Tag Archives: 2013

2013 Favorite Photographs

“With all art expression, when something is seen, it is a vivid experience, sudden, compelling, and inevitable.” – Ansel Adams

I have compiled annual “favorites” collections for almost ten years. Each year I think this will just be an exercise in selecting photographs, and each year I rediscover that it is more than that – an opportunity to reflect on growth and new ways of looking at the world, a chance to think forward about what is yet to come, a time to recall a year of places and experiences and friendships.

It is a hard to distill a year’s work down to a few photographs, and I’m afraid that I can’t reduce the number to the extent that some can. This year I have – painfully! – gotten it down to 18 images, which is perhaps still too many. But it is 25% fewer than the 24 I shared last year! (Adams also said, “Twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop.” So feel free to regard up to a half dozen of these as being insignificant! ;-)

Many things affected my final selection. High on the list is how others – including many of you – responded to my photographs. I often say that the photographer is the person least able to objectively view and understand his/her own work, and I value the feedback and response that you share with me. On the other hand, I like to include some photographs that get less attention because I believe in them. I also include examples from my diverse range of subjects – people, wildlife, landscape, cityscape and street, night photography.

Speaking of a range of subjects, this was a year of interesting and diverse photographic adventures. Some were familiar – visits to Death Valley, the nearby Pacific Coast, the streets of San Francisco, familiar Sierra locations, and more. Others reflect more recent interests, such the migratory birds of California’s Great Central Valley. I spent more than a week camped in a remote Sierra Nevada location with photographer friends, becoming deeply familiar with the details of that particular landscape. I traveled to urban destinations: New York City, London, Germany, Austria. I continued work on my long-term project to photograph classical musicians.

But, enough introduction. In no particular order, though grouped according to subject, here are some of my favorite photographs of 2013. For those who want to know more, I have included links to the original posts of the images, where you may read more background – click the images themselves or the “original post” links.

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Coastal California

I am very fortunate to live relatively close to a huge range of photographic subjects. One of the closest and most impressive is the Pacific Ocean coastline of California, and it is near enough that I can head over there for a morning or an evening when the conditions seem promising.

Beach and Bluffs, Evening

Beach and Bluffs, Evening. Pacific Coast, California. August 2, 2013.

Evening light and fog along the Pacific coast north of Santa Cruz, California. (Original post)

Living less than an hour from the Pacific coastline south of San Francisco, I have the good fortune of being able to shoot there often, and I have come to know some sections of this coastline very well. On this summer evening I was cruising up the coast looking for subjects when I passed this familiar location, one that I had passed many times without stopping due to the scarcity of places to pull over on this narrow highway. The hazy fog, the warm evening light, and the curving surf line got my attention and this time I stopped, put a long lens on the camera, and made this exposure while standing far too close to the passing traffic.

Continue reading 2013 Favorite Photographs

“Light of Ireland” Tour

My friend Tim Baskerville – long time San Francisco area photographer and night photograph guru of The Nocturnes – is leading photographic tours to Ireland. Tim, whose family roots go back to West Ireland, is a long time visitor to Ireland who has photographed there frequently. If this sounds interesting to you, I urge you to get in touch with Tim – and tell him I sent you!

“The Light of Ireland”

Join accomplished Photographer/Educator Tim Baskerville and Irish Guide, Olcan Masterson in Western Ireland. Olcan, a walking authority on the history of western Ireland, has spent many years exploring the hills and back roads of the area. An accomplished musician as well, he has spread traditional Irish music all over Europe and the U.S. with his flute and tin whistle. Mostly though, he is a living embodiment of Irish charm and hospitality. He will show you the spirit and soul of Ireland, as few visitors will ever experience it. You will get a view of the land and the culture that comes with living it, not merely visiting it.

Western Ireland affords us a unique opportunity in that there are so many wonderful hidden places to explore. Even if you have traveled to this area in the past, your guides will seek out new places to visit and photograph. There are spectacular monastic and megalithic ruins to seek out in your daily adventures.

The land cost includes:
• Group transportation for tour events in the tour van.
• Accommodations based on two people sharing a room, singles are assigned on a first come, first served basis.
• Services of driver, English-speaking cultural guide (if applicable) and photographic leader, during the tour.
• All breakfasts, most dinners are included.
• Park entrance fees, day tours and excursions as shown in the itinerary.
• Extensive pre-departure information and services.

The land cost does not include:
Domestic or International air fare.

Date: July 15-25, 2013
Websites:
http://phototc.com/tours/details/the-light-of-ireland
http://www.thenocturnes.com

Location: County Mayo, County Galway in the West of Ireland

Dawn, New Years Day 2013

Dawn, New Years Day 2013
Dawn, New Years Day 2013

Dawn, New Years Day 2013. San Joaquin Valley, California. January 1, 2013. © Copyright 2012 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dawn light above a San Joaquin Valley marsh on New Years Day, 2013

I didn’t manage to post a real New Years Day photo on New Years Day this year… since I was out and about well before dawn on that morning, thinking that it would be even more fun to greet the new year in the field than to just share a post about it! We were staying in the Sierra foothills and had enjoyed a wonderful New Years eve with friends in the area the evening before. Although we had planned to “call it a night” soon enough to turn in early in anticipation for a pre-5:00 a.m. wake-up call, it was after midnight when we finally got to bed.

We were up at 4:45 – yes, on New Years Day! – and out the door shortly after 5:15, and on our way out into the San Joaquin Valley, where a small group of us assembled at about 6:30 in the darkness. After sleepy “Happy New Year!” wishes we headed off into the first pre-dawn light to look for geese and cranes and other critters. Within a few minutes I stopped along the levee road by these trees to make my first real photograph of the new year as the first light began to turn high clouds over the Sierra a beautiful shade of pink.

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.