In the Moment:
Michael Frye's Landscape Photography Blog

Wildflower Season is Coming!

Wildflowers in the Temblor Range, Spring 2010
Wildflowers in the Temblor Range, Spring 2010

 

It’s been a strange winter in California. November and December were exceptionally wet, January and early February were almost completely dry, then we finally got some rain again in late February and the beginning of March. Now the weather has turned warm and dry once more, bringing thoughts of spring, and wildflowers.

Most of the best wildflower areas in Southern California received above average rainfall, as you can see from this NOAA map. But that six-week dry spell at the beginning of the year may have thrown many of the plants off their rhythm, so it’s difficult to predict what kind of wildflower season it might be. It seems likely that somewhere, sometime, we’ll see some great blooms—but where, and when?

The best I can tell you at this point is to look and listen for the wildflower reports as they come in. While Carol Leigh has discontinued her California Wildflower Hotsheet, she still administers the CalPhoto group on Yahoo, which is always a good resource for wildflower reports. Kahlee Brighton has also started listing flower sightings at the Wildflower Conservancy.

DesertUSA is another valuable site, with wildflower reports for Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas as well as California. Also check out the Theodore Payne Foundation’s Wildflower Hotline. Sandy Steinman has a comprehensive list of links to wildflower reports on his blog.

These links just scratch the surface of what’s available, so if you know of other good sources please feel free to post them in the comments. And of course I’ll keep you up to date on what’s happening around the Yosemite area on this blog. So far, not much!

Lightroom or Photoshop?

Lightroom has grown up. I've made 30x40 inch prints from this image, and only used Photoshop for final print sharpening. Yet Photoshop can still do things that Lightroom can't.
Lightroom has grown up. I’ve made 30×40 inch prints from this image using only Lightroom (except for the final print sharpening). Yet Photoshop can still do things that Lightroom can’t.

 

“Should I get Lightroom or Photoshop?” This is a question I get asked a lot, usually by people who own Photoshop Elements and are thinking of upgrading to either Lightroom or the full version of Photoshop.

Six years ago this was an easy decision, because Lightroom didn’t exist. If you wanted to upgrade from Elements, the full version of Photoshop was the only real choice. But then Apple launched Aperture, Adobe countered with Lightroom, Nikon and Canon upgraded their software, and a host of other companies added even more options.

For now I’m going to keep this simple and just talk about Lightroom and Photoshop—mainly because these are the two most popular choices, but also because they’re the two applications I’m most familiar with, and they’re natural choices for people wishing to graduate from Adobe’s other photo-editing program, Elements.

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Another Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

El Capitan and the Merced River, 8:23 this morning
El Capitan and the Merced River, 8:23 this morning

 

Rain fell on and off since Tuesday night, but skies finally cleared out this afternoon. This morning, before the rain left completely, I got to photograph a beautiful break between squalls, with swirling mist around El Capitan, and sun illuminating the cliff and clouds. It probably looked great from Tunnel View also, and I’d love to see photos from there, or other spots in the valley. If you were in the park this morning, please post links to your photos in the comments!

Another storm is due Sunday and Monday. This next one might be a little colder, so we could see snow at the tail end of it. And forecasters are expecting more wet weather later in the week. This is the best time of year for evening photographs from Tunnel View, when late-day sunlight strikes both El Capitan on the left and Cathedral Rocks on the right. If we’re lucky one of these storms might clear in the afternoon and add some clouds and mist to that balanced light.

Horsetail Fall Featured in Yosemite Nature Notes

Steve Bumgardner did a great job with this latest edition of Yosemite Nature Notes about Horsetail Fall. And it features an interview with yours truly, as well as Ansel Adams’ son Michael, Tony Rowell, and a number of un-named photographers—maybe some of you!

If you haven’t seen Horsetail Fall in person, watching this video is the next best thing. And if you have seen it, this is a great way to show your friends what it’s like.