Delicate Light by WaynePinkston

This is the iconic Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, in Utah, USA. I had wanted to try my hand at this for a while, but the site had become so popular that I had major reservations about competing with others over “territory” for filming. Fellow photographer Eric Gail and I made the hike and found 20-25 people there including 2 people who said they were from the BBC making a time lapse. Two of the parities did indeed get into a hostile shouting match and the location “heated up”. After everyone calmed down we were able to take turns and everything worked out just fine. Thanks to everyone there for such good co-operation. We did set up this lighting scheme which most found acceptable. A few people preferred the blue light of LEDs, and they had their turn. The time lapse people just filmed it all.

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Window to the World by WaynePinkston

Anasazi Ruins: The Anasazi or Ancient Puebloans lived in the four corners region of the Southwest USA in pre-columbian times, approximately from 700 AD to 1200 AD, abandoning the area in the 13th century, possibly because of drought.

Image… Your picture window is 100 feet (30 m) hight and 200 feet (60 m) wide. It looks out over a wash filled with cottonwood trees, small brush, wildflowers, and intermittenty a small stream. In the distance are ridges and hills, and beyond that is a broad plain or wash where you may grow crops in wetter times. The trail winds up the side of the ridge. The glow of cooking fires illuminates the alcove or cave with a golden glow. Above the plains you look out on a star filled sky and seasonally on the Milky Way. The night sky is woven into your life as naturally as the day. The stars and seasons flow past endlessly.

We may have electric lights, TV, movies, You Tube, and 500px 🙂 but the Anasazi or Ancient Puebloans had a view to die for. Since some of the structures are defensive, they may well have died defending their home.

This is a panorama of the Monarch Cave Anasazi Ruins in the Comb Ridge region of SE Utah. There are 11 vertical images combined in Lightroom.. Taken with a Nikon 810A camera and a Nikon 14-24 mm lens at 14 mm, f 2.8, 30 sec., and ISO 6400.

There is one very large alcove but separated into two sections. I am sitting on a 30 – 45 degree stone wall that separated the two sections. To the left is the larger section and the easiest to reach. Most of the structures there are destroyed, but there are a few low walls and many pits for grinding grain, as well as some petroglyphs and pictographs.

The section to the right is harder to reach and in better condition, with several rooms and rounded walls. A wide overhang unites the two sides.

The Milky Way hugs the far left edge of the sky, only partially seen. As a consolation prize, we have the Andromeda Galaxy in the left center sky, the double cluster, and several additional faint galaxies.

Disclaimer: No ruins were harmed or touched in the making of this photo!

Thanks for taking the time to look. Hope you enjoy! Your time, faves, and comments are much appreciated!

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Where a Civilization once Thrived… by WaynePinkston

This is the Anasazi or Ancient Puebloan Riun called the 16 Room Ruin. It has many other names but this one seems most common. It is located just south of Bluff, Utah adjacent to the San Jaun River.

This is part of an experimental series to see if the Anasazi Ruins are amenable to photography at night. I would love to combine an interest in the Anasazi with nighttime photography. I spent several days in August in the SE corner of Utah photographing several ruins at night, to be processed over the next few weeks.

One thing I did discover is this: Being in these ruins at night is fascinating. To see the starlit sky, and be surrounded by ancient habitations where people once thrived is magical. It’s like going back in time. The alcoves just glow with the light. You can imagine the glow of fires illuminating the ceiling and walls centuries ago.

This ruin is in one of a small minority of Alcoves or Caves that opens facing North, and faces a fertile plain overlooking the San Juan River. Because it opens to the North, the Milky Way is seen overhead to the South. Most of the Anasazi Ruins purposefully open facing South, providing shade in summer and sunlight and heat in winter. It seems they were more concerned with these mundane everyday matters than with the needs of photographers that would come 800 years later. On the other hand the Milky Way may be visible looking out of many alcoves at some point in the year. There are limited choices for photo ops. Sometimes the only decent choice is looking into the Alcove, sometimes the only choice is to look out. Most of the flat “bench” in the Alcoves was used as building sites, and there is not a lot of room to roam around.

The maintained and easily accessed Anasazi tourist locations in parks are closed at night. You can get a permit to photograph these at night for hundreds of dollars. There are, however, numerous sites on Bureau of Land Management land that are not maintained. There are unmarked trails to many of these ruins, and if you can find them you can photography at night. Many require a hike of a mile or more through rough trails. They are open to visitation but the BLM does not make them easy to find, sometimes knocking down cairns that mark the way.

This is a panorama of 10 vertical images combined in Lightroom. Taken with a Canon 6D camera and a Bower 24mm f 1.4 lens at f 1.4, 15 sec, and ISO 6400. There are 6 lights used. There are 4 very small lights shining up on he ruins from just in front, and there are 2 larger lights lighting the whole alcove. Warming filters were used on the lights.

Disclaimer: No ruins were harmed in the making of this photo!

So what do you think? Is this kind of image interesting or worth pursuing?

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Lost in the Valley of Dreams by WaynePinkston

This is a “selfie” taken in a place called The Valley of Dreams. If you are lost it can be the Valley of Nightmares. It has become part of my routine, getting lost at night. Thankfully there is GPS so you know you will eventually get back to the car. Go out at night, park, hike, take photos, get lost or turned around.

Anyway, this place is called the Valley of Dreams and is in the New Mexico Badlands, located south of Farmington and the Bisti Badlands, and just North of Chaco Canyon. I was looking for interesting places that are not frequented, and this really fits the bill, being located in the middle of nowhere. There are many miles of dirt roads to reach this place. There is not much information on the internet on this area, but an excellent website is: http://ift.tt/1X19xV0. This is near the Ah-shi-sie-pah wilderness and an area called the Wilderness Study area.

This area is like Hoodoo Heaven, with small to medium hoodoos all around. The area pictured is one of the flatter areas, with a number of low ridges all around containing innumerable hoodoos. You are very unlikely to encounter other people here. The hoodoos are primarily mudstone hoodoos, with a softer base and a harder cap. The base erodes faster that the cap and creates many unique formations. More photos are just awaiting processing!

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