Stormy afternoon at Tunnel View, Yosemite NP, California

The weather is upside down here in central California. Our wettest season, winter, was exceptionally dry. But now that spring has arrived the storms have returned. We’ll take it – we need the rain, and, as the saying goes, it’s better late than never.

And just to make things more interesting, over the last few days unstable air has triggered numerous thunderstorms, with lots of lightning and thunder. That’s quite unusual for this part of the world.

Thunderstorms can create wonderfully photogenic atmospheric conditions, and I’ve been alert for any opportunities that might arise. On Friday afternoon radar images showed a broad line of thunderstorms approaching Yosemite, so Claudia and I made a spur-of-the-moment trip up to Yosemite Valley.

I was hoping to see dappled light, or maybe even a rainbow as the sun popped out between showers. Instead, one thunderstorm followed another, with only slight breaks in between. At one point, while we were waiting out a rain shower in our vehicle at Tunnel View, spots of sunlight started to hit the valley, and I saw a faint rainbow starting to form, so I grabbed my camera and rushed out. But the light faded almost immediately.

Landscape photography often requires letting go of expectations, and adapting to the conditions in front of you. Even without sunlight, the rain created wonderfully moody, misty scenes in Yosemite Valley. So I pivoted, visualizing how these scenes would look in black and white, and concentrating on capturing moments when the mist and clouds were particularly interesting – and moody.

The challenge was keeping ourselves and our cameras dry. We waited out the worst of the deluges in our vehicle, venturing out when the rain let up a bit. I kept my camera covered with a plastic rain sleeve, and used a lens hood to help keep raindrops off the front of the lens.

Luckily the wind was at our backs, so that helped. I don’t mind photographing in the rain as long as the wind isn’t blowing water onto the front of my lens. And even if the wind is in my face I can just keep wiping the lens clear. That’s annoying, but worth the trouble for special situations. I’ve photographed in the rain many times, and made some of my favorite images that way.

So while we didn’t get the light we were hoping for on Friday, Claudia and I had a lot of fun photographing the mist and clouds. It’s always a treat to see Yosemite Valley in stormy weather.

— Michael Frye

P.S. Circle of Light Update

A project that Claudia and the Circle of Light group have been quietly working on for a long time is almost ready to share with the world.

The Nature of Place: Personal Narratives in Landscape Photography is a new collaborative ebook from Circle of Light — six women photographers (Anna Morgan, Charlotte Gibb, Jennifer Renwick, Michele Sons, Sarah Marino, and my wife, Claudia Welsh) who came together around a shared belief that landscape photography can be something more personal, more meaningful than what we typically see. The ebook launches officially on Earth Day, April 22nd. But they’re offering a special pre-launch price for readers of this blog.

Starting tomorrow, you can get your copy for just $25 – that’s $14 off the regular price of $39. I’ll send out another post tomorrow with the discount code, so look for that! This pre-launch price is available through April 21st only. On launch day, the price moves to $29.

If you’ve ever felt a deep pull toward a particular place — if you’ve wondered how to bring more of yourself into your photography — this book was written for you.

More photographs from Friday afternoon:

Trees, mist, and Bridalveil Fall, Yosemite NP, California

Cathedral Rocks and Bridalveil Fall through rain and mist, Yosemite NP, California

Related Posts: Coming Home to Yosemite; Monsoon Season in Yosemite

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, including the North American Nature Photography Association’s 2023 award for Fine Art in Nature Photography. Michael’s photographs have appeared in publications around the world, and 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.