493 - White Sands
Today we explored White Sand Dunes National Park… And ironically I didn't see a single black person there. Go figure.
In a stark contrast to our last adventure, (Carlsbad Caverns,) this place was all about shooting the lightest color on Earth. Which is honestly way easier than you’d think.
The thing about deserts is that it’s ridiculously easy to get good photos, because everything is so sparse. Subjects stand out like a sore thumb, and there isn’t much “background elimination” to do.
On the flip side, I’d say forests/jungles are the hardest to shoot, because there are so many different things that can distract you from your subject.
The most difficult part of shooting sand dunes is simply getting far enough away from the parking lot that the footprints disappear. Then the real magic begins.
The first shot I took was of this brief patch of wiry sand. I actually almost stepped on this scene, but caught myself. That’s one thing to look out for in sand dunes… Be conscious about where you’re stepping, because you could be walking into a beautiful composition. You need that tranquility of untouched sand. In this situation, they created an optical illusion that kept me staring:
“Blue Illusion”
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Zeiss 24-70mm f/4
[ISO 250 ~ 66mm ~ f/10 ~ 1/250s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
If you try to focus on one spot in that photo, it’s hard. It almost feels like the lines are wavering in the corner of your vision.
We kept walking.
The next shot I took captured the vibe of the entire place perfectly:
"Ball Point”
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Zeiss 24-70mm f/4
[ISO 250 ~ 38mm ~ f/7.1 ~ 1/1000s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
Smooth, glistening sand in waves contrasted with harsh plant details. None of the dunes were very tall either, like you’d find at the Great Sand Dunes of Colorado. All short in height and long in length. The crazy thing about this place was the dead, yellow plants. They grow in big patches then simply disappear for another couple hundred feet. I think they come and go as the wind blows the dunes around. I wonder what time of the year they’re actually alive.
Every once in a while you’d get a patch of sand with a singular plant, like this shot here:
"Singular Metaphor”
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Zeiss 24-70mm f/4
[ISO 250 ~ 70mm ~ f/7.1 ~ 1/1600s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
One of the only times you’ll catch me with a blue sky in the background. In this context it felt right. You’ll also notice in a lot of these sand dune shots I like playing with the crop. Notice how the lines end at equal distances on either side of the shot, but opposite. I’ll even go as far as warping a photo just a tad, to make it even.
Subtle touches like that take compositions to the next level. The viewer most likely won’t notice it consciously, but you can bet their subconscious does.
The next shot I got was a minimal overview of the sand fields:
“Mellow Blue”
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Zeiss 24-70mm f/4
[ISO 250 ~ 198mm ~ f/9 ~ 1/800s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
Ah I love that milky sand. Drop a little (again, subtle) blur filter on that bad boy and it looks like a dream. I got real familiar with my clone stamp tool to mask out some jutting rocks and animal footprints here as well. On surfaces like sand dunes where the texture is strong, I’ve found the clone stamp tool is significantly better than the healing brush. Just sample data from literally right next to it, in the direction the sand is flowing.
By now we’d been out for a couple hours, but I still had one more shot in me:
“White/Black”
Taken with Sony a7rIII + Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 GM
[ISO 250 ~ 198mm ~ f/9 ~ 1/1250s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
Nice little yin/yang action on that one, which wraps up this entire trip. Just like that. 9 months of traveling and this is the final photo at the final National Park.
It feels sentimental writing this right now, because I know I’m about to put a big bow on this whole road trip that’s completely changed my life. Fuck. What a journey. Colorado’s just a few hours away now.
From here, I’m gonna take a month off, fix up my Prius, get my shit together, then move to New York with Haley. We plan to shoot the East Coast while saving money up for our next trip.
For you guys, you’ll see that adventure in a few days. I’ve scheduled these posts a month out, so as you’re reading this I just about finished that month off. Hell, I’m excited to shoot the East Coast and get fat from salty bagels.
See you in a few days ;)
I’m on a mission to explore as much as humanely possible.
Want to see my progress? Check out the Adventure Map.
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