Tag Archives: weathered

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Morning at the Rhyolite School

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Morning at the Rhyolite School

Morning at the Rhyolite School. Rhyolite, Nevada. April 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light slants through the windows and across the floor of the old schoolhouse in the ghost town of Rhyolite Nevada.

Although it is not the most iconic structure at the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada (very close to Death Valley National Park), I’m intrigued by the ruins of the old Rhyolite School. It is one of the more intact structures – while the roof is gone, many of the walls are still standing, as is the main floor seen in the photo. I like to photograph both the exterior and interior of this structure. There is something compelling about the school with its missing roof and windows leaving the interior open to the sky, and this building makes me think about the lives of the people who lived here more than other buildings like the bank and railroad station.

I made this photograph in the early morning after photographing dawn light on the bank building and the distance Amargosa Valley and Mountains and, beyond that, Telescope Peak in Death Valley’s Panamint Range. The sun was still fairly low, providing the slanting light though the windows. If you look closely at the far windows you can make out some of the other buildings of Rhyolite.

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

keywords: school, house, building, ruins, dilapidated, weathered, window, wall, brick, stucco, concrete, light, slant, floor, old, historic, ghost, town, abandoned, sky, blue, cloud, morning, sunrise, dawn, nevada, usa, mine, interior, rhyolite, crack, gravel, travel, scenic, stock, death valley, national park

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

Red-Winged Blackbird on Fence, Foggy Morning

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Red-Winged Blackbird on Fence, Foggy Morning

Red-Winged Blackbird on Fence, Foggy Morning. Calero Hills, California. April 18, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A female redwing blackbird stands atop a post of an old weathered fence among grasses.

I photographed this bird on an early mid-April morning just before fog began to clear. I frequently walk past this small pond – Castillero Pond – when I begin my hikes into the hills, oaks, and grassland of Calero Park. I’ve learned that it is often possible to find an egret here, so I usually approach the pond slowly and quietly so as not to scare the bird off if it happens to be there. On this morning it wasn’t, but I was pleased to see that the pond had filled after late-season rain, and I found that a flock of redwing blackbirds was flying around – it seems like must be mating and nesting season for them. So I left the long lens on the camera and remained quiet and was able to get fairly close to some of these small birds. While this shot doesn’t exactly fill the frame with the bird, I like the curving form of the fence as it blurs into the distance and the subdued colors in the background.

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

keywords: red-wing, black, bird, blackbird, female, avian, perch, stand, beak, animal, wildlife, nature, grass, dormant, brown, weathered, worn, fence, post, rail, stand, atop, spider, web, plant, dry, lichen, old, morning, fog, mist, cloud, stock, nature

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature

Four Redwoods, Muir Woods

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Four Redwoods, Muir Woods. Muir Woods National Monument, California. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell - all rights reserved.

Four Redwoods, Muir Woods. Muir Woods National Monument, California. February 28, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A detail of the weathered and burn-scarred trunks of four old redwood trees at Muir Woods National Monument, California.

Although I find it a very hard subject to photograph, I’m always intrigued by the textures and shapes of redwood tree trunks, especially when they are as rugged and time-worn as these are. There are four trees in this photo with the most distant picking up a bit more light than those in the foreground. This grouping is, I’m almost embarrassed to admit, right next to a very popular section of the most popular trail at Muir Woods.

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

keywords: muir, woods, national, monument, park, marin, forest, nature, california, usa, redwood, tree, trunk, bark, weathered, scar, burn, char, fire, damage, texture, four, needle, pattern, abstract, detail, overlap, moss, green, black, brown, light, marin county, scenic, travel, foliage, stock

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Structures and Objects

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky

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Schoolhouse Windows and Sky

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky. Rhyolite, Nevada. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Schoolhouse windows and sky – Rhyolite, Nevada.

Back in April 2008 my brother and I spent several days photographing in and around Death Valley National Park. (I try to visit DV every April, and I’m hoping to be there again this year.) On this morning we got up early and drove to the historic ghost town of Rhyolite before dawn and spent a few hours photographing the old ruins, starting with pre-dawn light and continuing well into the morning. (When we finished we headed over to nearby Beatty, Nevada to get breakfast and gas, the latter at a much lower price than back in DV.) The old school house is one of the buildings that has withstood the ravages of the desert better than others. Despite losing windows, roof, and much else the building still stands – among the destroyed ruins of many other buildings. This photograph, made very close to actual dawn, looks through the interior of the building by lining up windows on a couple walls, with the nearby hills and high morning clouds seen beyond.

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

keywords: ghost town, abandoned, school, rhyolite, mine, mining, nevada, death valley, national, park, structure, wall, window, sky, cloud, blue, light, morning, crack, stucco, wood, weathered, pattern, hill, mountain, ridge, shadow, travel, historic, history, scenic, architecture, frame, sill, stock