Tag Archives: usa

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Mountain Stream

Image September 13, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A High Sierra stream cascades past forest and meadows and over boulders after summer rainstorms.

This little “almost-intimate” landscape comes from closer to the midpoint of our August backcountry photography trip. The first few days features some challenging weather, including torrential rains on the first day. That rain flooded a lot of the area and raised this creek by several feet. On that first afternoon as we lay in our tents sheltering from the storm we started to hear a roar beneath the sound of rain and hail — it was the sound of this “little” creek growing to a dangerous torrent.

The tumultuous water was brown with suspended material washed down from the higher mountains, and for days the nearby lake’s water was coffee-colored. But before long the creek began to recede and its water cleared. By the time I made this photograph early one morning the water was low enough that I could safely ford the stream. I was about to do just that on my way to some timberline country when I paused and made this photograph of the creek, still in morning shadows.

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: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

After the Deluge

Image September 12, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A High Sierra waterfall, brought back to life by torrential rains surges over rocky ledges.

I love watching for, observing, and experiencing the typical seasonal transitions. For example, right about now I have my eyes on the first signs of the approach of autumn. In spring I watch water levels in creeks and streams. In winter I track the appearance of birds. However, I’m also fascinated when conditions are abnormal, when something unusual happens that conflicts with our seasonal expectations. The cascade in this photograph, and the “deluge” the caused it, fit into that latter category.

This has been a very dry period in California. Winter precipitation has been far below normal levels, and warmer temperatures have decreased the amount of water released from the snowpack during the warm months. Consequently, the high country has been stressed. Yet… on the first couple of days of our August high country visit we experienced the heaviest and most prolonged heavy summer rain that I have ever experienced in the backcountry. It was heavy enough that we really could not leave our tents for hours, and when we emerged the landscape was drenched and a nearby creek was coming out of its banks. Later on this trip we followed a branch of the stream up into the alpine zone, and along that route we passed this surprisingly powerful waterfall.

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Photographs: New York City, Photographs: People, Photographs: Urban/Street

A Family

Image September 11, 2022 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

A passing family group on the street in Manhattan.

As scheduled, it is back to more street photography today. This photograph comes from our late-August visit to Manhattan, which provided us with opportunities to simply go out on walks and observe/absorb the Manhattan vibe. That is, of course, a complex thing, being composed of lots of people, lots of motion, the urban canyons, occasional bits of quiet and stillness, and a lot of things that happen quickly and are gone. The latter, of course, is part of the appeal of street photography.

I recommend urban and street photography to all photographers, including those of you who like think of yourselves and landscape or nature photographers. As a general thing, I think it is good for you and for your photography to step outside your primary genre and to be aware of good photographic work done with subjects quite different than your own. On a very practical level, shooting street forces you to see, think, and react really quickly. Quite often subjects coalesce and disappear in seconds or even fractions of seconds. You don’t have much time to carefully consider, so you work on the basis of instinct. And that is a useful skill to develop, even if you usually work at a more sedate pace. Street also reminds us of how we make photographs of things that we don’t have time to fully evaluate or understand. For example, while I call this photograph “A Family,” I can’t know that it is a family group. And while I might make be tempted to make other assumptions about this trio… I have no way at all of knowing whether I’m right or wrong. It is better, I think, to just ask questions.

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Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Sierra Nevada

Three Trees, Rocky Slopes

Image September 8, 2022 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Three conifer trees, illuminated by morning backlight, against a background of rocky terrain slopes.

Our August backcountry sojourn with a group of fellow photographers began with the absolute heaviest downpour I have experienced during decades the Sierras. It began within seconds after we got our tent (mostly) up and continued for hours, on into the evening. We all crawled inside our tents and tried to stay dry and warm as hail and rain poured down, lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the roar of the rising waters on the nearby creek started to get our attention. The weather remained “interesting” on into the second day, only beginning to finally clear a bit on the second evening. But the next morning came with a beautiful sunrise and plentiful sun — and that is when I made this photograph.

This group of three trees stood on rocky ground, and because of that they were not blocked by other trees. As the morning sun rose it finally topped a ridge to the east and the light began to strike the trees. This kind of backlight, especially when it falls on trees, is one of my favorite things in the Sierra. So it should be no surprise that I made a series of photographs of this group, some in landscape orientation and some in portrait orientation. In this one I chose to let the glowing trees fill as much of the frame as possible.

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G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: usa

Mountain Stream

After the Deluge

A Family

Three Trees, Rocky Slopes

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.