Hazy days made for difficult photography at Death Valley National Park when I first arrived. The air was dense and the clouds and haze obscured most of the grand views.
The haze tended to lift around sunset and I got a few good shots at Devils Golf Course and Badwater Basin, but the days were pretty much a write off except for scouting locations.
On the fourth day I was in luck! The haze finally lifted and there was just enough cloud in the sky to make a photographer happy.
Sometimes waiting for the right light can take days!
I used this opportunity to photograph some of the vivid colours along Artist Drive, a scenic one way loop road with many sharp curves and deep dips.
Please click the images to view larger versions.
The entrance to Artist Drive has countless multicoloured rocks that make a striking foreground.
Then you start going up in elevation to a picturesque lookout.
From here you can also look back on Badwater Basin. In the photo below, you can see some of the haze still in the distance.
Then came my favourite section of Artist Drive known as Artist’s Palette where the rocks display many of the same colours I saw at the Valley of Fire but the terrain was more rugged.
I made all of these images handheld. The heat makes me lazy and I was going out with one lens and no tripod, but when there is lots of light and you have a versatile lens like the 24-105L those are corners you can easily cut.
I handheld my camera when I photographed Artist’s Palette as well. Was too hot, even in January! Was a peculiar balancing act, holding my camera in one hand and lining up the filters in the other.
Very nice shots. To be honest I wasn’t that excited about Artist’s Palette when I was there, but seeing your photos reminds me that it is a beautiful place!
Hi Eric, I really enjoyed it there, I think we had the perfect day for it. Thanks for your visit and comments!
Beautiful images Anne. I have yet to make it to Death Valley and these images are calling me there…
Thank you Len! I recommend you go during one of the cooler months 🙂
Extraordinary colours in those last few shots of Artist’s palette.
That third photo from above is magnificent. You should have that printed in a huge canvas.
Thank you very much Lyn, I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Hi Anne, I love your photo’s. They are really magnificent and really highlight the beauty of the places you visit.
I also like your ebooks, which I find very helpful in enhancing my skills. I recently started exploring the RAW format and post-processing as well.
Just a question, which programs do you use to create your ebooks? This seems very useful for e-scrap books as well. Thanks in advance and keep on doing what you do.
Hi Wessel, thank you so much! I am so glad you enjoy the photos and eBooks 🙂 I use Keynote, the Mac version of Power Point, to make my eBooks! I like it because I am able to move the photographs around just the way I want them quickly and easily. Then I just save it as a pdf. I think it would work great for e-scrap books too!
Hi Anne, I was fascinated with the images you presented here! You must be very happy to have such an opportunity of seeing the charming places in your travels!
Hi Vasiliy, yes I do love seeing all the beautiful places here in North America as we drive around in our RV. I love the opportunity to explore and experience new places. Thanks for your visit and comments.
Hi Anne, Thank you for finding time to respond to my comment. I admire the views of mountains, valleys and ocean photographed by you in your travels.
You have rich opportunities of meeting there interesting characters as well.
Do you take their portraits and genre scenes?
Hi Vasiliy, No, that is something I really need to get better at. I am always waiting for the people to get out of the way so I can make my landscape shots. I rarely take photos with people in them and almost never make portraits. I really should … Thanks for your visit and comments.
Hi Anne,
Great photos! My husband and I have been in the Palm Desert area now for a couple of weeks and the haze here has been bad as well! It thwarted my plans for a full moon shot over the desert on Feb 3. Darn! Your “wait for the light” advice is truly key. After your last newsletter on Death Valley, I left my tripod in the truck and used handheld because many of the images were from hiking trail vistas. It works as long as the light is bright enough for a fast shutter speed at the focal length of the lens being used.
Your images are lovely! Thanks for sharing the details on how you captured the scene. Sandy
Nice pics.
Love the desert
Love the colors. 🙂