Beneath the Bay Bridge

Beneath the Bay Bridge. San Francisco, California. September 16, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A pier beneath the west end of the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge with downtown San Francisco, California.

The light was a challenge in this photograph, but I found the dense and somewhat out of kilter lines and forms of the pier, bridge, and downtown buildings interesting. The photograph was made from one of the piers along the Embarcadero that is used as a parking lot – extending out into the Bay a bit it gave me a view back toward the City over and through the intervening structures.

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.

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keywords: san francisco, california, usa, travel, tourist, scenic, city, urban, downtown, skyline, buildings, embarcadero, plaza, oakland, bay, bridge, concrete, steel, pier, doors, pilings, water, birds, latter, flag, cable, freeway, highway, 80, deck, upper, lower, windows, fog, sky, urban, city, waterfront, architecture, stock

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

Cottonwood Grove, Shadow’s Edge

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Cottonwood Grove, Shadow's Edge


Cottonwood Grove, Shadow’s Edge. Yosemite Valley, California. October 31, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A grove of autumn cottonwood trees in the last sun as late afternoon shadows fall across the floor of Yosemite Valley near Yosemite Falls.

Late in the afternoon on Halloween this year I was in Leidig Meadow in Yosemite Valley watching the light dim along the cliff faces near Yosemite Falls. As the shadow moved across the Valley toward the meadow it lit this row of cottonwood trees growing between the meadow and the banks of the Merced River.

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.

G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email

keywords: yosemite, national, park, valley, sierra, nevada, mountain, range, autumn, fall, season, scenic, travel, nature, landscape, california, yosemite, falls, upper, waterfall, cliff, cottonwood, tree, grove, forest, yellow, color, leaf, leaves, trunk, grass, meadow, leidig, dense, gold, green, evening, afternoon, light, sun, stock