Southwestern US
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Wave in the Sand
White Sands National Monument is a fabulous place, but most days the sun goes down behind the mountains extremely quickly, like in a minute or less- like a light switch almost.
The Wave
It was a long and greuling hike to the Wave, and my wife, Amelia Chao, gave up a mile before I finally made it there. it's suprisingly small. l made several 4x5 shots, out waiting and avoiding the other photographers present. This is the grand overall view.
The wavecoyotes buttescoyote buttes northArizonawire pass trailheadparia canyon vermillion cliffs wilderness areaUtah
Zion Ice
A frozen section of a creek in Zion National Park. Major 4x5 work laying the camera down 4 inches above the ground, laying my coat on the snow, the composing and focusing and finally taking the picture. Then restoring
Zion National Parkfrozen icered ice reflectionpine Creekutahwinter
Feather Rock
Deep in the South Coyote Buttes, the delicate sweep of the curving strata reminded me of a feather.
South coyote ButtesArizonaPaw HoleVermillion Cliffs paria canyon wilderness area
Gulch Puddle
Taken along the Burr Trail at a place called " the Gulch". A few hours after a rain, and probably only a few hours before one.
Quiet Alcove
Another picture from the South Coyote Buttes, and one of the reasons few people go there. This was a solo trip, carrying a 4x5. After long compositions on several other pictures, I saw this scene. Light was fading fast, but I set up and took it. It has a very mystical feeling to me. Then I realized, I had no flashlight, and there were just two sand routes down from the top of the bluff I was on. The others were all straight down on rock, and impassible at night. I did find they way down, but barely as the light faded out.
south Coyote ButtesArizonavermillion Cliffs paria Canyon wilderness
Water on Fire
This is from a high overlook over
Death Valley, California with part of a sunset reflected into it for a few seconds.Death Valley californiareflected sunset lightpurple salt flats
Knockout at the Wave
It was a sunny day, but supposed to be partly cloudy. I almost had given up and put my 4x5 away, when the tiny cloud in the sky finally covered the sun for about a few minutes. So I ran back up the hill, set up the camera and tripod and got this picture. The wind blew in piercing gusts of sand, and I instictively grabbed the lens off the camera and covered it. The wind caught the 4x5 and blew it to the ground. I thought it was ruined, but Keith Canham makes a great camera, because, though it looked like a preztel for a minute, nothing was damaged and the ground glass was fine.
Three Little Balls
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Utah. These are actually "little balls" left by a coyote. The wind has sculpted the sand into a pattern of great beauty.
coyotesand dunescoral pink sand duneswind patternmillipede tracks