Eastern Sierras

 

Whenever I think of the Eastern Sierras one of the first images that comes to mind is Mono Lake.  I've. known this lake since I was 4 years old and I can remember driving by it on highway 395 with the water very near the road.  It has lost a lot of water since then (1946-47) but it retains its beauty.  This image was taken in February when the Milky Way is low in the horizon in the early morning.  You may already know it is best to shoot the stars in the darkest hours and that would be after Astronomical Twilight ends at night and before it begins again in the morning.  It goes like this:  in the morning first there is Astronomical Twilight when the dimmest light begins(about 30 min), then Nautical Twilight (another 30 min) then Civil twilight followed by sunrise. The Golden Hour is just before and after sunrise.  This image was taken in the last moments of darkness just as Astronomical Twilight was beginning.  You can see the beginning of morning light on the horizon.  The month of February is a really fun time to shoot because you can get this long expanse of the Milky Way over the horizon.

After shooting the Milky Way there is a bout an hour wait for sunrise to begin showing its colors. I was so happy to see these clouds which were not present when I was shooting the Milky Way.  What a difference a hour can make at high elevations.

Heading south from LeVining to Bishop, the Owens River meanders through a valley north of town.  A popular fishing river you are sure to find campers and fisher persons very near.

South of Bishop the Sierras continue to display their magnificence but the foreground changes dramatically.  Here you see very dark lava boulders contrasted with the sage brush and the background Sierras.  There is seemingly no end to the variety of beauty this part of California.