A barren landscape in the desert. A bumpy multi-hour adventure with friends to reach this hard to reach spot. We arrived there early in the day to scout out the area. The scale of the place and openness is unreal. The texture of the surface seemed alien to me. We found the famous sailing rocks and the trails left behind.
We waited for the good light and it found us. I raced across the playa to reach this spot changing my mind on the final composition. Along the way I dropped off my backpack with my other gear. That was a mistake. As soon as it got dark and I had traveled several hundred yards away from my bag, I lost it! I frantically searched around with my headlamp. I made it back to my friend and borrowed another headlamp. I wandered back in the direction where I thought I had dropped off my pack. After some time, I had finally found it. Relief washed over me. Soon the full moon broke over the horizon casting some light across the playa. If a bird was observing the scene from above, it would be laughing its beak off.
Great story Alfredo. I’ve done the same exact thing in Lake Tahoe. I thought I was out about 10 grand in lenses and bodies. Oh the relief when you find it. Phew!!!
Terrific colors in the sky and a great look at the racetrack. I have never been there…because of the drive, I heard it eats tires for breakfast lunch and dinner. LOL Thanks for sharing this.
Holy S**t! This is a fantastic photo. That must of been some heart-pounding moments when you were looking for your pack. Glad you found it. Just stunning work.
Oh wow David! I’m happy you found your gear too. Talk about a roller coaster ride of emotions. Regarding the trip to reach the playa, we had rented a Jeep and took it slow. I was surprised to see that a van had made it way out there.
That’s really cool, Alfredo. I never heard of sailing rocks so had to look it up! Love your story too, especially the part about the bird laughing his beak off! Very funny!
What a great image with its colors, textures and amazing light. I like the tonal shifts in the lower half of the image that emphasize the stone, and then the trace of the moving stone leading into the sunset.
Thanks Vanessa! Sailing rocks were a mystery for a long time until scientists figured out what made the rocks travel across the playa. It was a combination of wind, ice, and weather. Pretty fascinating.
Great image, great story. And yes, a good memory because you found your gear. Otherwise it would have been burnt in your memory as well, but a bit differently.
Thanks for sharing!
I knew it was your image from looking at the thumbnail in the main gallery. The sense of space and otherworldliness in this image are just wonderful! Great composition and work with light and colour. Perspective is awesome. Beautiful, expressive, just perfect - surely going to print, or already gone? (the backstory is right on top of a photographer’s worst nightmares, glad you found your gear!!)
