Sunbeams over Negit Island, Mono Lake, California. 91mm, 1/500 sec. at f/16, ISO 100.
Claudia and I recently returned from our annual workshop in the Yosemite high country. It was super fun, as usual, with a great group, and lots of interesting weather and clouds.
Before and during the workshop I photographed several sunrises and sunsets at Mono Lake. One of the things I love about Mono Lake is that it’s a great setting for light shows created by passing weather – clouds, virga, sunbeams, rainbows, and even lightning. The lake’s expanse allows you to include lots of sky, and capture some of that sky reflected in the water.
A friend said to me recently that he’d never seen another lake as colorful as Mono Lake. I had never thought of that before, but it stuck with me. There may be other lakes as colorful, but Mono Lake is the most colorful body of water I’ve spent time around. Maybe that’s because Mono Lake is wide open, with no trees around it, so it reflects the colors of the sky more than most lakes.
And because Mono Lake is so open, it’s rare for the lake surface to be perfectly smooth, even when winds are calm. If you get a little elevation above the lake surface you can often see beautiful patterns where calm and ruffled patches of water intersect.
In those situations, the shutter speed can make a big difference in the water’s appearance. Long exposures soften and smooth the textures, while short exposures may preserve the patterns better. I wrote a post recently about how these shutter speed choices affect ocean scenes, but the same principles apply to lakes as well.
Here are a few images from those sunrises and sunsets at Mono Lake, with varying light, clouds, colors, and patterns in the water.
— Michael Frye
Tufa formations at sunrise, Mono Lake, California. This was a 30-second exposure, but I didn’t need a neutral-density filter, since it was 50 minutes before sunrise and the light was very dim. 168mm, 30 seconds at f/11, ISO 200.
Clouds and reflections at sunrise, Mono Lake, California. This was a 20-second exposure, and I did use an neutral-density filter – maybe seven stops. 128mm, 20 seconds at f/16, ISO 100.
Sunrise, Mono Lake, California. 135mm, f/16, ISO 100, five bracketed exposures blended with Lightroom’s HDR Merge and Photoshop.
Clouds and sunbeams, Mono Lake, California. 44mm, f/16, ISO 100, five bracketed exposures blended with Lightroom’s HDR Merge.
Moon and clouds above Mono Lake, California. 73mm, 1/125 sec. at f/8, ISO 500.
Related Posts: Shutter Speeds and Mood; Mono Lake
Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He lives near Yosemite National Park in California, but travels extensively to photograph natural landscapes in the American West and throughout the world.
Michael uses light, weather, and design to make photographs that capture the mood of the landscape, and convey the beauty, power, and mystery of nature. His work has received numerous awards, and appeared in publications around the world. He’s the author and/or principal photographer of several books, including Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters, and The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite.
Michael loves to share his knowledge of photography through articles, books, workshops, online courses, and his blog. He’s taught over 200 workshops focused on landscape photography, night photography, digital image processing, and printing.
These are beautiful images Michael. I sure do love Mono Lake.
Thanks Ted – me too! It’s a great place.
I was staying in Lundy Canyon last week, and it was my intention to wake up early, drive to the lake, camera and tripod in hand to photograph the lake in early morning light.
However my body did not want to cooperate with early morning reveille calls, so I slumbered away. Now I know what I missed…your photographs are wonderful!
“Dedication”…an important ingredient for successful landscape photography!
Thank you Michael for sharing!
Well, I’ve experienced that early-morning inertia (or lack thereof) many times. It’s not so much dedication that gets me out of bed as fear of missing out. I know I’ll regret it if miss a great sunrise!
Wonderful images! I also slumbered, having stopped at Mammoth on my way to Tuolumne Meadows last week, and didn’t get to Mono til after sunrise. But T Meadows had some excellent conditions, with PM thunderstorms that dissipated in the early evenings for some great sunsets, and lots of wildflowers.
Michael K.:
I also stopped in Tuolumne Meadows on the drive back to the Bay Area. I was expecting it to be crowded, but was somewhat surprised by the lack of crowds! (I don’t know if it had something to do with the entry permit system?)
Also I haven’t been to the Meadows since they paved over the road shoulders, and made it look like a city street with all that concrete. I am sure it will help the meadows from further damage…but it does not have a wilderness vibe to it!
The upshot was the Meadows were so beautiful, and I wanted to stay longer as the puffy clouds cast crepuscular beams on the landscape…so gorgeous!
Greg: The fact that the main campground is closed for renovation, as well as the general store, makes it less crowded, especially in the evening.
Michael K.
Ahhh…so that’s the reason.
Thanks for that info!
Beautiful photographs, as always!
Thanks so much Bill!