Bill Jennings's Photoblog
Death Valley Expanse
Posted by Bill Jennings ((Bay Area Northern Calif), United States) on 1 June 2009 in Landscape & Rural and Portfolio.
In April last year - the dried salt beds had a great sweeping curve pointing to ridges in the far distance. Not many places in the states have such broad sweeping views without any sign of humanity.
Just made it home after a month of travel - posted a few photos from my journey to within 48 miles of the antartica circle: at nearly the longest day of the year: hence, there was 21 hours a day of sunlight...
Thank you for your patience while I was out of touch.
I do hope you followed Bob Kelly's blog (my roommate) while he is still traveling - he is now on Easter Island - and will be updating his blog for some time to come - please check it out!
Dulcie from Danville, United States
You've really caught the space and desolation, heightened by the cracked earth!!!
1 Jun 2009 5:36am
@Dulcie: thank you Dulcie - it's a barren expanse... almost monotonic in color: void of life for miles.
@rem_la: les extrémités de la vie nous incitent à aimer la beauté que nous trouvons
Linerberry from Sumner, Christchurch, New Zealand
Wow you have really given this image the feeling of a great expanse!!! Fantastic work!
1 Jun 2009 5:59am
@Linerberry: thank you Linerberry - it's well named: Death Valley
Matt from Gainesville, United States
Wow Bill- very powerful. I love the juxtaposition of scaling you've captured to gain access to both the expanse and tactility of that place. I just posted a similar shot today of a previous trip to the desert- uncanny timing!
1 Jun 2009 7:26am
@Matt: Thank you Matt. I will definitely go check you're out - it's amazing how uncanny these things can be, it happened with some others recently as well. Thanks for the kind words on the photo.
@Zing: Thank you Zing
Mandy Provan from Johannesburg, South Africa
wow...it really does look desolate, but the beautiful blue sky and white clouds add a lovely sense of life!! :)
1 Jun 2009 8:15am
@Mandy Provan: you're right, hadn't thought of that - but the moisture in the clouds gives hope, doesn't it?
Lorraine from Gatineau, Canada
Wow the texture is phenomenal, crisp and layered and I can almost feel it, bravo Bill :)
1 Jun 2009 10:38am
@Lorraine: thank you lorraine. I thought the salt pans would be fragile - yet, it's actually quite easy to walk on without damaging them. there is so much here to photograph, as it's so unique. thanks for the kind words on the photo.
Judy from Brooksville, Florida, United States
Death Valley really needs to be seen to comprehend it. I love your low angle here, adding to the great distance in this view. We spent a week there in Nov. 2000 for the annual 49ers Encampment, and it was wonderful.
1 Jun 2009 11:33am
@Judy: wow - great link - I wish I had a week to spend in this wonderful slice of the world - so unique. thanks for picking up on the low and sweeping angle.
zOOm from Paris, France
Extreme and tough landscape ! Great shot of an impressive setting.
1 Jun 2009 11:52am
@zOOm: thank you zOOm - it's a barren place no doubt - I'd hate to be there without water.
Claude from United States
You captured very well the immensity and the barrenness of the landscape.
1 Jun 2009 1:18pm
@Claude: thank you - it's an amazing place to visit, so vast
Mariana from waterloo, Canada
Brilliant scene . Composition of the picture is amazing . both background and foreground are amazing ! Love this shot !
1 Jun 2009 2:19pm
@Mariana: thank you Mariana - glad you like the sweeping composition to add to the vastness of the valley
@nazanin: thank you nazanin
Susan from Fort Lauderdale, FL, United States
Wonderful catch Bill.....you really have managed to show how desolate Death Valley must be...
1 Jun 2009 4:36pm
@Susan: Thank you Susan - if I had a lens with f/64... it still wouldn't shot how long and barren death valley was... It's amazing, and I want to go back soon.
Ajay from Pune, India
Composition of the land is really amazing. I love how you've put everything, the dry land, hills and those emerging clouds in the single perspective. That's what makes landscape photographs perfect.
1 Jun 2009 4:45pm
@Ajay: Thank you Ajay - the expanse of this valley, and the starkness of it is quite unique - and although it's not "beautiful" in the sense of verdant plains - it's wondrous for it's massive land of near death.
john4jack from Corvallis, Oregon, United States
Superb capture and composition. Love the panoramic framing.
1 Jun 2009 5:12pm
@john4jack: Thank you Jack - I thought the pan framing really added to the shot, to really force the eye to the distance.
Marie-Hélène Ammor from Casablanca/Paris, Morocco
Superb panorama ! I love the texture!
1 Jun 2009 5:17pm
@Marie-Hélène Ammor: Thank you Marie-Helene. Love your comments and visits - thanks again for dropping by.
@Onlymehdi: thanks Mehdi
Magda from Vancouver, Canada
Ohhh this is breathtaking. I really like the perspective Bill! Wonderful wide DOF giving all this wonderful detail and texture. Fabulous!!!
1 Jun 2009 6:47pm
@Magda: thank you Magda - glad this image works for you and you can sense the vastness from the perspective and depth of field.
jamesy from christchurch, New Zealand
fantastic shot 5 stars from me the composition is perfect and makes me feel like I am standing in this vast landscape
1 Jun 2009 9:04pm
@jamesy: that's great feedback. I love it when I hear that a photo evokes an emotional response, or a feeling of place. thank you.
@Dawn Bayer: Thank you Dawn. glad it works for you.
B. Thomas from Arlington, Texas, United States
What a hot shot. ;-) It made me thirsty, and I was looking for the cartoon cow skull.
1 Jun 2009 10:52pm
@B. Thomas: Perhaps I'll photoshop one in for the next posting? or even a borax wagon train in the distance!
Craig from Vacaville, California, United States
Excellent! That's the way to work that camera!
3 Jun 2009 1:23pm
@Craig: Thank you Craig - that's a very nice comment It surely helps to have a place like Death Valley to use the camera...
Sugata from Newark, United States
A very beautiful image. Did you use a polariser?
3 Jun 2009 8:11pm
@Sugata: Yes, I over-polarized the sky in the upper left hand corner... Still learning how to use a polarizer, and not have it look so unnatural. Thanks for the nice comments, however...
mats from Texas, United States
Oh, the vastness.... full of texture. Well done again Bill!
7 Jun 2009 5:43am
@mats: Thank you - it's a large open space with very little there besides desolation... Makes for some interesting photos.
Canon EOS 40D
1/50 second
F/16.0
ISO 100
11 mm