Tag Archives: valley

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Badlands, Morning

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Morning, Zabriskie Point
Layers of overlapping badlands formations in morning light, Death Valley National Park

Badlands, Morning. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Layers of overlapping badlands formations in morning light, Death Valley National Park.

This location provides a spectacular bit of Death Valley scenery, but it isn’t photographed as often as some nearby areas that are regarded as being more iconic. It also tends to be a bit more visually attractive, at least in my view, at a time of the day that is later than the usual “golden hour” morning time when most photographers tend to be in the area. Over the years I have had a sort of informal project to photograph this spot during these times.

This is also an older photograph — not from this year’s two visits to Death Valley but rather from a trip about eight years ago. Every so often I “discover” a photograph that I had overlooked when I originally made it. Missing them has puzzled me a bit, but I think it is some combination of moving on to the “next thing” a bit too quickly, not being ready to understand how to “see” the image as a final photograph right away, and being distracted by other contemporaneous work. Back then I did work up another view of this scene — it included more of the contrasting colors near the top of the frame, and by comparison this one may have seemed too subtle… which, of course, is now part of what I like about it!

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: Nature

Blue Dicks, Spring Foliage

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Blue Dicks, Spring Foliage
Blue Dicks flowers against a backdrop of spring greenery.

Blue Dicks, Spring Foliage. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Blue Dicks flowers against a backdrop of spring greenery.

Blue dicks is a beautiful flower with a perhaps-unfortunate name. One reason for the “unfortunate” label is probably obvious. (I’ve been warned to exercise some care when doing online searches for this flower. Hint: include “+flower” in your search terms.) The other reason is possibly less obvious and maybe even arguable: the flower really isn’t always blue. To my eye, it sometimes leans more toward purple or even pink. It is a very common flower but also a rather nice one.

I photographed this along a trail that I’ve hiked for years, and one that isn’t very far from where I live. This time of year, if you live in California’s grassland and oak country or can get to it, there is a very good chance that you’ll be able to find it, too. The flowers typically are individuals, rising at the tips of long, slender stalks that often wave in the slightest breeze.

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

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

First Light, Dunes and Creosote

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First Light, Dunes and Creosote
Blossoming spring creosote plants among the sand dunes at first light.

First Light, Dunes and Creosote. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Blossoming spring creosote plants among the sand dunes at first light.

I love early morning in the sand dunes. When photographing there I typically arrive well before sunrise, when there is just a hint of light in the sky. In Death Valley this is mostly a very quiet time of the day, often with few other visitors, when the winds have died down yet the temperatures are still comfortable. The ideal morning is preceded by a windy afternoon the day before and into the evening, which may wipe away many of the footprints from the previous day’s visitors. However, walking into the dunes I always find new “footprints” — of mice and reptiles and other desert residents.

The transition of morning dusk light to full sunlight always amazes me, even after experiencing it many times. At first things move slowly though inexorably as the overall sky begins to gradually lighten. Well before actual sunrise there is quite a bit of light, but it is soft and gentle light, generally with a blue tint from the pre-sunrise sky. (I made this photograph at just about this point.) Then the pace accelerates as the first direct sunlight strikes some high point, generally to my west, and the light begins to transition to the saturated reddish colors of sunrise and work its way to lower elevations. By this time I’m engaged in photographing and usually working fast as the light changes very quickly. As the sun rises above the horizon or a mountain ridge a brief moment of soft, direct light begins, but the light quickly becomes intense and the difference between shadow and highlights becomes very large. Before long the coloration of this intense light diminishes and conditions move toward “just plain daylight.” I photograph a bit longer… and then it is time for a break!

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 | Facebook | Email

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

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

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Desert Canyon, Evening Light

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Desert Canyon, Evening Light
Evening light shines into a very rugged and colorful desert canyon.

Desert Canyon, Evening Light. © Copyright 2019 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Evening light shines into a very rugged and colorful desert canyon.

Late in the afternoon the light was dying quickly. Clouds were coming in from the north and creating a lid across most of the sky. We saw a bit of sunlight on the desert floor to the south, so we drove in that direction, hoping to get there before that light also was lost. Unfortunately, as we got closer that light also began to be cut off by the clouds and by the mountains to the west, as the lowering sun reached the summit ridge.

Looking up at those mountains, it appeared that there was a thin spot in the clouds a bit north of our position, so we took one more chance and now headed back to the north. The potential was there for a few moments of light as the sun emerged from behind those clouds, shining through the thinner clods, and casting soft but directional light on this area of colorful geology. Sure enough, as soon as we arrived in this area that soft sunlight appeared. We knew we had only a short time to work before the sun dropped behind the mountains again, and the wind was blowing like crazy, so simply made a few careful handheld exposures as the light shining into this colorful canyon peaked.

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 | Facebook | Email

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

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