Upper Yosemite Falls, moonbow, and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California, April 24, 2021

 Bob was looking through his photos from April 24, 2021 and realized that he captured a moonbow in this photo.  He was trying to capture a moonbow from this perspective, but thought that clouds from a passing storm wouldn't allow enough moonlight through to create a moonbow or that the angle from this perspective was wrong for seeing one.  See our other postings on moonbows for a description of what they are.

In this photo, which he shot from the Yosemite Falls Trail, is Upper Yosemite Falls, the moonbow hovering over the Middle Cascade, and Half Dome.

Moonbow in Upper Yosemite Falls as seen from Glacier Point, Yosemite National Park

 This is a moonbow shot that Bob took on the night of May 24, 2021 from Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park.  Looking like some kind of frozen confection, Upper Yosemite Falls shows a moonbow in its mist.  Focusing in the dark is difficult, so Bob didn't get the sharpest focus on this shot, but it showed the most color of all the photos he took that night.

According to Brian Hawkins of Yosemite Moonbow Predicitions (yosemitemoonbow.com) the appearance of the moonbow in Yosemite Falls as seen from Glacier Point only happens for about 15 minutes and is a broader arc thanks to the fact that you're viewing it from so much farther away than the other vantage points that he does predictions for.

The park was conducting prescribed burns the week Bob was there and Yosemite Valley and Half Dome were almost completely obscured by the smoke from Glacier Point, but, fortunately for him, the smoke cleared out just in time for the predicted appearance of the moonbow.

See our previous post for more information about moon bows.

Oh yeah, and while Bob was at Glacier Point, he met Brian Hawkins who predicts the occurrence of moon bows in Yosemite Falls from various vantage points on his website Yosemite Moonbow Predictions (yosemitemoonbow.com).

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Moonbow in Lower Yosemite Falls and Big Dipper, Yosemite National Park, May 25, 2021

 

This is a photo of a moonbow, or lunar rainbow, in the mist of Lower Yosemite Falls in Yosemite National Park.  Bob took this shot on the night of May 25th, 2021.  The park was conducting prescribed burns in Yosemite Valley, so he was concerned that the smoke would diminish the moonlight enough that the moonbow wouldn't show up.  Fortunately the smoke dispersed enough that it didn't interfere.   In fact, Bob thinks this was one of the best moon bows he's ever seen, because it persisted through almost the entire predicted window and was a strong and, for the most part, broad arc of light.  In our previous visits to see the moonbow in Lower Yosemite Falls, the moonbow has appeared and disappeared depending on which way the wind was blowing the mist.

Moonbows occur when moonlight strikes the mist of a waterfall or misty rain during a storm at a 42 degree angle from the observer and creates a rainbow just like sunlight can do.  The difference is moonlight is much dimmer and is only bright enough two days before, the night of, and two days after the full moon to create a moonbow.  Also, because moonlight is so much dimmer, the colors of the rainbow don't usually show up to the naked eye.  The human eye sees color with retinal cells called cones, which require a brighter light intensity than the moon provides, in order to be stimulated enough for you to perceive color.  To the naked eye, the moonbow appears as a ghostly white arc of light.  The colors do show up in photos thanks to the longer exposures that cameras provide.

The Big Dipper and other stars are visible in the sky above Lower Yosemite Falls.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Pacific Dogwood blossom over a lichen-encrusted granite boulder in Yosemite National Park

 Pacific dogwoods (Cornus nuttallii) bloom in Yosemite Valley in April and May.  The actual flowers are in a tight cluster forming almost a dome-like structure in the middle of the "flower," while the showier part of the blossoms are actually bracts that attach under the flower cluster.

This photo is from April 27, 2021.  Because this was a dry year, the dogwood bloom seemed to occur earlier than normal.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Upper Yosemite Falls and Half Dome by moonlight, Yosemite National Park, California

Bob took this photo after hiking part way up Yosemite Falls Trail after dark the night of April 23 going to the 24th 2021.  He was looking for this perspective where he could get the Upper Yosemite Falls and Half Dome in the same shot, all lit up by moonlight.  The 20-second exposure left both the waterfall and the clouds looking fuzzy.  This photo was taken at 1:40 AM, a few days before the full moon.

The Yosemite Falls Trail is a strenuous and rocky rough trail that hikers can take to visit the brink of Yosemite Falls.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Pacific Dogwood blossom and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California

 Bob created this postcard from two photographs.  One was with the dogwood blossom in focus and the other was with Half Dome in focus.  We combined the two to make this image and then added the text.  Other than the text, this is how Bob saw this image.  He was standing on the edge of Ahwanhee Meadow next to cabins and bent a branch with this dogwood blossom at the end into the frame.

Pacific dogwoods (Cornus nuttallii) bloom in Yosemite Valley in April and May.  The actual flowers are in a tight cluster forming almost a dome-like structure in the middle of the "flower," while the showier part of the blossoms are actually bracts that attach under the flower cluster.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Burney Falls, after midnight, light painting

 

Burney Falls is a waterfall famous for its unique geology. The stream, Burney Creek, flows over the brink after being split into two streams that fall to the pool below. The rest of the cliff face has springs gushing from it that make it look like a very wide waterfall. The estimated amount of water flowing from this cliff is 100 million gallons per day. We visited McArthur-Burney Falls State Park during spring break 2021. 

In a way, Burney Falls is challenging to photograph in that it is north-facing and doesn't receive direct sunlight. We managed to get a better image of the falls than usual by taking this picture after midnight and using a flashlight combined with a long exposure time to light the scene in a way that couldn't happen during the daytime. This image was actually taken around 12:43am with a 30-second exposure, ISO 800, f5.6, and a focal length of 18mm. It needed a wide-angle setting on the lens to get all of the falls in the frame, plus we wanted to be physically closer so the flashlight could be more effective. This process of using a flashlight (or torch as the British call it) to light the scene is called light painting. It appears to bring out the colors of the ferns better than a daytime photo when the cliff is in shadow.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Mount Lassen and our tent by moonlight

 We did an overnight ski camping trip in Lassen Volcanic National Park in March 2021 during Rick's spring break.  After skiing in about 8 miles along the Lassen Park Road, we skied off the road's course and set up our camp at this spot overlooking the frozen-over Lake Helen and Mount Lassen.  During the night we got up and realized that the moon was up and illuminating the scene around us.  We didn't bring tripods with us, so Bob had to take this photo by propping up his camera with some of our camp gear.  Because this was a 30 second exposure, he couldn't take it by hand holding the camera.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

McArthur-Burney Falls State Park, Bob contemplating the flame

 

Bob decided to have a campfire on our spring break trip. We normally don't bother getting a fire going because we're usually out hiking or working on night photography and don't want to be tied to the responsibility. We were camped at the Rim Campground in McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, in California.

Taken with a Motorola z4, 1/10sec, f1.7, 4.7mm, ISO 2480, Camera app using Night Vision feature. March 29, 2021, 9:35 pm

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

McArthur Burney Falls and double rainbow

The centrerpiece of McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park in Northern California is Burney Falls.  The two main streams you see in the center of the photo is from Burney Creek, while the rest of the waterfalls you see here are from springs emerging from the cliff face.  Some 100 million gallons of water flow from this waterfall every day.  It creates quite a spectacle.

Since this cliff face is pretty much north-facing, it almost never gets direct sunlight, but the mist from the waterfall can catch the rays and produce rainbows during special times of the day.  Here Bob was able to capture a double rainbow in the mist.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Chapel of the Transfiguration and Grand Teton, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming

 The Chapel of the Transfiguration is in Moose Village at the southern entrance to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.  For this photo, Bob lined up the cross on the top of the church with the peak of Grand Teton.  The Chapel was built as a log cabin structure in 1925 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Teton panorama - Cathedral Group to Mount Moran

 During a visit to Grand Teton National Park in 2016, we stopped along the Teton Park Road to enjoy this view of the Teton Range.  This is a panorama of six images stitched together to show the range from the Cathedral Group on the left (Grand Teton, Mount Owen, and Teewinot) to Mount Moran on the right.

Click on the image to see the whole panorama.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Rick Robinson, Indian Rock Arch, and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park

 

Yosemite isn't known for its natural rock spans, but it does have a few.  This is Indian Rock, a granite flake of an arch, reached by a side trail from the trail that goes to North Dome starting from the Tioga Pass Road.  The iconic Half Dome is visible from beneath the arch from this position.  Rick's presence in the photo gives you an idea of the size of the arch.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.