in the Sierra Nevadas just outside of Yosemite National Park
I was born & raised in California and spent a lot of time running around Yosemite & hiking up those cliffs like Half Dome and the top of Yosemite Falls. Aside from tornadoes (rare in CA) here is some weather I have found in areas all over northern California that are gems for photographers:
*Lunar rainbow forms at base of Yosemite Falls in the wee hours of the night...but only in May when the Moon is full and the falls are at their fullest from spring runoff. During this time it is worth a hike at 2am to the bridge at the base of the falls to check this out.
*Lightning does occur with orographically-enhanced summer thunderstorms in the High Sierra. You might be able to find a ranger's station or overlook and get some shots. When I was a kid, my dad used to run up to lookout towers above Lake Tahoe, and has some lightning shots from there. The thunder was amazing up there. If I didn't live in Arizona, that is where I would go to find lightning in California, the High Sierra in summer.
*Cloud caps and Kelvin-Helmholtz waves seen clearly at high elevations especially above the treeline are really cool to photograph.
*The Lost Coast of California (draw a line along the shore from Point Arena north of San Fran to Crescent City at the Oregon border) offers spectacular Pacific waves crashing on the high cliffs and jagged headlands. Visit on a stormy day with a winter gale coming through, Nov-Jan, and you will have a wild sea. Far out on the headland in the fishing village of Point Arena there is also a very pictureque lighthouse. Dress very warmly.
*The massive 350-400 ft tall redwood trees of the North Coast and Calaveras Big Trees are awesome with gentle morning light or mist and fog (they are awesome anyway).
*Napa Valley in a spring rain with yellow mustard flowers all over the vineyards or Napa in the fall during the crush when there is dew and frost on ruddy Cabernet leaves, blackish purple grapes and Spanish architecture. I can't say enough about it.
*Death Valley - wind erosion evidence in the rocks, cliffs and dunes. This is massive area, and could take days to explore. Population is extremely sparse. Provisions are required.
*Dawn with snow along highway 395 looking up at Mt. Whitney from the town of Lone Pine. Mt. Whitney is the tallest peak in the lower 48, at 14+
*Upslope fog rolling in past the Golden Gate bridge and into cliffside towns like Sausalito and Tiburon
*Wildfires in the Sierra
*Huge Valley oaks studding rolling hills with mist and fog at the foothill levels. In some areas the oaks have Spanish moss.
*Alpine snow and ice scenes from Highway 80 near Donner Summit, Blue Canyon, Truckee and Tahoe can be strange and beautiful.
*Everything is photogenic in Yosemite
Rare is the tornado in California (but it can occur in the Central Valley) but the State has a bounty to offer photographers interested in various weather aspects of the State. Nearly every environment can be found. You can always make a Plains run in May
