Dunes, Mountains, Clouds. © Copyright 2020 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.
Evening clouds above the Grapevine Mountains and sand dunes.
During the past week, as I’ve shared photographs and stories from my recent visit to Death Valley, you may have caught me complaining about the less-than-incredible light conditions while I was there. Just a little… ;-) But to be fair, one of the side effects of challenging lighting is that it often comes in association with at least some examples of unusual and striking lighting. You may have to wait for it — I sure did on this trip! — but most often it does arrive eventually. (To be honest, it is rare to encounter a period of purely miraculous or purely awful light. It is more that the balance between the two extremes is variable.)
On the final evening of this visit to Death Valley, after a full day of trying to work that uninspiring light (with at least some success) I was rewarded with a period of truly lovely and dramatic late afternoon and evening light. The clouds that had been afflicting me for nearly two days began to part, light came through, and the remaining clouds lent some drama to the scene.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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