Tag Archives: big sur

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

Arch, Bridge, Big Sur Headlands

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Arch, Bridge, Big Sur Headlands
“Arch, Bridge, Big Sur Headlands” — The ocean meets the rugged Big Sur coastline with an arch, a bridge, surf, fog, and coastal headlands.

One more time, this subject from the upper Big Sur coast is one that I shared last week… and last year… and perhaps almost every year before that. Yes, I’ve been stopping to photograph here for years. Each time I tell myself, “OK, you are done with this scene now.” And almost every time I pass that way again I end up stopping. And I frequently find that the atmosphere has changed to present some new way of seeing it.

This visit was on a late-February morning. The surf was large, but not monumental. Yet it was enough to combine with thinning fog to produce a luminous haze along the edge of the water. This haze was gently illuminated by the morning sun rising above the coastal mountains, and its light arrived on the flat headlands at the left just as I arrived.

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

Coastal Gully

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Coastal Gully
“Coastal Gully” — The jagged ravine of a coastal creek crosses a pasture before reaching the sea, Big Sur coast.

Recently a meme about California seasons has been circulating on social media. The idea is that our weather always tricks us — we see early signs of spring only to be hit with a cold winter-like storm. The end of winter is an odd one in the state. It is still the rainy (and snowy in the mountains) season, but unlike many other states, here it is the green season. This process of turning green accelerates in March, and it looks more like spring than winter.

This striking, zig-zag gully crosses a bit of level land above the Pacific Ocean along the Big Sur coast near Point Sur. In this season, it is a jagged and dark gash in a remarkably green landscape. A close look reveals the history of this spot as pasture-land, evidenced by the fact that it is criss-crossed by fencing.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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

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

Morning Fog, Pacific Coast Highway Bridge

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Morning Fog, Pacific Coast Highway Bridge
“Morning Fog, Pacific Coast Highway Bridge” — Morning fog over the ocean and rugged rocks near a Pacific Coast Highway bridge.

I have a long relationship with this spot. I have photographed here for two decades. I recall the first time — I went to this part of the coast with a new long lens, ended up here more or less by accident, and the new lens was exactly the one I needed for the subject. Since then I have photographed it in all conditions — morning, midday, evening, fog, clear skies, sunset.

The main features in the scene remain the same, but the mood undergoes remarkable changes. In some of my photographs the details are much clearer than in this one, while in others the coastal fog almost completely obscures them. On this morning thin fog became luminous in the early light as the sun rose above the mountains of the Big Sur coastline.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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

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

Light on Water, Big Sur Coast

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Light on Water, Big Sur Coast
“Light on Water, Big Sur Coast” —Brilliant winter sunlight reflects on the surface of the Pacific Ocean as morning fog thins along the rugged headlands of the Big Sur ciast.

Near the end of February I made a quick trip down the Big Sur coast — though I was eventually stopped by road closures resulting from this winter’s storms. Before I turned around I stopped above this scene, one of my favorites for its long views of receding headlands, and for the frequent presence of fog and haze.

I often go in the morning, before the inevitable crowds arrive. Morning light can be tricky here, as the sun has to rise above tall mountains inland of the highway. However, when that light comes down canyons and into fog and haze it produces spectacular light. Another hint: people often think of this coast as running north-south, but it is northwest to southeast. This means that by late morning the sun often reflects directly off the surface of the water, as in this photograph, creating strong contrasts between dark land and bright water.

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 | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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