Tag Archives: usa

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Departure

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Departure
Sandhill cranes take to the air in the ealry morning tule fog.

Departure. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Description

My expectations are pretty straightforward. When I arrive at these locations before dawn to photograph birds, I want exactly the right amount of fog, enough developing sunrise light overhead to warm to the light a bit, the right birds against a photogenic background. (A cup of coffee and a fresh muffin would be nice, too, but that might be pushing things.) The reality is usually a bit more complicated.

I certainly found fog when I arrived on this morning. Perhaps a bit too much fog. It wasn’t quite the sort where you might be more successful making audio records of birds than photographing them, but it was close. As I moved around looking for the right birds in the right place, I eventually came upon a group of cranes, barely visible at first in the gray light. Although it isn’t really apparent in the photograph, it was sunrise, and the birds seem to know this even when the sun’s light is blocked by the tule fog. And if it is sunrise, the birds know that it is time to rise from the ponds and head off to wherever it is that they spend their days.

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: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Quantity. Symbol. Written

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Quantity. Symbol. Written
A sign on a preschool wall.

Quantity. Symbol. Written. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A sign on a preschool wall.

This photograph comes from some weeks ago, when a group of us were engaged in a little project to photograph orange things — a task related to the colors of the autumn season, but which I took to allow inclusion of distinctly non-seasonal subjects. I photographed it will on one of my pandemic-era local walks, on which I step out the front door carrying a camera and, if the spirit moves me, may photograph right in the neighborhood.

It is tempting to say no more about the subject and just let the viewer owner. However, I found this little bit of graphic and text content on the exterior of a pre-school. Taken out of that context — and that’s how I initially viewed it — the temptation was to try to find my own meaning in the odd mixture of letters, numbers and symbols.

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.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

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

Photographs: Birds, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Red-Shouldered Hawk

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Red-Shouldered Hawk
A red-shouldered hawk perched in a wetland thicket.

Red-Shouldered Hawk. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Description

I had several opportunities to photograph what I believe was this same red-shouldered hawk on several days in early 2022. While visiting a location in the Central Valley on New Year’s Day I (and several friends) saw a hawk just like this one in almost this exact same spot. I made this photograph a few days later on a return visit. Is it the exact same bird? I can’t say. But it was perched very close to where the previous bird was and it was equally willing to allow me to be close enough to photograph it. (For those who wonder… I was photographing from the “mobile blind” of my vehicle and using a very long lens, both of which allow me to minimize any disruption to the bird.)

If you look closely at trees in places like this you’ll almost always spot some sort of predatory bird — hawk, owl, or similar — hanging out in the branches. In fact, there are a few trees I’ve gotten to know rather well over the years where I can pretty predict the specific branches on which such birds will be perched. Most of the leaves had fallen from this tree, making the bird easier to spot, and the filtered sunlight illuminated its features.

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.

Blog | About | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

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

Photographs: Agriculture, Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Feed Lot

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Feedlot
“Feed Lot” — A series of shelters over a feedlot on a foggy Central Valley winter morning.

One of the benefits of photographing in fog is that it can make almost any subject mysterious and moody. Another is that the limited visibilities can mute or eliminate distractions from the visual focus on the elements that are the most interesting. It is hard to imagine a stronger illustration of these principles than a photograph of this particular subject.

I photograph quite a bit in California’s Great Central Valley during the winter months. During much of the year, this is perhaps not an obvious photographic destination (though looking closer may be worthwhile!). But in winter, when dense tule fogs often settle on the landscape, the place can be transformed in magical ways. If you have passed by one of these feedlots on a warm, sunny day… you probably rolled up your windows and held your breath. But morning tule fog on a winter day might can make it worthwhile to stop (while trying hard to ignore the smell!) and make a few photographs.

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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.