Surreal Sunrise is a photograph by Renee Sullivan which was uploaded on January 5th, 2016.
Surreal Sunrise
This is Mono Lake, California. As seems to often happen with me, I came to know about Mono Lake purely by chance. We were driving to Yosemite and... more
Title
Surreal Sunrise
Artist
Renee Sullivan
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
This is Mono Lake, California. As seems to often happen with me, I came to know about Mono Lake purely by chance. We were driving to Yosemite and wanted to stay outside the park one night to enter first thing in the morning. The closest town to the east entrance of the park is called Lee Vining. We checked into our hotel and saw a photo of some surreal formations in a lake. Kevin asked the desk clerk what it was all about and she said "oh, those are the tufas". And so we learned about Mono Lake (just a few miles from Lee Vining) and its hauntingly beautiful tufa formations.
We went down to the lake for sunset that evening, and I also got up before dawn the next day and went to watch the sunrise - which is when I got this shot.
Tufa is essentially common limestone. What is uncommon about this limestone is the way it forms. Typically, underwater springs rich in calcium mix with lakewater rich in carbonates (the stuff in baking soda). As the calcium comes in contact with carbonates in the lake, a chemical reaction occurs resulting in calcium carbonate--limestone. The calcium carbonate precipitates around the spring, and over the course of decades to centuries, a tufa tower will grow. Tufa towers grow exclusively underwater, and some grow to heights of over 30 feet. The reason visitors see so much tufa around Mono Lake today is because the lake level fell dramatically after water diversions began in 1941.
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January 5th, 2016
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Viewed 1,046 Times - Last Visitor from Seattle, WA on 03/06/2024 at 11:07 AM
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Comments (48)
Spencer McDonald
Most excellent capture. I really like those sunrise colors over Mono Lake. I have to get to this spot myself. Nicely done.
Allan Van Gasbeck
Congratulations! Your outstanding artwork has been chosen as a FEATURE in the “Shadows Silhouettes and Reflections” group on Fine Art America — You are invited to post your featured image to the featured image discussion thread as a permanent place to continue to get exposure even after the image is no longer on the Home Page.
Rahdne Zola
A striking yet serene image with a beautiful color palette and excellent contrast. Love it and Tweeted!
Jean Bernard Roussilhe
Wonderful capture! You can follow me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/imagelys.
Lisa Phillips
Congratulations, your superb image has featured under the "Artists of the Week" section on the homepage of group "Sky and or Clouds". 2/29/16 http://fineartamerica.com/groups/sky-and-or-clouds.html