SAND DUNES 19 © 2007

Death Valley National Park, CA

Our first experience with Death Valley was a summer trip with our kids in our RV. Not realizing how hot the valley got in the summer, we didn’t stay but one night. The heat was so overwhelming that I couldn’t see anything to photograph. When we returned in 2006 to give a workshop, I was stunned by the beauty of the place. After the workshop was finished, Niki and I stayed behind to do some of our own photography. The textures and formations found in the valley are a photographer’s dream. I was looking for an area where the dunes were untouched with no footprints, so I hiked about a mile to reach this particular place. As I walked up into the dunes I was overwhelmed with their sculptural beauty. Once again, everywhere I turned was a photographic opportunity. I used my 5×7″ large-format view camera and 72mm lens to capture this image. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde. Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click here.