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Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Sunset Light Begins

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Sunset Light Begins
First dusk color comes to the sky above Death Valley and the snow-capped Panamint Mountains.

Sunset Light Begins. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

First dusk color comes to the sky above Death Valley and the snow-capped Panamint Mountains.

Like most photographers, I’m typically attracted to the most intensely colorful phases of sunset light. I confess! Those colors are hard to resist, and frankly I don’t know of any good reason to not photograph them. (The “problem” perhaps occurs when one thinks that is the only light that is good enough to photograph.) As a matter of fact, not too long ago I shared another photograph from this spot, made at close to the same time on this evening, that does focus on a wildly colorful sky, captured at its peak of intensity.

This photograph is perhaps more subtle, photographed when the light was lovely but not so intensively colorful. Anyone who has observed such a sunset recognizes that it in a constant state of development and change. Late afternoon light almost imperceptibly fades into early evening light, and eventually the sky’s colors begin to intensify. At the most transient moment many elements are in play — the east becomes more blue, the sky in the far west seems “warmer” and more intense by contrast, and the whole thing parades across the sky from horizon to horizon. Here the fact that the gaudy colors are suppressed seems to allow us to see more clearly the beauty of the gentler blue light.

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 and Amazon.

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Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Urban/Street

Lady Liberty Of The Sidewalk

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Lady Liberty Of The Sidewalk
A familiar statue in a perhaps-metaphorical location on a Manhattan sidewalk.

Lady Liberty Of The Sidewalk. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A familiar statue in a perhaps-metaphorical location on a Manhattan sidewalk.

As I have described before, we like to walk when we visit New York… and by “walk” I mean that we only use the subway or other forms of Manhattan urban transportation if walking will do. As Manhattanites know, New York City is mostly a very walkable place, and it lots of circumstances it is the better way to get around. From our perspective, as visitors and as photographers, walking has even more pluses. I almost always have a camera out (attached via a wrist strap) or close at hand when I’m there, and I try to grab little quick vignette like this one while I’m on the move.

As with so many such photographs, there are many ways that you could consider this one. I would understand if you took a quick look and asked, “Why would Dan want to make a photograph of a scene like that?,” especially if you mostly think of me as someone who likes to photograph beautiful landscapes. This is not that!. If you like to look for meaning beyond the pure visual quality (which may actually reveal something about the visual quality that you would otherwise miss), I think there are quite a few possibilities here. Do you like metaphors? Have at it! :-)

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 and Amazon.

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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: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature

Winter Desert Flowers

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Winter Desert Flowers
Dried winter flowers high in the mountains of Death Valley National Park.

Winter Desert Flowers. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dried winter flowers high in the mountains of Death Valley National Park.

From photographing with my wife, Patricia Emerson Mitchell, who specializes in photographing the plant world, often at very small scales, I have learned to pay more attention to the small things that I typically overlook — at least when I remember to do so. I’m not immune to photographing small subjects, but my perspective often begins with the large and works toward the small, not always going as far in that direction as she does. When I’m in Death Valley, where I made this photograph, I often remember that I only really began to pay attention to the myriad tiny plants and flowers on trip where she joined me.

When I first paused at the location where I made this photograph, flowers were the furhest thing from my mind. I was returning on a gravel road from a less-visited outback location, and because I was not in a hurry I turned off when I spotted some dilapidated traces of an old mine — some tracks, a small tailings pile, the entrance to a mine. I got out and walked toward it, and as I walked I realized, much to my surprise, that this very dry desert mountain landscape was absolutely filled with dry flowers left over from the previous season. I cannot identify these flowers, but they and other dry flowers were everywhere… when I finally stopped to look.

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 and Amazon.

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.

Photographs: New York City, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Urban/Street

Manhattan Food Cart, Night

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Halal Food Cart, Night
A sidewalk halal food cart at night, Manhattan

This photograph ties together several things that interest and fascinate me about photographing in the urban environment, particularly at night. One feature is how the night can transform subjects that would look quite different in the daytime — and now that modern cameras are good enough in very low light to permit us to do street photography at night we can more readily work with these transformed subjects. At night the light of cities, which some sometimes be almost as fascinating as state lighting, highlight particular aspects of the scene and can create a kind of mystery that isn’t there in the day time. After all, how much attention might you pay to a couple of people being a quick meal from a food cart during the day?

The initial subject here was the two individuals standing at the cart and placing an order with the fellow who works there. They are the center of the image for compositional reasons, for narrative reasons, and because they are in the light! But that reflective sidewalk is interesting to me, too, and having it broken up by passing figures makes it more so — and the two dark figures frame the central focus.

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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” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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