The Grandstand, Racetrack Playa. Death Valley National Park, California. March 28, 2010. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.
Black and white photograph of “the “Grandstand” formation standing in the middle of the Racetrack Playa, Death Valley National Park, California.
The Grandstand is a striking formation located a distance out onto the flat expanse of the Racetrack Playa, the location of the famous “moving rocks” in Death Valley National Park. The formation is located not far from where the road first reaches the playa and it is only a short walk. As I recall, it is just the tip of a large “hill” that is mostly buried beneath the very deep silt that was washed down from the surrounding mountains to form the playa. It has a shape this is vaguely “castle-like,” with several “turrets” that tower above the flat surrounding terrain and invite quite a few visitors to climb to the top. (The Grandstand is located at nearly the opposite end of the playa from the location of the largest concentration of moving rocks.)
I think that the Grandstand makes an interesting photographic subject, even though the thing most people come to see and photograph is the phenomenon of the moving rocks. I often plan to stop there and photograph in mid to late afternoon – when light on the rocks is interesting and photogenic, but before the “good light” begins further south on the playa and it is time to photograph the rocks and their tracks. It can also be a compositional element in photographs of the rocks at the south end of the playa, especially when you shoot with a long lens.
This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.
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Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 55mm
ISO 200, f/11, 1/320 second
keywords: death valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, nature, scenic, travel, landscape, the, grandstand, hill, rock, boulder, formation, race, track, racetrack, playa, sky, clouds, black and white, monochrome, geology, stock, light
I don’t remember well enough to quote a distance, but not too far away. I shoot FF and 55mm is close to “normal.” I cropped the image a bit, mostly on the sides. The height of the tallest rocks might be 30 feet or so. For scale, here is a photograph of the rock with a person standing at the summit.
Dan
Beautiful shot, with complementary background of the sky/clouds.
Approximately how far were you from the subject? I see that your data says this is a 55mm take.
Dan this is a great shot! I really like how you have framed it, and with black and white it is excellent!
I am also mad at you because now I want to go back there again!
Nice job!
Chris
Chris: Now you have a perfect excuse to return! I like to shoot the Grandstand in the mid- to late-afternoon period. It gets interesting side light, and it isn’t quite yet time to start shooting the moving rocks at that point.
Dan