Bob Kent Bob Kent

Clouds are the Photographers Spice of Life

Clouds are a landscape photographer's spice to add flavor to their images.  Don't believe me, do a google on "Ansel Adam on cloud" and see how many hits come up of his images that have "cloud" in the name.  

My point is this,  There are a lot of good images that have a bright blue cloudless sky.  There are many more "great" images of the same location that have clouds in the sky!  I love the Owens Valley, it is gorgeous.   That said, would the above image be so moving if it did not have those wonderful clouds in the sky? I think not.

Hwy 395 in the Owens Valley

Clouds are a landscape photographer's spice to add flavor to their images.  Don't believe me, do a google on "Ansel Adam on cloud" and see how many hits come up of his images that have "cloud" in the name.  

My point is this,  There are a lot of good images that have a bright blue cloudless sky.  There are many more "great" images of the same location that have clouds in the sky!  I love the Owens Valley, it is gorgeous.   That said, would the above image be so moving if it did not have those wonderful clouds in the sky? I think not.

At times I travel a lot.  When I do I spend a lot of hours in airplanes.  It was during those hours that I really fell in love with clouds and how God paints the sky with them.  I am amazed how many folks who have window seats who never even look out at the incredible scenes that are going by their windows.

Now, I always try for a window seat.  It soothes my soul watching those wonderful clouds float by. It makes the hours of the flight, fly by (pun intended.) I take my camera almost every trip and have come away with some incredible images. See a few below.  Most think I am crazy because I root for the plane to get closer to those thunderheads, damn the turbulence, I want to get my picture!  

Prehistoric World from 30,000 feet

The Octopus

Wingtip Almost Touches the Clouds

Can You See it? Near the top of the cloud, just to the right of center there looks like a scratch in the image.  It is actually another airliner.  So just imagine the immense scale of that cloud!

So forgive the long download time.  I am going to let my cloud images do the talking for me.  After an hour + of trying to whittle the number of images down I still have too many images in this post .  If you like the images with clouds you may want to check out my friend Matt Granz work http://avax.news/charming/Storm_Clouds_by_Photographer_Matt_Granz.html.  He has gone head over heels for Storm chasing and a lot fo his images are breathtaking!

So sit back and enjoy the clouds!

Reflections

Tenaya Lake, Yosemite - Stormy Above, Calm Below

Venice Beach California - Looking into a Mirror

Horse Shoe Lake Mammoth Lakes, Ca - Big Sky

Stormy 

Shrouded Half Dome Yosemite, Ca 

Stormy North Lake - Bishop Ca

Crowley Lake, Mammoth Lakes, Ca - Sunset was competing with the 4th of July Fireworks

Clearing Storm over the Minaretes, Mammoth Lakes, Ca

Tuscany, Italy - Clouds Add Spice Everywhere in the World

El Matador State Beach, Ca - God Painting His Canvas with Color

Sunrise over Mono Lake, Ca - Trail to Parker Lake

Sunset Mammoth Lakes, Ca - This is under 10 feet of snow right now!

Have I convinced you? Don't landscape images look better with a touch of photogrpaher's spice?

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Bob Kent Bob Kent

Unbelievable - Time again for Fall Colors

Tips for your hunt for Fall Colors in the Eastern Sierra

Side Road on the way to South Lake

 

The forecast for the inland valleys in Southern California this past weekend is for 105! With that in mind it seems unbelievable that already Fall Colors season in the Eastern Sierra. Some web sites are already locations like Sabrina Campground and Rock Creek are at their peak!

For those looking to go to the Sierra to view the Fall Colors here are a list of links that will help you plan your hunt. I need to give credit to Sandy Steinman and her blog for the list of resources!

Be Sure To Look Down When Photographing Fall Colors

Places to See Fall Colors

South of Mammoth

  • Hwy. 168 through Bishop Creek Canyon, Aspendell, Lake Sabrina, North Lake, and South Lake - Awesome canyon and creek side shots everywhere.  Colors will peak at different altitudes at different times. - Along the road
  • Convict Lake - Along the road
  • McGee Canyon - Short hike
  • Rock Creek - Along the road and moderate hike

North of Mammoth

  • June Lakes Loop - Along the road
  • Lundy Lake - Along the road and hike
  • Parker Lake - Moderate Hike
  • Conway Summit - Along freeway 
  • Dunderberg Road - Along the road dirt graded road

Resources for Determining Where the Color Is

Fall Colors are very finicky and can change in an instant. One wind or snow storm can change a location dramatically in less than a day. To see the best colors you have to be flexible and have up to date information. Luckily, there are dedicated Fall Color fans who track and post information on a regular basis. Here are some of the better sources of information:

Get Off the Beaten Path and Away From the Crowds!

Photographing Fall Colors

For the first several years I struggled to get images of fall colors that I liked. So I did my homework and my images improved. Here are links to some great photographic tips to get the best image of your fall color images. I especially like Steve Siren's recommendations

Good luck on your adventures hunting the this year's Fall Colors. Just a reminder during the fall season there are a lot of folks, photographers and non-photographers, enjoying the spectacular fall colors. Be mindful you are not alone and show courtesy for others.

If you see someone setting up for an image up the road from you give them some time to capture their image.

If you are at an iconic spot where lot's of people want to take a photograph. Take yours and move on so others can too.

The Sierra are huge and there are plenty of beautiful scenes and plenty of room for everyone.

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Bob Kent Bob Kent

Another Bucket List Checked Off – Getting to a Sierra Pass

Hiking Mono Pass Yosemite is a great hike full of wonderful views of granite peaks and alpine meadows.  It has a hidden gift in being able to see Mono Lake 4,000 feet below you!

Trail Head

Trail Head

Working to complete my 54 for Dave Quest I have done more hikes this summer than ever before. I came to realize though I had yet to hike to a mountain pass, ever. I had come close.  Once on the McGee Creek trail but was stopped by snow.  Another time on the Crystal Lake hike but was going to Crystal Lake not the pass.  So I had never actually stood on top of a Sierra mountain pass. It became a bucket list item! So I started looking for a day hike that got me to a pass.

Mono Pass in Yosemite seemed to fit the bill. It was in the Yosemite high country in which I love hiking in. It had a reasonable difficulty level at eight miles in length (round trip) and 900 feet of altitude gain it figured it would be pleasant hike.

The description of the hike on the Yosemite Hikes web page seemed to good to be true to get to a pass.  “There are only a few stretches where the incline is steep enough to make you notice you're climbing.” Well it was to good to be true as one of those “stretches” was as over a mile and had a pretty steep grade.

Even with the unexpected climb I really enjoyed this hike. While it did not have a big lake at the end like some hikes do; the high country meadows and the view down Bloody Canyon to Mono Lake more than made up for it.

Mono Pass is the type of hike I like because it starts of flat and saves the climb later on once your warmed up. My start time at 6:30 AM was perfect to catch the first morning light on Mammoth Peak

First Light on Mammoth Peak

First Light on Mammoth Peak

Mammoth Peak Overlooking a Meadow

Mammoth Peak Overlooking a Meadow

eing late in the summer most of the creeks were dry. That is good and bad. Bad, because I imagine the streams were knock down gorgeous. Good, because I did not encounter one mosquito on the entire hike. Dana Fork was the primary exception to this water drought and provided a beautiful log water fall right next to the trail.

Dana Fork Waterfall

Dana Fork Waterfall

Looking Up the Trail in the Morning Light

Looking Up the Trail in the Morning Light

There are a couple of decaying mining cabins along the trail. A bit of background on these cabins. The Homer Mining Index, one of the few papers in the area at the time, states that Fuller and Hayt (or Hoyt) discovered antimonial silver in Mono Pass and called their claim the Golden Crown. The Mammoth City Herald, another newspaper of the day predicted that within a year, thousands of miners would be working in Mono Pass at the Golden Crown. The mines never panned out and Mono Pass will be remembered as a way for miners to cross the Sierra to get to Dogtown and Monoville, mines on the eastern Sierra near Mono Lake. The cabins are a quite reminder of the mining history of the area.

First Cabin

First Cabin

Cabin II

Cabin II

There is  long section that climbs up.  After that ordeal you are rewarded as the trail weaves in and out of a stunningly beautiful alpine meadow. There are also beautiful views of Mt Lewis and the Kuna Crest.

Looking Forward to Mt Lewis

Looking Forward to Mt Lewis

Looking Back to the Kuna Crest

Looking Back to the Kuna Crest

Just before the pass is a lovely unnamed pond. A short distance farther up the trail, at the summit, is a small lake appropriately named Summit Lake. This is the end of the Mono Pass trail and the beginning of the Bloody Canyon trail. It is also the edge of Yosemite Park. Up to this point the Mono Pass trail was beautiful forest and meadows. In contrast, Bloody Canyon is barren rock. An incredible difference and a testimonial to the impact the Sierra has on the weather and the land around it.

Unnamed Pond

Unnamed Pond

Unnamed Pond

Unnamed Pond

Other Places to Go!

Other Places to Go!

Mono Pass and Summit Lake

Mono Pass and Summit Lake

I continued for a for just over a quarter of a mile down the Bloody Canyon trail toward Upper Sardine Lake to get a scenic look of Mono Lake 4,000 feet below. The view is awesome and one of the reasons I did this hike!

Bloody Canyon with Mono Lake Below

Bloody Canyon with Mono Lake Below

This was a wonderful hike with great views of the Yosemite high country, granite peaks like Mammoth and Mt. Lewis, and Mono Lake. I will definitely do it again and maybe finish at Spillway Lake.

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