Images

Photographs: Nature

Patterns in Green

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Patterns in Green
The stalk of a plant at a formal garden.

Patterns in Green. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The stalk of a plant at a formal garden.

First of all, about the sort of vague title for this photograph… I do tend to use titles for some photographs, particularly landscapes and wildlife, that don’t give away too much information about the subject. I have my reasons. For one thing, I think that the photograph should be free to speak to the viewer visually, mostly on its own merits and without telling the viewer what to think. For another, in some cases it is better to not focus people’s attention too much of the specific location, particularly if that might distract them from the visual value of the photograph and double-particularly if the location is one that might be at risk of damage if too many people went looking for it.

However, none of those noble — or so I tell myself — considerations are at work here. The truth is… I have no idea what kind of plant this is. I don’t even recall specifically the act of making the photograph, though I do know that it was during a visit to a garden that we went to order to photograph flowers and plants. (At about this point, someone will know what kind of plant it is and write to let me know. I’m counting on you! :-)

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: Sierra Nevada

Eastern Sierra Morning

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Eastern Sierra Morning
Morning light on the eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevada under stormy skies.

Eastern Sierra Morning. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Morning light on the eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevada under stormy skies.

This photograph was made mere moments after another of the eastern Sierra Nevada escarpment that I shared recently. That photograph included the first, warm-tone light of the new day. This one comes after that initial golden hour light has left the highest peaks — though a bit of it remains in the lower foreground — and these formations are illuminated by somewhat harsher light. It was a remarkable morning, with conditions changing with extreme rapidity. The gently curving wave cloud in the previous photograph had, by the time I made this one, turned into a very dark layer beyond the crest.

There is another background story related to this series of photographs — a story that is partly about photography and partly about learning to know places. I first went to this location quite a long time ago, almost by accident the first time. Intrigued, I returned frequently when I had a moment, and as a result I saw the place in rather varied conditions. I began to get a sense not only of what I actually saw, but also of how this landscape might respond to conditions that I did not encounter. Eventually this served me well, and more than once I’ve aborted other photographic plans to go to this spot based on nothing more than a hunch about what the conditions might be like.

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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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Structures and Objects, Photographs: Urban/Street

Two Poles, Three Doors

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Two Poles, Three Doors
Two unility poles in front of an abandoned industrial. building with three doors.

Two Poles, Three Doors. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Two utility poles in front of an abandoned industrial. building with three doors.

This is another take on a subject that I posted about recently while sharing a portrait-orientation image of much the same scene. Keeping in mind that photographs posted here are often part of my “working out” process with images, trying out different ways of seeing them, here’s a bit of my thinking. In the previous version I chose the alternate orientation in order to include more of that sky (a reference to my landscape photography?) and the full height of the utility poles. This time I left only a sliver of the sky, and you have to imagine how tall the poles are. (That’s an important visual concept about which I could write an article, by the way.) So here, I think, we see the geometries of the structure, the poles, and the slanting shadows more prominently.

In that earlier post I wrote something that wasn’t completely accurate regarding the building. I pointed out accurately that it is in a former produce canning area and that it is no longer part of that industry, but I also stated that it is “abandoned.” Technically, it _was_ abandoned, but it appears that the building is now being used as some sort of warehouse or storage area. Of course, you would not see that from the outside where I was, as there are no commercial markings at all — which is a very unusual thing in this country.

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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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.

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

Sandhill Cranes, Winter Wetlands

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Sandhill Cranes, Winter Wetlands
A large group of sandhill cranes assembles in Pacific Flyway wetlands on a winter morning.

Sandhill Cranes, Winter Wetlands. © Copyright 2021 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A large group of sandhill cranes assembles in Pacific Flyway wetlands on a winter morning.

This was one of the larger assemblies of sandhill cranes I have seen in California’s Great Central Valley. (Though it still fall far short of the largest group I’ve seen, in an out-of-the way spot in the delta region east of San Francisco Bay.) There are quite a few visible in the photograph, but many more were outside the frame on both sides and extending well into the distance. It seems to me that they are more likely to be part of such groups late in their California season, or at least that the groups are less remote from observation points.

At the point I photographed them, most of the cranes were still relatively settled in on this pond, with only a few coming and going. A bit later they began to depart, typically in small groups of perhaps a half dozen or so. But at this moment, aside from the five who thoughtfully occupied the upper part of the frame, they were mostly stationary as the early morning sun came to the wetlands.

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.