Desert – Page 10 – Ken's Photography and Travel Blog

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 7, Monochrome Photos

Even though I much prefer golden hour color in my landscape photography, I find that there are light conditions and/or scenes that work better in monochrome.

Sometimes it is just the textures, patterns or shadows that make an image look better in monochrome. In the case of the photo above, the early morning colors were so intensely saturated that I thought those colors looked unreal, so I converted the image to black and white and I much prefer this look in this particular case. (Best viewed on Flickr and on a large screen).

Usually, I like monochrome for those images that I capture a little after the sunrise golden hour or a little before sunset golden hour.

In the image above, the sun had not yet come up, but shooting towards the early morning sky made this a better situation for monochrome.

The same is true for the image above. I have mixed feelings about this composition, not about the monochrome. I liked the look of the heavily textured, clay soil in the foreground and the gullies seemed to make good leading lines into the background, but is this a compelling photo? Opinions are welcomed, but please view on Flickr and on a large screen.

The readers can tell by the dates on the photos that I visited this area on separate dates and different times of the day, hoping to get different photographic conditions and/or to shoot from different view points. In the image above I wanted to show context for the natural bridge in the center, but I also wanted its shadow against the background features.

I wanted a wide angle view here and the light and shadows were best for a monochrome image. This is a result of focus stacking multiple images. A careful inspection of the clouds in the sky makes it apparent that there were multiple images used here. I could have easily replaced the sky with that from a single image, but I liked the indicated movement of the clouds, so I left this feature.

These last two images are not great, but I still like them, particularly the bottom one, with the subtle shadow of the most prominent feature on the background. I suppose I could have enhanced this image to make the shadow less subtle.

I hope readers are not getting bored with Bisti, because there are more post on the way,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 6

Continued from Part 5.

Light and Shadow, Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

Early Morning in Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

As the sun gets a little higher in the morning sky, the colors begin to wash out.

Long Hoodoo Shadow, Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

Even in the brighter light, there can be interesting shadows cast by the hoodoos.

Hoodoo and Shadow, Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

More Bisti later,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 5

Waiting for Sunrise, Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

Most of the rocks and geological features in the Bisti Wilderness are dull under bright sunlight, but in the early morning and late day light these features seem to come alive with color. At these times one can get landscape photographs with soft pastels or bright, golden hues.

Golden Hour Begins, Bisti, June 4, 2021, AM

To be continued,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 4, Cloudy Sunset in The Nursery

A popular area for visitors to Bisti is called “The Nursery”, where there are unique rock shapes that are referred to as “Cracked Eggs”.

It was very overcast this evening in The Nursery, so there was very little golden hour light; but the heavy clouds were great for creating dramatic photographs.

More later,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 3

I’ve hiked past this small bridge hoodoo in Bisti, usually when photographic conditions were less than optimal, many times on my way to a predetermined destination. This feature is not easily photographed in an interesting composition that clearly shows that it is a bridge, not just a chunk of rock in a jumble of other rocks. So even when I’ve stopped by, I’ve decided not to shoot it or did not get anything worth sharing. Still it is an interesting little bridge, so today I decided to make an attempt to get a decent photo. I wanted to clearly indicate the opening in the bridge with some object behind it. I could not get the sky through the bridge opening, so I needed some distinct object to show through the opening and not fill the entire opening. Moving around to vary what was visible through the bridge, I decided that the small rock that is visible behind the bridge, would work to give some depth in an image. To get this image, I made multiple exposure with different focal points, then stacked them using Helicon software to get the best overall sharpness.

Moving on, we found numerous portions of petrified logs and then in an area that neither my son nor I had previously explored, we found a long petrified tree specimen. It was so long that it was difficult to photograph its entirety and still get it into a good composition.

Long Petrified Log, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

I worked around this long petrified log, trying to get shots that showed how impressive this petrified log is.

A shot from the base of the log shows the base well, but this point of view does not indicate the significant length of the log.

I did not get any shots of this long petrified log that shows how impressive it is to see in person, but I think the shot above with the adjacent hoodoos and cloudy sky is the best image I got here.

In the same general area of the long petrified tree are several other petrified logs that are partially exposed from the encasing sediment.

Even though it was heavily overcast on this hike into the Bisti Wilderness, there was a little break through of sunlight, but no golden hour light.

The tall hoodoo in the image above seems to be tilting its head towards the sun to catch the late day rays.

More Bisti later,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 2

It was frequently cloudy during the days spent at Bisti in early June of 2021, which is good for dramatic sky backgrounds, but it can be bad for golden hour photography.

I thought the rock (photo above) with the pointy feature looked like some sort of weird creature guarding an egg, others have suggested it looks like a baby elephant. I can see that, too.

Petrified log sections, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

There are many pieces of petrified wood, logs and trees scattered around in this area. The mineralization of these objects is not as colorful as that in the Petrified Forest National Park, but it is amazing how much of the original tree detail is retained in these rocks. Most of the petrified log sections are horizontal, but occasionally there are vertical ones, which I suppose tumbled into this position somewhere in the distant past.

Petrified Log Sections and Hoodoos, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

The cap on the hoodoo in the photo above, looked like a turtle soaking up some sun, but there was no sun.

Ancient Sediments Exposed, Bisti, June 3, 2021, PM

I made some photos just to capture geological features, even if the photos are not highly interesting in an artistic manner. Having worked with many geologists and as a petrophysicist, might make me more prone to see and marvel at the layering in rocks.

Weathering and erosion continue to create and modify the features found here. Some features might linger for many years and some might be changed quickly by a heavy rainfall.

The petrified log in the photo above, may be the longest exposed one that I’ve seen here. It was difficult to capture in a single photograph, so I shot it from multiple view points and on multiple occasions under different light conditions.

More later,

Ken

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 1

I know I’ve multiple posts from my visits to Bisti and I hope that readers do not get bored with these. The Bisti Wilderness, in a desert area of New Mexico, is a marvelous place and one of my favorite places for photography. Each visit reveals new areas and new features to photograph. Even revisiting the same areas within the wilderness can result in different photographs, since it is never possible to photograph everything within even a confined area during one visit and the scenes will continue to evolve with time, weather and lighting.

In early June, 2021, I met my oldest son here for several days of exploration and photography. We chose to visit the area known as The Nursery the evening of our arrival, since we knew we could get there easily before sunset.

Cracked Eggs in The Nursery, June 2, 2021, PM

This is a popular area with photographers, requiring working around each other and proper etiquette to avoid getting in each others way.

Cracked Eggs in The Nursery, Bisti, June 2, 2021 PM

The photo above is an example with my son in a shot I wanted to set up. Of course, I made this shot just to capture him, but since we landscape purist try to avoid people in our shots, we sometimes have to modify our point of view. So I just turned a little to get this image:

Cracked Eggs, The Nursery, Bisti, June 2, 2021, PM

This is a much better composition, anyway. Although, I regret clipping a little off the front and right edges of the foreground rock.

There are so many objects, arranged haphazardly by nature, that it is virtually impossible with a wide angle lens to avoid clipping some object at the edges of a shot.

As the light began to fade on the Cracked Eggs, I began to explore the nooks in the hillside area to the east, where I found this tall hoodoo with a pointy top and small cap that I could set against the sunset clouds.

Sunset Clouds and Hoodoo, Bisti, June 2, 2021, PM

Bisti Sunset Clouds and Hoodoo, June 2, 2021, PM

Preparing to hike back to the parking lot, I got one last shot at the edge of the hillside with the sunset light fading from the clouds.

Stay tuned for more Bisti exploration,

Ken

Abandoned Houses and Structures on the High Plains of New Mexico, March 2021

Down the road a few miles from the old ranch and windmill, depicted in the previous post, is a small community, that was once more vibrant. Like many rural towns in the US, it has suffered from the evolving economy and technological advances that result in lost livelihoods. As people move away and are not replaced, homes and businesses are abandoned.

I have stopped in this community once previously to photograph an abandoned school under a clear sky. There were scattered clouds today, so I figured I might get more interesting images this time through.

Abandoned school on the high plains of New Mexico.

Just down the gravel street from this school was another one that I had neglected to photograph during my first stop here.

Abandoned school on the high plains of New Mexico.

Those big fluffy clouds added much interest and black and white seemed a good treatment of the images.

Abandoned school on the high plains of New Mexico

I could see a number of other abandoned homes and structures scattered around this little community, so I took time to photograph a few of those.

Abandoned house on the high plains of New Mexico

Abandoned commercial building on the high plains of New Mexico

Abandoned commercial building on the high plains of New Mexico.

Dilapidated Windmill and Water Storage Tanks on the high plains of New Mexico.

Abandoned house on the high plains of New Mexico.

The trees die as they are abandoned along with the houses and other buildings.

Abandoned stone fence and home on the high plains of New Mexico.

Abandoned house on the high plains of New Mexico.

The final image in this post was chosen for Flickr’s Explore page and so far has received 5737 views and 192 favorites.

Until next time,

Ken

Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 4 – Tsankawi 2

This is a continuation of a previous post with photographs from the ancient Native American site, Tsankawi, a part of the Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi Trail Fragment.

Up above the main continuous trail through Tsankawi, I spotted a portion of a trail that was obviously out of place. This part apparently broke away from its original location and lodged here many years ago.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Contemplation 2.

The depth of this portion of the trail is impressive. The pathways are narrow, which suggests that the people that made these were not large people.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Deep, Narrow and Steep.

It took a little effort to navigate some portions of these ancient paths, especially when carrying a daypack and DSLR.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Curves and Dead End.

Interestingly, this portion of the trail had dual pathways, but one was a dead end. Was this two lane path created by having one foot on one side and the other foot on the other side of the trail? Each side is too narrow for having both feet within the narrow channel.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Evidence of a dwelling, Shelter or storage area.

There were numerous indications of dwellings, shelters or storage areas along the pathways of Tsankawi. Some areas were off limits for visitors, so we did not get to see everything here.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Photographing the interior of a cave.

The entrance to this cave (above) seems to have a torso with head shape.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi Cave.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi Caves.

There were numerous caves in some areas. Notice the foot and/or hand holds in the rocks around these caves.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi View.

A desert view from the main trail around the Tsankawi area.

This wraps up the best photos that I managed to get in this amazing place. Perhaps someday I will get back again, when conditions are more favorable for photography.

Until next time,

Ken

Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 3 – Tsankawi 1

We visited Tsankawi again one afternoon, but we never really got to be here at the very best time of the day for photography. Although, we did have some cloudy sky, which helped add a little interest at times.

Tsankawi is really an amazing place. I was most impressed by the paths created by Native Americans many years ago. Those ancient people walked the same paths so often as to wear deep trenches in the rock. Sometimes the trenches were only a few inches deep and sometimes several feet deep. Even though the rock may not be super hard here, it is not soft either, so it must have taken many walkers over many years to create such deep pathways in the stone.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Walking Through the Past 1, monochrome with selective colorization.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.Walking Through the Past 2, monochrome with selective colorization.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi Trail.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Contemplation. Monochrome with selective colorization.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Old Tree and Fractured Rock with Petroglyphs

One has to look closely to see the old, worn petroglyphs, of which there were many, in some of the rock faces.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Lone Tree.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Tsankawi Petroglyphs.

Viewing a larger image on Flickr will allow for better resolution of the many petroglyphs on this rock face.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Small Evergreen Tree growing in a crack in the Tsankawi desert area. Monochrome with selective colorization.

To be continued,

Ken

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Tag: Desert

Bisti Wilderness, June 2021, Part 7, Monochrome Photos

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Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 4 – Tsankawi 2

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Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 3 – Tsankawi 1

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