Tag Archives: usa

Photographs: Sports

At the Starting Line – American Velodrome Challenge

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At the Starting Line - American Velodrome Challenge

At the Starting Line – American Velodrome Challenge. Hellyer Park Velodrome, San Jose, California. June 26, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Intense concentration on the faces of riders waiting at the starting line for their event to begin.

This is a close up shot of a group of riders at the starting line just seconds away from starting their qualifying heat in the keirin event at the American Velodrome Challenge. For those who aren’t familiar with bicycle track racing, in the keirin the first few laps feature the riders drafting behind a motorcycle. After the motorcycle brings the riders up to speed it drops away and a very intense sprint follows. In the photograph the riders can probably hear the motorcycle approaching from behind – as it passes they will take off.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: bike, bicycle, racing, track, velodrome, national, professional, san jose, california, usa, start, starting, line, wait, concentration, intense, sun, glasses, arms, helmets, rider, competitor, cyclist, racer, event, keirin, hellyer, park, santa clara, county, qualifier, preliminary, event, stock

Photographs: Sports

The Sprint – American Velodrome Challenge

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The Sprint - American Velodrome Challenge
“The Sprint – American Velodrome Challenge” — The pack in the sprint at the night races of the American Velodrome Challenge at the Hellyer Park Velodrome, San Jose, California.

Here is something a bit different – nighttime elite-level bicycle track racing. On Friday I went to the evening events of the American Velodrome Challenge at Hellyer Park Velodrome in San Jose, California. I had a flash, but I decided that it would be more interesting to play with motion blur and shoot the pack close up at high ISO (up to 3200) and slow shutter speeds.

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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

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Aspen Grove, Morning, Lee Vining Canyon

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Aspen Grove, Morning, Lee Vining Canyon

Aspen Grove, Morning, Lee Vining Canyon. Sierra Nevada, California. June 7, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Early morning backlight filters through the green leaves of spring aspen trees to fall on meadow grasses in Lee Vining Canyou, California.

My posting sequence has been a bit confusing lately, I’ll have to admit – I’ve gone back and forth among photographs from Seattle, the eastern Sierra, Yosemite Valley, and more. Now I’m going back to the early June Yosemite photographs to post a few that I did not get to right away. This is one in that group. This is another part of the same small aspen grove in Lee Vining that I photographed in early June when the new meadow grasses were just coming up and the trees still retained some of the new growth color. I had stopped to photograph this grove in shadowed light, looking for the soft diffused effect that this creates. I had just about finished shooting this grove when the sun began to rise above the canyon walls and the first direct light filtered among the trees.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: early, morning, light, beam, aspen, tree, grove, forest, trunk, branch, leaf, green, grass, plant, nature, lee vining, canyon, national forest, season, spring, new, california, usa, nature, landscape, rock, boulder, shadow, filter, meadow, stock

Photographs: Pacific Northwest, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Chairs and Terrace, Olympic Sculpture Park

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Chairs and Terrace, Olympic Sculpture Park

Chairs and Terrace, Olympic Sculpture Park. Seattle, Washington. June 21, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Red-orange chairs on a terraced lawn above Richard Serra’s Wake with downtown Seattle buildings beyond, Olympic Sculpture Park.

This is another quick photograph from my half-hour visit to the Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle last weekend. I’m fascinated by the large sculpture at the lower end of the terrace (“Wake” by Richard Serra) and I have photographed it before. This time I thought that the juxtaposition of the red-orange chairs (positioned more or less at random by other visitors, I presume), the very green grass, the slightly overhead view of the sculpture, and the cylindrical building beyond was interesting. There is a lot more detail in this photograph than is apparent in the small jpg – obviously the grass detail is not really visible here, and there are some people standing along the green area at the upper left side of the frame. I also thought about positioning the chairs slightly off center to the right, the sculpture slightly off center to the left, and the massive building dead center over all the other elements.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: olympic, sculpture, park, seattle, art, museum, sam, red, orange, green, chairs, lawn, terrace, concrete, cement, sand, trees, plants, garden, wall, grove, wake, richard serra, metal, rust, sky, cloud, blue, cylinder, round, building, downtown, urban, washington, usa, travel, apartment, grass, stock