Canyon Layers

I took this in Fall Canyon over the weekend (Death Valley). There was some nice light and interaction between blues and reds, but I thought B&W did a better job of showcasing what I felt was the strongest aspect of the scene - the lines and layers. Let me know what you guys think.

Nice photo!!

I'm heading to Death Valley next Sunday, planning on five nights. Any favorite spots/tips (I do have a "Photographing Death Valley Book")?

Excellent Anish. Is this Marble Canyon? probably not, but wanted to ask.

I think it's a great choice to go with the b&w, but I would consider adding a slight amount of contrast. I do like the lighter tones in the background providing a bit of depth to the scene. Well done.

Lon

Thanks, Tony. Will this be your first time there? I would recommend at least checking out the following:
Mesquite Dunes
Badwater Salt Flats
Golden Canyon/Zabriskie Point
Fall Canyon or Titus Canyon
Mosaic Canyon
There are many other great spots, but these are just a few of my favorites. Enjoy the trip!

Lon,
This is Fall Canyon - I haven't been to Marble Canyon, but I've heard it's awesome. Thanks for the tip on the contrast, I'll play around with it.

Anish

Very nice Anish. Capturing the layers in the canyons of Death Valley is particularly hard, though Fall Canyon has some of the nicest and most photogenic turns I've seen. I would suggest cropping some of the left, and using burn/dodge tools to further accentuate the turns.

This is really nice, Anish. Fine job at capturing the layers. I would agree with the comments about a little left crop and some contrast increases, but it is a fine image.

Very nice detail. I agree with Lon's suggestion to play with contrast. Gonna have to check if I've been here before, if not, I gotta go after seeing both yours and Floris' images.

Thanks, guys. I was processing this on a bright display with the lights turned off, so everything looked super contrasty to me at the time, but seeing it in normal lighting I realized it does look a bit flat. Should be an easy fix, and I'll post an alternate tonight if I get a chance. Thanks again.

The conversion is really nice and I like the lines in the rock. I might try to darken the bright spot on the top right a little, but a very nice image.

fine shot Anish...i would prefer a slight crop on the left to balance it and have more symmetry.

Floris and Debjit - Thanks for the crop suggestion. I can see how a crop might also work, but I thought I'd share my reasons for choosing this particular comp. 1) I particularly liked the patterns on the left hand wall and wanted the viewer to have a close-up look to better sense what it's like to be there, 2) I felt the lines provided a nice lead in to the canyon, and 3) I don't always follow the rule of thirds, but I felt placing the canyon "gap" at the 1/3 point provided the strongest overall balance.

I'm going to rework the contrast for sure, and will definitely experiment with cropping before re-posting - maybe in the ESS gallery.

Thanks again...

I like the comp as is and would miss some of those nice textures on the left side. But I think hitting it with the contrast stick a little bit... particularly the lower half would strengthen the image. Other than that, this more than works for me. Good stuff!