Dessicated

I think the composition , the light and the f/g grass are excellent, it looks oversharpened  ( ? ) to me. Great image otherwise.

Bill, I like the splash of colored grass as a start to viewing the sandy scene.  In the larger view, the grasses are not cleanly defined.  I can't tell if they were subtly out of focus or if it's over sharpening that has them looking diffuse.

Bill, you made a good choice with the color version. Composition seems awkward to me with such high contrast in the harsh light. Also, in terms of sharpness, it comes across as overdone. The distinct moire pattern is evident in the dune, and the grasses are just not sharp.  I know we're restricted by schedules in the monument. So given the light conditions at hand, for this would prefer cropping out most of the deep shadow at the top. Also focusing on the grasses while letting the dune go soft would have been a much better option.

Great eye on this one.  I think the sharpness people refer to is the moire pattern in the mid frame.  Maybe too some added contrats made that top edge too edgey.  

I can see two other comps here: one is vertical top left, without the moire and grasses.  The other is horizontal bottom, just the grasses but no dark wedge or moire.  

Play with that moire effect to see whether you can reduce it.  Many see it as a digital flaw (frequency of lines and sensor texture making noise—kind of like a weatherman’s tie).  Nonetheless, I have reduced it to negligible impact on a couple dune pics of my own, and it prints well.

ML

Another great artistic study of contrast and textures, Bill!  Good eye to see the opportunity and an excellent composition and capture.  Very nice