Desert Solitude

Gallery: LandscapePosted April 11, 2013458 views6 comments

I spent many cold, lonely nights out in White Sands National Park when I lived in Las Cruces one winter, and often found myself drawn to this lone, long-dead Cottonwood tree far back in the dunes. It's strange, but I think it was for some form of companionship in the emptiness. Contrast and saturation adjusted a bit, and some selective dodging and burning. Any input is appreciated.

Minolta Maxxum 7, 20-35mm lens, 4 seconds at f/11, Velvia 50

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Joseph Campisi on April 11, 2013 at 12:18 PM

Pretty magical shot Thomas. Simple and beautiful, with great color and tones. I'd try a vertical crop of this.

Registered on November 24, 2008, 304 Posts, 3211 Comments

Comment posted by Youssef Ismail on April 11, 2013 at 2:38 PM

Love the composition and the mood. Not sure about the saturation level. Also a couple of brown spots o the dune that I would clone out.

Registered on November 1, 2003, 474 Posts, 5555 Comments

Comment posted by Michael Anderson on April 11, 2013 at 3:02 PM

So simple and elegant and I love the color tones!

Registered on January 31, 2006, 228 Posts, 3072 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Jones on April 11, 2013 at 10:04 PM

Beautiful combination of complex colors and compositional simplicity. I think that almost anything that interrupts such a monotonous environment would draw our attention. Your idea of companionship makes sense because, like the tree, you a both an interruption to the uniformity of the sand, and evidence of life.

Registered on April 18, 2007, 953 Posts, 6435 Comments

Comment posted by Nick Palmieri on April 12, 2013 at 7:36 AM

I like the simple composition. I am debating the realism of the saturation level but I like it a lot either way. Very well seen.

Registered on September 1, 2011, 35 Posts, 748 Comments

Comment posted by Ed Lowe on April 12, 2013 at 4:47 PM

I like the simplicity along with your thought process for this desert scene, Thomas. If this were mine I would dial the sat back just a tad and clone out those couple of spots on the dune. Just suggestions of course.

Ed

Registered on February 7, 2004, 414 Posts, 7115 Comments