Not to highjack the thread, but I'm pretty familiar with the classic area around the South Tufa and Navy Beach. I'd love to hear any suggestions for other locations to shoot around Mono Lake.
Sure. The sections you've been in are rich, if you've been there you've probably taken the short 4wd road that cuts off from the Navy Beach road to the right where the NB road goes left, that'll take you out towards an area called Castle Tufa as well as some other nifty formations stuff in the short hike along the way.
Similarly, if you head west on (Test Station Road?) towards the South Tufa back towards Lee Vining another mile or so there's another grouping of Tufa I mean to explore with an eye towards post-sunset twilight wedge images.
I'm sure you've also seen what's referred to as the "Old Marina" area, which is just north along 395 from the visitor center. That can be a nice place to work sunrise.
On the north side of the lake, I haven't had much luck at Old County Park (except in winter), but if you continue along Cemetery Road to the east, after you pass the cemetery (which can be photogenically bleak in winter) it'll go past "Black Point". There's a 4WD road up on top of the point which I have't taken, but just after passing the big lump that is Black Point, there's a road that curls around back towards the lake that's very passable in a standard vehicle, from the end of that road it's about a 10-15 minute walk down to the lake, I've worked that area near sunset a number of times, and really enjoy it. No tall tufa but a lot of smaller features in water for reflections. What you see down there varies a lot with lake level.
Going around the East side of the lake is very tempting but is best done in groups of two or more
vehicles and at least one winch, many Mono Basin veterans I know have gotten stuck there, and as I often work alone, so I can't give you nearly as much advice in that area.
Heading north from the lake towards Conway Summit there's a dirt road or two turnout into an area called Rattlesnake Gulch (which earns it's name), but has some very nice views across the lake towards the Mono-Inyo Craters with interesting fore/middleground opps.
In October, some of the dirt roads back into the Sierra from that area will get you into areas of aspen. Lundy Canyon (near the NW corner of the lake, take a paved road behind the resort and then a dirt one beyond that) has a pair of nice beaver ponds (I like mid-morning there, doesn't get much early light) and aspen, and one can hike further back into the Sierra. The right week or two there can be terrific. South of the lake I've also worked Walker Canyon, Parker Canyon and Bohler Canyon but I'd have to look at a map to remember which was which off-hand, the June Lake Loop will also get some nice aspen particularly towards the back.
May-June that area of foothills near the north part of the June Lake loop wil, at least some years, get bright yellow with arrowroot balsamleaf, it's possible that's already going (or even past going), I see a note on the MLC committee website that they saw first flowers at lake level as early as mid-April, which I think is a little earlier than usual.
(PS: Don't forget to shoot some with an eye toward cropping to a 4x5 aspect ratio, even if you're shooting a 3x2 aspect ratio camera like I am. The MLC annual calendar gets a ton of submissions but needs images in that ratio, and, I'm told, the last few years a little short on spring/summer shots.)
--Joe