Sandstone Power

Gallery: LandscapePosted May 9, 2013224 views8 comments

Monday morning I got a phone call from Doug K informing me he was going to white pocket, and if I would be interested in meeting up to shoot the storms in the area. I immediately packed my bags and hit the road. I met up with Doug and Shane Mcdermott in Flagstaff and we hit the road for the sandstone. It was my first visit, so I was extremely excited to see this place for myself as I had wanted to for many years. Just before getting to white pocket, the light exploded through the clouds and we ran out to catch the light. There was no crazy sunset, but the light was nice while it lasted. The following morning Shane and I got up early to photograph some star shots over the formations. After the sun approached the horizon and the stars disappeared, I focused on some long exposures to get the clouds to streak. I got to this area and stopped to see which way the clouds were moving. Luckily, they were moving towards me, so I set up the tripod and took a few shots from here. The opposing lines of sandstone and cloud formations really stood out for me. A very surreal scene and a very unreal place. Comments and critiques appreciated.

Canon 7d
Canon 17-40mm @17mm
ISO 200
30 sec
f8
CPL
Tripod

Comments

8 comments

Comment posted by Jeremy Kessler on May 9, 2013 at 2:28 AM

Beautiful, interesting to see it in this light. I'm curious to see what it would look like with just a bit more contrast in the sky.

Registered on September 13, 2007, 36 Posts, 1283 Comments

Comment posted by Paul Rebmann on May 9, 2013 at 7:44 AM

Great composition. I like the way your sky turned out. I'd be curious to know the exposure length on that.

Paul

Registered on July 17, 2012, 31 Posts, 122 Comments

Comment posted by Wayne Jones on May 9, 2013 at 12:34 PM

Oh yeah, the lines in this view really do make it a dynamic image. Interesting rocks! My first impression was some light, cold snow, until I looked closer.

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

Comment posted by Peter Coskun on May 9, 2013 at 2:13 PM

Thanks all. Paul, I added the tech info up in the post, forgot to add it when I posted. The exposure time was 30 seconds.

Registered on October 31, 2011, 170 Posts, 1240 Comments

Comment posted by Scott Smorra on May 9, 2013 at 8:11 PM

Very nice image Peter. The cloud movement was perfect for this scene. The blues in the rock are quite strong, but I feel they work well with the color of the sky.

Registered on November 2, 2009, 161 Posts, 2143 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on May 9, 2013 at 8:15 PM

Very nice, Peter. I think the cool color palette really lends this an element of uniqueness compared to the other images that I have seen from White Pocket. I do like the subtle symmetry from the radiating clouds and the foreground lines in the sandstone. Very nicely composed and captured.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Floris van Breugel on May 10, 2013 at 1:41 AM

The synergy between the cloud textures and the foreground rock really make this stand out.

Registered on December 19, 2008, 306 Posts, 4840 Comments

Comment posted by John Mumaw on May 10, 2013 at 8:54 AM

Exactly what Floris said. I really like the dynamic clouds, too. That was a great choice.
'Development' is perfectly subtle and right on, IMO.
You might consider lessening the blue tones in the white rock just a tad, even though this is a natural occurence.
It's real nice to see something original from here. Nice work, Peter!

Registered on September 9, 2005, 62 Posts, 2289 Comments