Tag Archives: waves

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Pacific Northwest

Surf, Sand, and Rocks

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Surf, Sand, and Rocks
Rocky islands and peninsulas surround a small bay at a southern oregon beach.

Surf, Sand, and Rocks. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Rocky islands and peninsulas surround a small bay at a southern oregon beach.

This photograph is the partner of another from the same location that I posted recently. This spot is along the lower coast of Oregon, not too far above the northern California border. We had been visiting the California coastal redwoods in the upper part of the state, and we decided to make a day trip across the border and up that coast. We had no specific goal in mind — well, not beyond finding a place for breakfast along the way — so we just headed north to see what we would find.

We were not expecting to find any particular “icons,” we were freed to stop at whatever seemed interesting. I don’t know that name of these formation, and my only way of identifying them was to record a mileage marker along the route. The large stone features here stand in shallow water — in some places literally on the beach. I chose the vertical format for this photograph to emphasize the view across the beach and the little bay between the rocks, leading the eye to the distant horizon and fog bank.

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: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast, Photographs: Pacific Northwest

Stream and Islands, Mile 337

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Stream and Islands, Mile 337
A stream crosses the sand to enter the Pacific Ocean among immense shoreline rocks and island and their reflections, Oregon coastline.

Stream and Islands, Mile 337. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A stream crosses the sand to enter the Pacific Ocean among immense shoreline rocks and islands and their reflections, Oregon coastline.

Last month we spent time in far Northern California photographing redwood forests and coastal subjects. Several things inevitably happen on these visits. One is that we always remark how this area feels more like Oregon than California. Another is that we often head up to and across the Oregon border. On the most recent trip we took a drive to the north one evening, but we mostly explored areas just south of the stateliness and when we reached the boundary we turned around. But this photograph comes from a previous trip on which one of these “short drives” took us a good distance up the Oregon coast.

This is a striking spot along that Oregon coastline — and it was even more appealing since there were a couple of people riding horses on this beach when we passed by. (They are not seen in this photograph… in case you were looking for them.) Like so many of these beautiful spots, this one is not marked as any sort of icon, and I did not know its name or even if it has one… so I made a photograph of milepost 337 when I finished photographing to help me remember.

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: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Rugged Shoreline, Big Sur Coast

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Rugged Shoreline, Big Sur Coast
Morning fog along the rugged Big Sur shoreline.

Rugged Shoreline, Big Sur Coast. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning fog along the rugged Big Sur shoreline.

Because I live in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area I have the luxury of choosing to go to the coast on a moment’s notice, even if I only have a morning, an afternoon, or an evening for the trip. I can watch the weather conditions and choose to go if they look good (clearing fog!) or stay home if they don’t (boring blue sky!). Because I lean toward more dramatic conditions, I tend to choose times around the passage of a weather system — which can bring impressive surf — or else foggy days that look like they will clear.

Fog can be moody and interesting on its own, but a lot of the most fascinating light comes along the intersection between fog and clear sky as the fog begins to lift. The views begin to open up, but portions of the scene may still be muted or partially obscured. In the areas of lighter fog the light is directional but not overly intense and harsh. And along the mountainous edge of the continent along the Big Sur coast the fog often drapes itself across mountain ridges and moves as I watch it. That was the case here, as I photographed across a particularly rugged section of the shoreline toward a ridge and peninsula.

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: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Ocean & Coast

Black Sands Beach

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Black Sands Beach
Hikers and backpackers along the edge of the water at Black Sands Beach, Shelter Cove.

Black Sands Beach. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Hikers and backpackers along the edge of the water at Black Sands Beach, Shelter Cove.

The photograph comes from California’s “Lost Coast,” a rugged section in the far northern reaches of the state where the coastline is so rugged that few roads reach it and some sections are entirely roadless. Even the “Pacific Coast Highway” (Route 1) takes an extended inland jog here and travels through redwood country out of sight of the ocean. We explored two sections, one as part of a plan and the other on a literally last-minute whim.

For years we have passed the turn off to Shelter Cove and muttered something along the lines of, “Someday we really need to drive out there… but no time on this trip.” As I recall it, we were beginning to repeat that conversation as we approached the turn off on this homeward-bound drive — but this time we made a last-minute decision to turn of and take a look. This photograph looks northward up the coast from the edge of Shelter Cove, toward a 20-mile section that is accessible only on foot.

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.