Landscape Photography
of James L. Snyder

Ice Plant Cliffs at Sunset
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Ice Plant Cliffs at Sunset
Linhof Master Technika 2000 camera, 65mm Schneider Super-Angulon f/8 lens, center filter, Fujicolor Pro 160S film, 55 megapixels
All Images ©Copyright 2010 James L. Snyder. All Rights Reserved

Ice Plant Cliffs at Sunset

Garrapata State Park, Monterey County, CA, 5/12/2007

After exploring Carmel Valley this beautiful spring day, a friend and I drove south along Cabrillo Highway (CA 1) to these chaparral covered sandstone cliffs in Garrapata State Park, at the northern end of the rugged Big Sur coast of California. With the sun hidden behind clouds to the west, I positioned my camera just above the colorful ice plant and brush, with a super-wide-angle lens aimed north. When the sun emerged just before setting, I made this exposure. The yellow daisies are mock heather or goldenbush (Ericameria ericoides), and the red and orange plants are ice plant (Carpobrotus edulis). I've always loved how the succulent leaves of the ice plant along the coast change color. In mild conditions they're green, but in the harsh marine climate they turn yellow, orange, deep red, and even purple! Ice plant is native to South Africa. In California - which has a similar climate - ice plant is actually an invasive species. Despite its beauty it poses a serious ecological problem, lowers biodiversity, and competes directly with several endangered plant species for nutrients, water, light, and space.

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