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Zane Paxton | all galleries >> Best of the Year Galleries >> Best of 2007 > 03232007-Death Valley-ZP-036
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23-MAR-2007 Zane Paxton

03232007-Death Valley-ZP-036

Death Valley National Park, California

One of the things that I pondered here was how to best express the great height of the dunes.
My compulsion was to hike to the top right away to experience the height myself.
On further consideration I distinguished that the best way to express the great height would be to stand at the lowest points
so that the sides of the dunes were more prominent..
That may sound obvious, but all the other photographers on the dunes (out there before me) were climbing to the high points as fast as they could.
Later on I trudged to the top of the dunes and the view was indeed terrific;
but the dramatic sense of height with the prominent sides of the dunes was gone and the grand view with hundreds of ridges and hollows then becomes dominant.

Nikon D2x ,Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D ED-IF AF-S
1/30s f/6.3 at 26.0mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time23-Mar-2007 06:16:27
MakeNikon
ModelNIKON D2X
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length26 mm
Exposure Time1/30 sec
Aperturef/6.3
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias
White Balance
Metering Modematrix (5)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programaperture priority (3)
Focus Distance

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Claude Martin09-Jan-2008 21:38
A wondeful scene, bright colours and so sharp details! V
Guest 15-May-2007 14:50
Hi Zane

i see your point, i have always wanted to photograph the dunes from a ridge, showing the curves, but you have shown there are just as beautiful shots to be had from below, the shadows and light make for a great effect on this one.

Derek