In a former life, I co-led several workshops exploring the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Even before those workshops, I spent time in college (mid-1990s) and during my early landscape photography years (2007-2011) appreciating the diverse beauty. The variety of scenery along this stretch of highway 395 includes massive craggy mountains, high alpine lakes, quaking aspen groves, babbling brooks, ancient pine trees, and high desert brush along the Owens River. Originally, I intended to reacquaint myself with this region in 2025 in an effort to resurrect a workshop in 2026 to mark the ten year anniversary of the last one I led there. But 2025 timing didn’t work out so well. This year’s timing was considerably worse, but I made it happen anyway. Here’s to perseverance.
Monday & Tuesday, October 5-6: Leaving Seattle late morning, I made it to the northeastern part of California for my first of eleven straight nights in my new(ish) truck and camper. With gas prices these days, it’s nice to find free places to stay which I was able to accomplish the entire time. Estimated trip costs included over $1000 in fuel but thankfully $0 in lodging. While there was no time for photography on Monday, an early start on Tuesday the 6th had me arriving in the Mono basin just in time for some roadside photo ops before sunset. I isolated aspen groves in the valley below using a strong telephoto lens (400-500mm range). Catching the last rays of light on select trees made choosing this first image an obvious choice. After sunset, I settled into camp with a stunning view of Mono Lake and the Sierra Nevada range. I photographed the milky way and merged it with a nearby landscape captured the following morning keeping the alignment honest.
Wednesday, October 8: There’s something special about waking up at 7500′ with a stellar view overlooking Mono Lake over a thousand feet below and having the place all to yourself. I could have spent the entire day just taking in the view. But since it was the first full day of scouting, I chased down my instant oats breakfast with some camp coffee and set off to explore Virginia Lakes and Lundy Canyon. The road to Virginia Lakes offered some of the best views with amazing morning back lit aspens. I should note, while I have been using the Sony system for over a decade, I chose to bring a minimal Canon R5 II setup. I have been inspired by images of in-camera-multiple exposure, a feature Sony lacks, and I wanted to experiment. One of the perks of working weekends at Kenmore Camera is that I have access to all the latest gear. When you’ve been photographing for over three decades, trying new styles and approaches to seeing the world flexes the ol’ creative juices. This image was a mix of two panning ICMs set to lighten blend mode. The patchwork colors gave me a mini-motivational push to keep trying throughout the trip.
For Wednesday’s sunset and astrophotography session, I ventured to south tufa along the shores of Mono Lake. Inspired by the new-to-me multiple exposure mode, I played with merging water patterns of sunset light. Play time in photography is important as it opens up parts of my brain that are in stark contrast to methodically approach of the next image here of the milky way. Instead of following predefined steps to get to an expected end result, techniques like ICM and ME (multiple exposure) offer an opportunity to experiment. After my astro session, I impulsively drove south to be in position for a sunrise over the Hot Creek geothermal area near Mammoth.
Thursday, October 8: I camped within a short walk of my sunrise location. Gotta love that. Post sunrise, I found an empty hot spring for a little morning dip. Scouting continued at Convict Lake and McGee Creek Canyon. Plenty of beauty, but no photos were made. Eventually, I wound up along Bishop Creek Canyon where some stunning groves of aspens held my attention for much of the afternoon. Patchy clouds kept the light interesting and the wall of color got lit in new and interesting ways. Once the sun crested the ridge behind me, it was time to explore Lake Sabrina for a quick drone session and then a lakeshore sunset.
Friday, October 9th: No trip is complete without a stop at North Lake. An icon in the Bishop area, I almost had the place to myself. Alas, I did need to clone a solitary cell phone photographer out of the larger scene below. Past peak color, no clouds, no snow on the peaks, but still a serene moment and rare to get a mostly still lake (which didn’t last long). Once the sun was up, I stuck around for some telephoto water pattern images and enjoyed letting my mind and eyes get lost in the endless aquatic undulations.
Friday night found me in the White Mountains to pay a visit with the ancient bristlecone pines. Incoming weather meant windier, colder, and cloudier conditions in the immediate future and at over 11,000 feet elevation, I wanted to take advantage of the current climate…not freezing cold and windy!. Maybe it was the elevation, but I was starting to feel the need for some rest. So while I enjoyed exploring the area, I didn’t venture too far off the beaten path and decided I wouldn’t stick around for a session under the stars. Still, the pines always deliver with their stark shapes and patterns. Incoming clouds and well after sunset, I was dragging my shutter out to about three minutes.
Saturday & Sunday, October 10-11: Despite my fatigue, I left the White Mountains and made the long drive in the dark all the way to Lone Pine and into the Alabama Hills. I convinced myself the lower elevation might fare better in case the incoming storm actually brought snow (spoiler alert, it did not). Since my last visit, the BLM has implemented camping permits due to increased popularity. They have designated camp sites now as well. Saturday morning, I slept in and wound up helping someone whose vintage Jeep failed to start up. A trip into town offered just the excuse I needed to get a proper coffee shop drink before heading back into the hills until Monday morning. A storm did pass through and Saturday’s sunset was spectacular. I enjoyed revisiting some of locations I made photos back in the early years of my landscape photography journey and catching my breath for a couple days.
Monday through Wednesday, October 12-14: I said my farewell to the Alabama Hills and headed north to Bishop and some more exploring. I revisited my favorite aspens along Bishop Creek Canyon and created an in-camera ICM multiple exposure I am pretty fond of. Later that afternoon, I stumbled upon some beautiful desert brush with the Sierra Nevada peaks in full view. I found the perfect spot for camp nestled amongst the Buttermilks. I even created an image from my camp chair while enjoying an adult beverage. A former co-worker at the camera shop always used to respond to my “how’s it going” with “livin’ the dream!” Definitely was feeling that here. More clouds showed up Tuesday night, obscuring the view, and on my final morning here, I raced down to Big Pine as my camp was socked in worse than the night before. Despite the late start and nearly 40 minute drive, I managed some decent light before the clouds fully cleared.
Wednesday Night & Thursday Morning, October 14-15: Alas, the last full day of the trip was here. I settled in at the same campsite overlooking the Mono basin from earlier in the trip, creating a nice bookend to the experience. I was reminded of the (almost) forgotten details in some of the desert plants here, especially the Wright’s buckwheat. I pulled out my macro lens for the first time and found a nice arrangement under the growing twilight. The next morning, I set up on a composition I found the night before and shot a bunch of images, but the light never cooperated. Over my shoulder, something caught my eye as the sun crested the horizon. Strips of golden light meandered through the landscape and I quickly found a composition. On my way back to camp, I carved out some time for one more detail shot of buckwheat before my final camp coffee and breakfast.
If you would like to join me in 2027, please check out my Eastern Sierra workshop page.
Best,
Jim Patterson
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