Tag Archives: zion

Photographs: Nature, Photographs: The Southwest, Photographs: Unclassified, Photographs: Utah

Autumn Maple Tree, Slot Canyon

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Autumn Maple Tree, Slot Canyon
Autumn Maple Tree, Slot Canyon

Autumn Maple Tree, Slot Canyon. Zion National Park, Utah. October 22, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The red and gold leaves of an autumn maple tree against the lichen-covered and layered sandstone walls of a slot canyon, Zion National Park

When we passed through Zion National Park about a week and a half from the end of October, it was mostly too early for fall color in Zion Canyon, but things were starting to get interesting in the high country along the Mount Carmel Highway, where we spent most of a day looking for and photographing fall color, red rock, canyons, and much more. It seemed to me that the predominant sources of autumn color here were maples, and some of them were quite brilliant.

This tree was growing along a wash at the bottom of a red rock canyon which in places took on the appearance of a slot canyon. Between the tree, with its golden-yellow, oranges, greens, and bits of red, and the cliff, with shades of brown, white, red-orange, and even blue and purple, it is hard to think of very many colors that don’t make an appearance here. I of course liked the colors of this tree, but I also found the water-sculpted steep canyon walls to be interesting, with their folded shapes, lichen, and brighter color where the underlying rock could show through.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Solitary Plant and Sculpted Rock

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Solitary Plant and Sculpted Rock
Solitary Plant and Sculpted Rock

Solitary Plant and Sculpted Rock. Zion National Park, Utah. October 22, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A solitary box elder with autumn foliage grows at the bottom of a wash below water-sculpted rock walls, Zion National Park

Near the start of my late-October, 2012 photographic foray back to Utah with my friends Charlie and Karl, we spent a day – our first in Utah – mostly trying to “work” the various subjects along the Mount Carmel Highway across the high country of Zion National Park. This is, of course, a country full of all sorts of varied and interesting sedimentary rock layers that have been tilted and eroded in wonderful ways, and at this time of year the trees were beginning to take on fall colors.

At one point we dropped down from the road and wandered into a wash that first attracted our attention by means of the very brightly colored red maples. Once in the way, we started to investigate it a bit more, and we soon found a short slot canyon section where the walls were vertical and water had eroded these walls into curves and alcoves. This particular alcove seemed like it might be the site of an intermittent waterfall or seep, and this single tree was growing at its base just above the creek bed.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Plants in Sandstone Cliff

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Plants in Sandstone Cliff
Plants in Sandstone Cliff

Plants in Sandstone Cliff. Zion National Park, Utah. October 14, 2012. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Plants grow in cracks in a sandstone cliff in the Zion National Park high country

For some reason, the small area where this cliff is found – along the Mount Carmel Highway – holds some fascination for me, and I have stopped here to photograph quite a few times. (This despite the fact that there is no good place to pull over!) In close proximity there are a small stream bed, some beautiful trees growing near the cliff, a section of much more fractured rock, and this cliff of clean, straight rock cut by vertical cracks and crossed by the diagonal lines formed by the texture of the sandstone.

In different light this section of the cliff can be a lot more red, but here I photographed it in shaded light and the tones shifted significantly towards blue. The small plants seem to survive quite well growing it what seems like an impossible location, and when I made the photograph the one on the right was just beginning to take on fall colors. A closer view reveals that the rock’s surface is covered with a wide variety of types of lichen, much of it a bit too small to make out in this web-sized photograph.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

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: The Southwest, Photographs: Utah

Cottonwood Tree, Sandstone Canyon Walls

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Cottonwood Tree, Sandstone Canyon Walls - A cottonwood tree set against the afternoon colors of shaded sandstone walls of Zion Canyon, Utah
A cottonwood tree set against the afternoon colors of shaded sandstone walls of Zion Canyon, Utah

Cottonwood Tree, Sandstone Canyon Walls. Zion National Park, Utah. October 13, 2012. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A cottonwood tree set against the afternoon colors of shaded sandstone walls of Zion Canyon, Utah

I photographed this tree, still too soon to have fall colors, in front of the huge sandstone cliffs above the Temple of Sinawava feature at the upper end of Zion Canyon in Zion National Park. These trees grow here along the banks of the Virgin River, which makes some rather abrupt twists and turns in this portion of the canyon and flows right up against the canyon walls.

I should probably write something about the colors in this photograph. I actually held this one back for some time on account of the colors – which could easily be seen to be due to overly enthusiastic post-processing on my part. That’s not the case, but there have been a few other photographs that I have made that have evoked such responses, and sometimes I’d rather not have to explain. However, in this case I will explain! :-) The entire scene is in shadow, as the very tall cliffs are along the west rim of the canyon and completely block sun from this spot for a good portion of the day. The cliff face is extensively covered with a sort of “varnish” that is commonly seen on such walls, though it is much more extensive than usual here. This material normally is quite dark, black even, and is more reflective than natural sandstone. When it is in the shade it tends to reflect the blue tones of the sky – and that is where the intense coloration of this cliff comes from.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

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.