The Bad Lands of Death Valley
Spending time in Death Valley National Park was an overwhelmingly creative experience. I think it is for many artists because it is one of the most beautiful and strangely diverse landscapes in America. This is the third of several posts about life in Death Valley.
The Badlands
Morning in the Badlands by Richard Lewis 2013
Badlands are heavily eroded places with little vegetation. In Death Valley, the Badlands are laced with colorful clay deposits that decorate beautifully sculpted hills. To the early traveler this area must have been a perplexing place; both beautiful and forbidding at the same time.
Watercolor Badlands by Richard Lewis 2013
Natural Color Scheme by Richard Lewis 2013
The Badlands of 20 Mule Team Canyon by Richard Lewis 2013
Badlands at Dawn by Richard Lewis 2013
How I Did It. – The most photographed place in Death Valley is Zabriskie Point which overlooks the Badlands and Death Valley. It is not the only overlook of the Badlands; it is just easy to get to. At 5 AM the Zabriskie Point parking lot was full because it is a great spot for photographers to capture the Badlands at dawn. A few miles down the road is a turn off where a short hike up a canyon gave me a view of the badlands shown above that I had all to myself. Unless you want that popular shot of an area, a bit of research will help you find unique locations and special places to photograph that you can call your own.
Moonlit Badlands by Richard Lewis 2013
How I Did It – Death Valley is the place for night photography because lack of artificial light reveals an unbelievable amount of stars. The standard night photograph technique is to photograph the foreground during twilight and the night sky later when the stars are out. The two images are then blended together while editing. I find this gives an unrealistic look. It is not a bad technique, I just don’t particularly like it for most of my work. On the evening shown above the moon cast an eerie light on the landscape so this image is pretty much the way the landscape looked at 5:00 AM. There are two exposures here, one for the badlands and one slightly darker for the sky but they were done at the same time.
Desolation Canyon
Color Shift in Desolation Canyon by Richard Lewis 2013
A hike in Desolation Canyon shows the Badlands in up close. This canyon was constantly changing in color from Blue to green to tan and back.
Cracked Mud in Desolation Canyon by Richard Lewis 2013
The Wash Leading to Desolation Canyon by Richard Lewis 2013
Canyons usually spill out into a wash, which is a wide-open area where the water and debris from the canyon ends up. It can be tedious hiking up a wash, but in the right light it can also be quite beautiful.
More Death Valley to come!
Want to be more creative with your camera? I can help so feel free to contact me.
Beautiful photos Rich. The colors are amazing!
Thanks Bonnie. They really are amazing when you see them. It’s like someone melted a bunch of giant crayons.
Hi, Rich. I’ve been following your Death Valley posts and they are an impressive body of work. I’m glad to have seen your images as I don’t expect to see the scenes in person unless Pat Worley organizes a field trip out there. It’s not really Death Valley but I particularly liked your Milky Way. Got to get me one of those.
Thanks for the compliment. Death Valley is an amazing place with a lot to see. I feel we just scratched the surface, We will be definitely heading back. It was nice to have the milky way in such a perfect position for that photograph. I was lucky to happen upon that place when I did.
These photographs are stunning…looks like an amazing place to be
It was really amazing. I can’t wait to get back there. Unfortunately it’s on the other side of the country from where I live.
Wonderful … and you have even more coming … really? My favorites are ‘Watercolor Badlands’ and ‘Natural Color Scheme’ … I guess it’s because these force you to look at the natural colors and patterns. I like your night shot too. (I got a tip to use tungsten white balance for night skies. The brown tones kind of fit with the collection so I don’t know if you would like it or not.)
Thanks Denise. Yes there is more. It was quite a productive trip. I like the watercolor one too. I actually have a series of them and may post them sometime. I’m going to try that trick with the tungsten white balance and see what it looks like. When I was playing with the color for the landscape I kind of liked the color the sky became, but maybe it can be improved. Thanks for sharing that tip.