Tag Archives: valley

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Curving Branch, Rippled Water

March 10, 2015 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

A curved branch extends above the rippled surface of a wetland pond reflecting morning sunlight and thinning clouds

This is a very simple photograph — though maybe not quite as simple as it seems — but one that needed a very specific set of conditions. The more I look at the shape of the branch the more the boundary between the actual branch and its reflection blurs, and the more similarities I see between the twisting shapes of the branch itself and the warped version of the twisting form seen in the reflection. I also like the way that its rough and mostly black shape contrasts with the soft curves and colors of the water.

The water is very shallow, part of a seasonally flooded wetland area in the Central Valley. Much of the flooded wetland is full of plants and grasses and other distractions, but here I found a single standing branch against a fairly large background uninterrupted by other branches or plants. The water was relatively still on this morning, though later the wind rose and broke up these smooth ripples. The morning tule fog had almost completely dissipated, leaving the sky a soft blue color interspersed with a few scattered clouds — and those colors and patterns are abstracted here in the surface of the water.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Sierra Nevada, Photographs: Yosemite

Almost Without Form

March 9, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Winter storm clouds, mist, and snow obscure the upper rim of Yosemite Valley

I have an idea that one kind of better photograph is a photograph that is as minimal as possible, perhaps so minimal that the viewer has to guess at and perhaps fill in details that are implied but not literally present in the image. I’m also intrigued by subjects that are on the edge of being (or not being) visible — how little can be present in the image and still have it be an image of something. And I’m also fascinated by luminous atmosphere — clouds and fog and mist made to glow softly by sunlight.

Near the end of February we were in Yosemite Valley for a few days in connection with the opening of the 30th Yosemite Renaissance exhibition. We were hoping for a real snow storm, and early encouraging predictions suggested snow all the way to the Valley floor. The way things have gone this year, it was little surprise when that did not happen — but there were beautiful clouds drifting around the upper reaches of the Valley’s cliffs and pinnacles, and snow did fall at higher elevations. Partially because we were with a person who had never been to the Valley before we stopped more than once at some of the popular and iconic spots — and this photograph, though it does not show the famous iconic view, was made at one of the best known as think clouds and light snow passed across the upper rim of the Valley, nearly rendering granite towers and solitary trees invisible.

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

Black Necked Stilt Feeding

March 8, 2015 G Dan Mitchell 2 Comments

A black necked stilt feeds in a San Joaquin Valley wetland marsh

Something that quickly becomes apparent when you are around a variety of birds, especially those that live in and around water, is the tremendous range of specific adaptations they have made in order to be successful in rather narrow ecological niches. I first recall seeing this when I was much younger and someone, probably a middle school science teacher, pointed out that birds along the San Francisco Bay shoreline often were distributed in water of varying depths that suited the lengths of their beaks and legs. The same sort of thing is visible in these California Central Valley wetlands, where some birds are adapted to dry land, others to hunting in the brush, and others to success in varying depths of water.

The black-necked stilt is a very attractive bird, with its striking white and black plumage, its thin beak, and its tremendously long red legs. It is also a highly adapted bird — those long legs and back let it forage in slightly deeper water. Most often I see them in somewhat shallower water than seen here, where the bird’s legs are visible above the water line. But this one was making maximum good use of its long legs, which are just long enough to keep it out of the water as it feeds. A moment after I made this photograph the bird took off.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

The Wetlands, Late Winter

March 7, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

San Joaquin Valley wetlands on a late winter morning

About a week ago we headed off to Yosemite Valley for a few days, primarily to attend the opening reception of the 30th annual Yosemite Renaissance Exhibit in The Valley, but also to spend some time there in what we hoped might be interesting and possibly snowy conditions. Given the way this year has gone, it shouldn’t be surprising that the hopes of snow were not met — though there was a five-minute flurry in the morning in the Valley and we found a few inches of new snow by climbing up out of the Valley. But “there is always something to see,” and there was no shortage of other things to photograph.

On our way to the Valley from the San Francisco Bay Area we made a short morning stop at a favorite migratory bird hangout. Typically we arrive here by dawn and encounter thick tule fog. This morning was different and more spring-like with sun and a few puffy clouds overhead. While it seems wrong to see this weather in what should be winter, it still was beautiful, and I made this simple photograph of a quite wetlands marsh where I more typically photograph in fog very early in the morning.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: valley

Curving Branch, Rippled Water

Almost Without Form

Black Necked Stilt Feeding

The Wetlands, Late Winter

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