Yosemite 2 days October

I'm heading to Yosemite NP for 2 days the week after next and would appreciate any insights and advice. I wish I could spend longer there, but 2 days is all I have, so I'm trying to be efficient about my time. Plan to go there mainly for photography and maybe a little hiking (to take photographs
Plan is to leave from SFO Tuesday around 1 pm and hopefully make it to Tunnel view by sunset to take some photos. Check into hotel and depending on time, maybe drive to Glacier Point for some night shots. Then spend next 2 days there and leave just after sunset of the 2nd day.
Over 2 days, I figure I have 2 sunsets and 2 dawns to get some photos of the iconic shots:
-Tunnel View
-Glacier point
-Valley view
-Bridalveil falls
-Yosemite falls
-Three brothers.
Plan to pack light: Fuji X-T20 with 18-55mm and 70-200mm lens as well as tripod and some filters.
As you can see there are only 4 chances for good lighting and my list of spots is more than that so:
1. Any advice on which spots would be best over others during sunset vs. dawn hours
2. What are some good short (i.e. less than 4 hrs round trip) trails that would be good for potential photo ops during the day
3. Any general advice on photographing Yosemite landmarks or places that I didn't mention in the above list (I just googled "best photo spots for Yosemite" and looked at some websites to make that list.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

You may be able to get alpenglow on Half Dome just before sunset; it depends on the weather. The camera for the Half Dome webcam, one of the four below, is mounted on the front of a house in the employee housing area at the end of Ahwahnee Meadow opposite Half Dome. This gives you an idea of where to start looking for a place to set up. A road runs in front of that row of houses.

Yosemite Conservancy's webcams

There's a seasonal optical effect at Bridalveil Fall. I don't know whether it'll last until your visit.

Some sources you might want to check...

https://www.yosemite.c​om/top-10-yosemite-photography/

https://www.nigeldanso​n.com …ips-techniques-and-videos

https://www.outdoorpho​tographer.com …eyond-the-usual-yosemite/

https://shop.photograp​hamerica.com …-California-p/023-pdf.htm (this one if $8 for a PDF but worth it)

And keep in mind that sunrise is about 7 AM and sunset is about 6:30 PM (for today).

Check status of Tioga Pass Road in October, Lake Tenaya is beautiful if you can get there.

Wilt wrote in post #18724890
Check status of Tioga Pass Road in October, Lake Tenaya is beautiful if you can get there.

Good idea on Lake Tenaya but with only two days I would consider this for another trip. The drive to the common vista point is about 50 miles and 1-1/2 hours (more if you are behind a camper) so a considerable amount of time needs to be devoted to the round trip. Don't get me wrong, the trip is gorgeous, but it seems like the OP wants to hit the highlights in a limited amount of time.

John from PA wrote in post #18724954
Good idea on Lake Tenaya but with only two days I would consider this for another trip. The drive to the common vista point is about 50 miles and 1-1/2 hours (more if you are behind a camper) so a considerable amount of time needs to be devoted to the round trip. Don't get me wrong, the trip is gorgeous, but it seems like the OP wants to hit the highlights in a limited amount of time.

John, I don't disagree.
However, one can spend as much time simply hiking (roundtrip) within the Yosemite valley to unique photo vantage points up off the valley floor. Many points (e.g. up Yosemite falls), as well as the ones on the valley floor itself, are so commonly photographed as to be somewhat 'mundane' ..."eveyone has a shot of that". So I was offering an alternative to consider, which affords an opportunity to get photographs of a place that most visitors to the valley floor never see much less photograph. Tenaya comes with minimal hiking, compared to need to hike a bit for unique photos within the valley.

Tioga Pass road conditions

https://www.nps.gov …nyourvisit/cond​itions.htm

Hey Everyone,
Thanks for the advice and weblinks. I downloaded the Photo guide to Yosemite and will peruse it tonight.
Probably won't be able to go to Lake Tenaya this time because of time constraints, but we'll see how the trip unfolds.

Update: Went to Yosemite from Oct 16-18. A couple of things I learned:
1. Wider is better - I had the kit 17-55mm on a crop, and I wish I had a wider lens. I never used my telephoto at all - I brought it along for wildlife shots, but didn’t really see any big animals except at night (Deer, saw a few wolves or coyotes while driving).
2. Mountaineers were climbing the cliffs, wish I’d brought binoculars to see them better.
3. I don’t think it was worth waking up super early to get Sunrise shots at Valley View. At this time of year, the face of El Capitan is in shadow as the sun rises, and only the upper third will get that nice golden light. Also no fog or clouds, so just a bleh photo. Other spots may get better light.
4. Bring bug spray.
5. Book hotel early as you can.
6. Great time of the year for hiking, but not great for photography IMO. Most of the waterfalls, streams and mirror lake are dry or just trickles, and leaves haven’t really started changing colors yet. Skies were clear with no clouds when I went. Good time for night shots or astro-photography I think.

Oeijur wrote in post #18732170
3. I don’t think it was worth waking up super early to get Sunrise shots at Valley View. At this time of year, the face of El Capitan is in shadow as the sun rises, and only the upper third will get that nice golden light. Also no fog or clouds, so just a bleh photo. Other spots may get better light.

It isn't all about El Capitan. At sunrise in the fall, particularly if a cool evening is anticipated, the large field in front of Yosemite Chapel is often a very low hanging blanket of fog. The Chapel itself gets lit on one side as the sun rises. Quite often I have also encountered a small herd of deer in the field. Sleep in, and you never know what you missed.

I miss Yosemite, I used to get there about 3-4 times a years as I worked for a company in Minden NV. If I was stuck over a weekend, I would be in Yosemite. I never got there in winter since access from Nevada was via Tioga Pass, an impossibility after early November.

Definitely wished I had more time - but such is life. Next time, hopefully I can stay longer and do more exploring vs. just trying for the standard shots like I did this time. I did get some decent photos of Half Dome from glacier point and of El Capitan from Valley Viewߘ