Desert Sunset

Desert Sunset

A bit out of my comfort zone on this one. At first it seemed to dark and then I realized that it worked dark - mostly because it was dark....great lesson here for me....stay out of the way...reminds me of the Garry Winogrand Quote, ''I photograph to find out what something looks like photographed'...need to remember that....off to wrap a few gifts...

Valley of Fire - the Cabins

The Cabins - Valley of Fire

Another image from my day trip through the Valley of Fire State Park a few weeks back. All sorts of oddities, nooks and crannies in thios valley not to mention a few vistas that take your breath away. Unfortunately my visit was at the wrong time of day - the light is much better in the morning and, of course, at sunset.

These cabins were constructed in 1935 soon after Valley of Fire became a state park. Made of sandstone they were used for many many years by travelers visiting the park. They are now being preserved as a reminder of the work done by Thomas W Miller, the first state Park Commission Chairman. Almost 9,000 people visited the newly opened park in 1936. today over 200,000 visitors enjoy the Valley of Fire each and every year.

Desert Sunrise

Desert Sunrise

I was driving to Las Vegas earlier in the week hoping to catch a good sunrise...As the sun was coming over the horizon it seemed rather bland and I was thinking 'not today'. Then I saw an exit called 'Old Ghost Town Road' and could not resist.....Long story short the sunrise was spectacular so I pulled over over and grabbed a typical off highway desert sunrise image.....about all I had time for....

Artist Palette

Artist Palette, Death Valley

'Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better'.....Albert Einstein

I am off to Death Valley on Thursday for 7 days -  truly an amazing place to spend time....

Death Valley

Death Valley, January 2011

'How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains'....John Muir

Death Valley seems rather quiet this time of year. Not sure why as the weather is great - around 68 degrees.

Up early yesterday to catch a sunrise out at Zabriske Point. The 'Point' just might be one of the best places to catch a sunrise - afternoon sunset was at Dante's View.

As mentioned yesterday I am road testing a new camera, the Alpa SW. The Alpa is a Swiss made, view camera style, lightweight camera. Basically it is a body, lens and digital back. No mirrors or zoom lens to deal with - just a high quality view camera lens, and I am out with a Schneider 48MM 5.6.

Basically I wanted to drop the amount of weight in my backpack and the Alpa , for me, is the perfect choice. The camera rides around my neck on the very well made  Alpa neckstrap and I carry my tripod. In my Scottie Vest are spare batteries and a few filters - no backpack - no weight....Amazing

Int he future will probably add another lens and a few accessories that will need a small backpack but still my guess is that I save minimum 10-15 pounds.

More on the Alpa tomorrow...

Artist Palette - Death Valley

When first looking at this image on my monitor it did absolutely nothing for me. There was no connection between what I saw and what I was looking at on the screen. After a bit of processing I was able to get this back to the original, or, at least my memory of the original scene when the capture was made. Simply took a bit of energy and time, and of course a few CS4 adjustments.

To say that Death Valley is a cornucopia of of color and image is a complete understatement. This capture was made at Artist Palette as the sun was setting back in November. I just needed to put in the time to bring it back to what my vision was - maybe even a little more color then actually existed but I am very happy with the results.

Looking forward to four more days in Death Valley in March - they say the second time there is a charm. Also. I heard there has been a good deal of rain which always helps.