Fred Weyman Wilderness and Landscape Fine Art Photography
Blue Oak
This stretch of Lake Natoma, a dam on the American River near Folsom, is one of the finest rowing facilities on the west coast. A scenic grove of old oaks is on the bluffs on the southern side of the lake. There were many nice sunsets before this one filled the sky with color for a minute or two. A few weeks later, leaves had sprouted, eliminating the silhouetted branches for ten more months.
Sunrise on the Sierra Nevada
Viewed from the White Mountains, the steep eastern escarpment of Sierra Nevada rises above the Owens Valley. The town of Bishop is the dark patch on the right side of the valley. The left half of the ridge contains 5 peaks over 14,000 feet; Split Mountain, Middle Palisade, Mt. Sill, North Palisade, and Thunderbolt Peak. Mt. Humphreys (13,986 ft.) is the prominent peak behind Bishop.
Octopus Oak
This sprawling oak on Mississippi Bar along the American River Parkway, just east of Sacramento, required more takes than any other of my photos. After I found the right season, time of day, with light cloud cover, no wind, and recent rain, I bought a much sharper camera. Two years later, I got this scene.
Bristlecone Pines, White Mountains
The oldest living organism in the world, a 4,000+ Bristlecone Pine lives at high elevations in the cold, dry climate of the White Mountains. In this photo of the Patriarch Grove at 11,200 ft., the contorted and colorful krumholzed Bristlecones contrast with the stark whiteness of the surrounding dolomitic limestone landscape.
Point Reyes Beach
The 10-mile long Point Reyes Beach is one of the longest straight stretches of beach in California. One winter evening the Weather Channel pointed out the long fetch of wind hitting northern California from the northwest and indicated that there would be large waves. I got up early the next morning, arrived at Point Reyes just before sunrise.
Mono Lake
The relatively easy access to these unique tufa formations on the south shore of Mono Lake has attracted photographers for many years. These structures formed underwater where freshwater springs reacted with the alkaline water in this lake with no outlet. They became exposed and subject to erosion when water diversions to Los Angeles lowered the lake level.
Salt Point
Salt Point State Park, on the California coast about 75 miles north of San Francisco has some of the strangest eroded coastline on the west coast. Even the park's literature says that the formation process of the honey-comb like "tafoni" is not entirely understood but involves the interaction of salt spray, ocean water, and the cement between the sand grains of the rock. About 15 minutes later we were frantically stuffing some of our camping gear cars and fleeing before the fire engulphed the rest of our campsite, but that's a story that won't fit in this paragraph.
Big Sur
During the daytime I scrambled around many headland areas before settling on this composition that had a pleasing distribution of wave washed rocks. I returned in the evening for some 15 to 30 second exposures that turned several waves into indistinct blue and white clouds.
American River 1
This part of the American River between Sacramento and Folsom was heavily dredged for gold near the end of the California gold rush. The foreground small ridges of river rocks are remnants of the dredging process. Because the river changes level throughout the year, I had several potential foregrounds compositions in my mind to select from depending on the flow rate. Over several years I learned to judge a half hour ahead which sunsets would be the most colorful, but it was a still a nice six-mile evening bike ride on the American River Bike Trail even if the camera stayed in the pack.
Grey Pines
When ascending from the oak grasslands at the bottom of California's Central Valley, the first pines encountered are the never straight growing Gray Pines. I had my eye on this stand for a while before I finally got a brilliant red sunset to accentuate the slight redness in the crevasses of the bark. I was fortunate because two weeks later strong winds broke off two of the trunks.
American River 2
This part of the American River between Sacramento and Folsom was heavily dredged for gold near the end of the California gold rush. The foreground riffles were caused by rocks remaining from the dredging process. Because the river changes level throughout the year, I had several potential foregrounds compositions in my mind to select from depending on the flow rate. Over several years, aided by the Weather Channel, I learned to judge a half hour ahead which cloud formations were likely to yield colorful sunsets, but it was a still a nice six-mile evening bike ride on the American River Bike Trail even if the camera stayed in my pack.
