Tag Archives: valley

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

Half Dome and El Capitan, Morning

June 14, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Black and white photograph of backlit Half Dome framed by steep Yosemite Valley canyon walls including the face of El Capitan.

Allow me one more photograph in the recent sequence of black and white photographs of “Yosemite icons.” On most drives into and out of the Valley I stop and look at this scene and frequently try to photograph it if the conditions are special. In the morning there is often haze here, and this creates an effect of atmospheric recession from the half dozen or so layers in the scene. It is a tricky thing – a bit too much haze and the details of forest and rock can become almost invisible; too little haze and the contrast between brightly lit highlights (like the patch of snow on Half Dome) and the deep shadows can become quite stark. The image I have in mind includes the effect of atmosphere-highlighted distance, the effect of back-lighting on the trees (most obvious here perhaps at the lower left), and the abstract nature of the different intersecting slopes and faces.

A technical note: I used the Canon 5D2 with the EF 100-400mm zoom at 365mm to make this photograph. Some doubt that a zoom like this can produce enough resolution, but at full size I can just barely make out a couple people on the snow bank atop Half Dome. Sharp enough for me!

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 365mm
ISO 200, f/11, 1/400 second

keywords: yosemite, national, park, sierra, nevada, mountain, spring, nature, valley, half, dome, el capitan, forest, ridge, mountain, cliff, face, back, light, trees, atmosphere, recession, distance, sky, snow, patch, field, summit, canyon, bright, landscape, scenic, travel, california, usa, north america, mariposa, county, haze, stock, black and white, monochrome, morning, highway, 120, icon

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

Bridalveil Fall and Merced River Canyon, Morning

June 13, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Black and white photograph of Bridalveil Fall and the Merced River canyon in morning backlight – Yosemite Valley, California.

This is the classic view of Bridalveil Fall looking up the canyon of the Merced River as seen from highway 120 just below the longest tunnel on the road descending into the Valley. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve driven down this road into The Valley, but I seem unable to resist pulling over and at least having a look.

On this early June morning all of the waterfalls were in full flow and the Merced was only 24 hours away from cresting with spring melt-water. The Merced was full from bank to bank, and the sound of falling water was everywhere in the Valley. (Though I only stayed there a few hours before the crowds drove me to visit Tioga Pass instead.) I wasn’t certain quite how to photograph this as the backlit morning haze created a very low contrast effect in the atmosphere even though the areas where the sun hit the water (on the river and at the top of the fall) were very bright. I had a hunch that it might work best in black and white, and after working on it a bit in post that hunch seemed to be correct.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 360mm
ISO 200, f/4.9, 1/320 second

keywords: yosemite, national, park, sierra, nevada, mountain, spring, nature, bridalveil, fall, waterfall, merced, river, canyon, cliff, valley, black and white, monochrone, forest, morning, light, back, havze, atmosphere, recession, mist, slope, ridge, shadow, landscape, nature, travel, scenic, california, usa, north america, road, highway, 120, stock

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

Erosion Patterns, Morning Light

May 24, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Eroded and folded patterns of gullies and rounded hills in morning light – Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park, California.

Part of the recent series of photographs of details of the amazing landforms around Zabriskie Point, this image includes a small section where the folds of the earth line up one behind the other almost like waves – albeit rather soft and rounded waves. This was shot during the “best light” period of early morning when the light from the rising sun angles across these shapes, here softened a bit by some high clouds that were present in this morning.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 210mm
ISO 200, f/14, 1/125 second

keywords: death, valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, spring, nature, zabriskie, point, morning, gower, wash, zabriskie, light, shadow, pattern, fold, earth, geology, abstract, landscape, nature, desert, rounded, gully, hill, stock

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

Erosion Patterns, Morning Light – Zabriskie Point

May 14, 2010 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A sea of pastel erosion patterns in diffused early morning light below Zabriskie Point, Death Valley National Park, California.

Off to the left of the “classic views” from Zabriskie point is a series of hills and gullies extending back to the south-southeast which catches the early morning cross-light as the sun comes up. Depending upon the lighting conditions the color of these hills can range from white-gray, through golden, to reddish, and almost black, with bluish tones in some cases. The patterns run every which way as the gullies draining these hills ultimately head to Gower Wash and then into Death Valley. In the foreground of this scene is a solitary ridge that has the remnant of an older layer of darker stratified material.

On the morning when I made this photograph the sun had just come up over the hills to the east, but clouds in that direction were partially blocking the light which quickly changed between full dawn sun and light filtered by the clouds. At the moment I made this exposure a bit of the more direct light hit the foreground strata fragment and a few spots further away, but softer cloud-filtered light fell on many parts of the scene.

This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS USM at 105mm
ISO 200, f/11, 1/100 second

keywords: death, valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, spring, nature, zabriskie, point, morning, light, erosion, pattern, hill, geology, valley, crack, gully, rock, layer, strata, diagonal, landscape, scenic, travel, desert, southern, pastel, stock

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