Tag Archives: valley

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Wildlife

Egret Among Clouds

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Egret Among Clouds
An egret flies into early morning winter sky with fog and clouds

Egret Among Clouds. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

An egret flies into early morning winter sky with fog and clouds

In some ways the great white egrets seem less special than some of the birds that arrive and depart in huge flocks each season. The first sight of these birds in impressive — whether it is a solitary bird flying past with its characteristic slow wing motion, a bird hunting in grassland or shallow water, or perhaps a small group in a winter field. But eventually you figure out that they are far from rare, and you can find them in many areas that have the right combination of water and food.

However, in flight they have a remarkable degree of gracefulness. They almost always fly alone, and they tend toward slow-moving, steady flying, often coasting or moving wings slowly. There landings are momentarily very beautiful as wings flare just as they hit the ground. This bird took to the air nearby and then flew slowly into a cloudy golden hour sky.

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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” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert

From Panamints To Death Valley

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From Panamints To Death Valley
The view down into Death Valley from high along the summit of the Panamint Mountains

From Panamints To Death Valley. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The view down into Death Valley from high along the summit of the Panamint Mountains

Death Valley National Park — like virtually all national parks — contains a few features that have become iconic. These are the places everyone goes, and I probably don’t have to name them here. I would not dismiss such places — many of them, as we say, “are icons for a reason.” When I first visited this part two decades ago, I started with a few of those locations and I was thrilled to do so.

But now, after many, many visits to the place, I have pushed out my boundaries more and more. This is a huge and diverse park, with everything from the familiar low desert to high mountain ranges reaching above 11,000′ of elevation. While the better known locations can be a bit crowded, especially during the ideal season (when it isn’t so hot!), it doesn’t take a lot of exploring to find solitude. The location where I made this photograph isn’t the most isolated in the park, but it does afford a different view of the main valley.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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

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

Tree With Two Hawks, Fog

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Morning tule fog clears beyond a tree with a pair of hawks

Tree With Two Hawks, Fog. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning tule fog clears beyond a tree with a pair of hawks

I was in this location to photograph something quite different from what is seen here, but tule fog interfered with that subject to some extent. So I found myself wandering a bit more afield and looking for other subjects. Eventually the fog began to thin and drift away.

This solitary tree appeared against the background of a long grove of (mostly) cottonwood trees, and the thinning fog began to allow light from the morning sky into the scene. Initially I simply saw the tree itself as the subject, but as I composed the photograph I realized that a pair of hawks for perched side-by-side on one of the limbs.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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

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

Cranes in Morning Sky

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Cranes in Morning Sky
Sandhill cranes aloft in winter morning sky

Cranes in Morning Sky. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Sandhill cranes aloft in winter morning sky

Photography of migratory birds is often done at the edges of the day, starting before dawn and continuing well into the twilight hours. The birds are often there all day, but the light isn’t. (There are exceptions — for example, day-long tule fog or spectacular clouds.) So I spend a lot of time driving too and from locations in the darkness, and I usually arrive before dawn when there is perhaps just a hint of light in the sky.

While getting up at 3:30 or 4:00 in the morning for a long drive in the dark probably doesn’t sound that appealing — and, honestly, it isn’t! — there are certain compensations. Dawn is one of them, especially dawn experienced with the sounds of perhaps tens of thousands of birds awakening and getting ready to burst into the sky. One one of those mornings a flock of sandhill cranes flew overhead and crossed from cloudy skies to clear eastern pre-dawn sky.

See top of this page for Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information and more.

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 | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email

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