The rest from Death Valley

coscorrosa

Here are some more photos from my Death Valley trip (everything that's not the Dunes).

A few points:

* I got to the racetrack way later than I wanted to, due to not getting my lodging situation squared away and underestimating the time it would take to drive on that washboard dirt road and being delayed about 20 minutes due to construction. Apparently the best rock trails are much further south on the playa but I didn't know that, and didn't have enough time to scout it because I was late.

* The Badwater shots (the salt flats) would have been better further away from the parking lot. I think I walked about a half-mile, but there are smoother/flatter sections further on (like a mile away or so). I didn't know this then either. I also didn't know that the eastern hills would turn gold like that when the sun dipped behind the western (Panamint) mountains, otherwise I would have been able to get more foreground further away from the parking area. Also in case anyone is wondering the "classic" badwater sunrise shots with the reflection are no longer possible due to the new boardwalk which was installed (to help protect a snail). So the dunes and Zabriskie are probably better bets for sunrise.

Unlike the sand dunes which I shot multiple times I only shot these locations one time, next time I return to Death Valley I'll know better.

#1: Zabriskie Point and a full moon at dawn:



#2: The Racetrack Playa at dusk. This is the only 30 second exposure I've ever taken of the ground



#3: The Racetrack



#4: Badwater salt flats at sunset



#5: Badwater salt flats just before sunset

dlplumer

Ron that first one is, well you know.

Can you tell us how you did it, i.e. gnd, exposure, f stop etc.

Thanks,

Dan

PS: Must be a very small aperture to get a moon star, and I do see a couple of dust spots. It's good to know you are not "perfect".

torags

coscorrosa wrote:

Here are some more photos from my Death Valley trip (everything that's not the Dunes).

A few points:

* I got to the racetrack way later than I wanted to, due to not getting my lodging situation squared away and underestimating the time it would take to drive on that washboard dirt road and being delayed about 20 minutes due to construction. Apparently the best rock trails are much further south on the playa but I didn't know that, and didn't have enough time to scout it because I was late.

* The Badwater shots (the salt flats) would have been better further away from the parking lot. I think I walked about a half-mile, but there are smoother/flatter sections further on (like a mile away or so). I didn't know this then either. I also didn't know that the eastern hills would turn gold like that when the sun dipped behind the western (Panamint) mountains, otherwise I would have been able to get more foreground further away from the parking area. Also in case anyone is wondering the "classic" badwater sunrise shots with the reflection are no longer possible due to the new boardwalk which was installed (to help protect a snail). So the dunes and Zabriskie are probably better bets for sunrise.

Unlike the sand dunes which I shot multiple times I only shot these locations one time, next time I return to Death Valley I'll know better.

#1: Zabriskie Point and a full moon at dawn:



#2: The Racetrack Playa at dusk. This is the only 30 second exposure I've ever taken of the ground



#3: The Racetrack



#4: Badwater salt flats at sunset



#5: Badwater salt flats just before sunset

More great shots Ron. Very well done.

coscorrosa

dlplumer wrote:

Ron that first one is, well you know.

Can you tell us how you did it, i.e. gnd, exposure, f stop etc.

Thanks,

Dan

PS: Must be a very small aperture to get a moon star, and I do see a couple of dust spots. It's good to know you are not "perfect".

Thanks Dan, I always put the good one at the top of the post

That was f/11 ISO 200 at 25 seconds with no filter. It was too dark to really see anything, and I didn't want to double the exposure time when I was just trying to get the right focus. That was the second shot I took after getting there and ended up being my favorite. The shots at sunrise were OK but not as good as the Zabriskie sunrise shots I had from my first trip to Death Valley.

At Zabriskie there's a paved trail to an overlook (which everyone takes), or an unpaved trail on the north side of the lot that winds around (took me about 15 minutes to get to a good spot where I could see Manly Beacon and the salt flats). The compositional possibilities are much better on this unpaved trail, and there was no one else there (to get in your foreground or mess with your photographic mojo), when I walked back I saw at least 12 tripods at the main overlook.

coscorrosa

torags wrote:

More great shots Ron. Very well done.

Thanks, I think I can do better on #3-#5 now that I know better, always have to leave a little behind for the next trip

dlplumer

coscorrosa wrote:

Thanks Dan, I always put the good one at the top of the post

That was f/11 ISO 200 at 25 seconds with no filter. It was too dark to really see anything, and I didn't want to double the exposure time when I was just trying to get the right focus. That was the second shot I took after getting there and ended up being my favorite. The shots at sunrise were OK but not as good as the Zabriskie sunrise shots I had from my first trip to Death Valley.

At Zabriskie there's a paved trail to an overlook (which everyone takes), or an unpaved trail on the north side of the lot that winds around (took me about 15 minutes to get to a good spot where I could see Manly Beacon and the salt flats). The compositional possibilities are much better on this unpaved trail, and there was no one else there (to get in your foreground or mess with your photographic mojo), when I walked back I saw at least 12 tripods at the main overlook.

Did you process that as a single exposure, or have to blend a couple?

coscorrosa

dlplumer wrote:

Did you process that as a single exposure, or have to blend a couple?

Single exposure. It may seem like a backlit scene because of the moon but it was really front lit by the bright sky to the east just before sunrise. I've found that usually front lit scenes don't require an exposure blend, or can be easily handled with a 2-stop GND. I'll always prefer to do a single exposure if possible. Backlit scenes are when things get tricky.

kdog

Man, you got the sweet light everywhere in Death Valley. How many weeks did you spend there again?

Sorry, but I like the last one best. That lit up mountain looks pretty close, and I know it's a long way away. Did you hike out a long way, or are we seeing some substantial lens compression there?

Cheers,
-joel

dlplumer

coscorrosa wrote:

Single exposure. It may seem like a backlit scene because of the moon but it was really front lit by the bright sky to the east just before sunrise. I've found that usually front lit scenes don't require an exposure blend, or can be easily handled with a 2-stop GND. I'll always prefer to do a single exposure if possible. Backlit scenes are when things get tricky.

Thanks man.

coscorrosa

kdog wrote:

Man, you got the sweet light everywhere in Death Valley. How many weeks did you spend there again?

Sorry, but I like the last one best. That lit up mountain looks pretty close, and I know it's a long way away. Did you hike out a long way, or are we seeing some substantial lens compression there?

Cheers,
-joel

3/7ths weeks

I was debating on doing Rocky Mountain National Park but the weather looked better in Death Valley.

Actually that mountain isn't that far away, that shot is at 16mm believe or not (I know it doesn't look that way). It is far enough away that I could just spot heal the tiny people out of the photo. I would have preferred to have it be 5/6 salt and 1/6 mountain but that would have required that I would be even further away. I think I was about .5 miles from the parking lot (or about 1/4 mile where the "trail" falls away in the salt flats). Anyway, now that I know it lights up like that I can get the shot I want next time.

Also that light doesn't last long at all, I swear it only took about three minutes before the entire hill was in shadow again.

redleash

Nice series, Ron! You really "made the best of a bad situation." I am always impressed with what you come up with, no matter where/when you shoot. You are an artist with the camera!

I like the long exposure of the ground--it's a great image of nature's skill at creating abstract art. But my fave is #5--great detail in the foreground, lots of shapes and texture, and some sweet light on the hill. Very well done!

Lauren

coscorrosa

redleash wrote:

Nice series, Ron! You really "made the best of a bad situation." I am always impressed with what you come up with, no matter where/when you shoot. You are an artist with the camera!

I like the long exposure of the ground--it's a great image of nature's skill at creating abstract art. But my fave is #5--great detail in the foreground, lots of shapes and texture, and some sweet light on the hill. Very well done!

Lauren

Thanks - although a lot of times I don't come up with anything and (usually) have the good sense not to post those here But there's plenty on my SmugMug gallery (one of my projects is to go through and clean it up).

For example, the last morning of the trip I shot the sunrise at Dante's View in Death Valley, but it was so hazy that I didn't think any of the photos were good enough, which is unfortunate since the view from there is amazing. Had I known ahead of time it was going to be that hazy I would have went back to the dunes, or left the previous night and shot Yosemite at sunrise or something. It's hard to know when things will be at their peak, some of it is looking at the hourly forecast, a lot of it is luck, and a lot of it is just increasing your odds by being out there a ton. Time of day and time of year are things you can figure out ahead of time, but the light and forecast doesn't always cooperate.