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.

Bob, Photographer at Work Doing Night Photography Under the Big Dipper

 Here's Bob working to get night-time photography shots in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada. Rick noticed the Big Dipper over his head and asked him to pose for this shot. It was accomplished by making a long exposure to get the stars and briefly flashing a flashlight on Bob's position. We were camped at the Arch Rock Campground.

Focal length 25.0 mm, ISO 1600, shutter speed 1 second, f8

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

The real Zabriskie Point, a pet peeve

It's a pet peeve of ours that we often see photos of the Zabriskie Badlands and Manly Beacon labeled as Zabriskie Point, which is the viewpoint that the photographer is standing on, not what the viewer is seeing in the photo.  In a way, we can understand why it happens.  You look out across the maze of ridges and gullies of these badlands with no apparent named peak and it can be hard to name what you're seeing.  Also, the general store in Furnace Creek sells souvenirs with images of Manly Beacon on them and they're labeled "Zabriskie Point," so, again, it's understandable.

But consider this.  As a photographer, would you go to Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park, take a photo of Half Dome and label that photo "Glacier Point."  You would likely name it Half Dome after the distinctive feature in the picture.  The Zabriskie Badlands have a distinctive feature, though admittedly not as distinctive as Half Dome, and it's Manly Beacon.  But if your photo from Zabriskie Point doesn't include Manly Beacon, then it's probably of Gower Gulch and the Zabriskie Badlands and should say so.

The above two photos show the actual Zabriskie Point.  Zabriskie Point is in the upper left atop a steeply sloped hill.  And then Gower Gulch and part of the Zabriskie Badlands make up the rest of the photos.

The panorama below is of the Zabriskie Badlands taken from Zabriskie Point.

 The final photo is a 30 second nighttime exposure showing Manly Beacon, the only widely-known named feature in the Zabriskie Badlands.  Many photos labeled Zabriskie Point feature Manly Beacon, named after William Manly, an early Death Valley guide.  This feature is the high point just left of center.

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