by D.A. Edwards
After a couple of nights camping out in DV, we usually grab a room at Stovepipe to get cleaned up and have a restaurant meal. It never fails though that the next morning I get up real early to find less than ideal conditions out on the Mesquite Dunes; i.e., usually a cloudless sky. This particular morning I was greeted with a fairly heavy overcast and the realization that there had been no wind overnight which meant that all of the footprints from the day before were still there. 
I know from previous excursions that there is a section of sand and smaller dunes to the southeast that sees a lot less traffic in what I call the "meringue." A little scouting and I came across this clean dune for a shot with a hint of sunrise color. I liked the little critter footprints.
Comments
13 commentsI like the S curve of the dune. The blue overcast sky compliments the color of the sand very well. The critter footprints are an interesting element in the scene.
The foreground dune and the pattern in the sand are the stars of this image. Lots of nice details to look at with a very effective S-curve. If only the bush had not crossed the air/mountain boundary this would have been even better. That's a very small nit though!
I like the curve of the dune. Though I agree with Eva that the blue overcast sky compliment the colors of the sand I think the light is kind of flat here and this could be even mor interesting in better light quality. Composition-wise I would wish the bush would not cross the mountain/ait boundary
I have yet to make any tracks in the dunes out there............perhaps this winter I'll finally make it. I like this shot, Dave, probably a little less dune than normally seen. Nice to have a good sky, to bad the winds did not cooperate. The critter tracks do add to image.
Nice shape to the curve and I like the tracks. I am not sure the plants growing out of the sand are working for me in this one, though. I find my attention drawn to them and hanging there?
Dave, I love the curve in that dune and the wonderful textures.The tracks do add a nice touch as well. I agree with Bill that it looks just a bit flat but that also seems to add a quiet and lonely mood to the scene. I like it!
Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI
this is a very nice composition. NOt sure about the colors, particularly blues look slightly overdone.
The S-shape in the foreground really works, although I agree that the light looks a bit flat and the dry bushes a bit too central. However, your photo perfectly captures the spirit of Mesquite Dunes!!
Nice image, Dave. It is a wonderfully colored sky. The contrast in texture between the rippled and the smooth sides of the spine hold my attention. Would be nice to find a similar spot without the scrub brush.
Excellent, but I find more interest and quality (texture, tones) in the lower part.
All the best,
Sandro
Agreed that the light was pretty flat given the heavy overcast but we all know that sometimes you've got to just work with what's been dealt. I'm simply posting a series of images from each day of our 3 week trip to DV and southern Utah for entertainment purposes. I honestly did not know about the rule against having parts of bushes (and trees?) crossing into the air. That was actually the catalyst for the title I gave this image.
I like the composition with the dune that looks to reach the top of the mountaint. Sometimes the nature will do a color match that surprises and you were to capture it. Beautiful!
OK, I'm going to disagree with everyone else on here. The bushes crossing up into the sky don't bother me a bit, and I think this is a case where you break the rule!
I actually think this would also work well cropped to horizontal image,focusing in more on the center part of the dune, where the tracks are, and cropped off above the mountains. Having the bushes in there makes it unique. Nice.