2 Days of Photography in Death Valley National Park

Written By Lang Smith

When planning a trip specifically for photography, it is best to outline precisely what you want to accomplish. When exploring such beautiful places, it is easy to get mesmerized by your surroundings and get lost in the sheer beauty of the landscape you’re in without a project or goal. These goals, or projects as I call them, help you stay focused on the task as a photographer, keep you energized and excited throughout the trip, and ultimately help give you a sense of accomplishment when the trip is complete. You’ll still have plenty of time to enjoy the beauty, wherever your adventures take you.

Death Valley National Park is no exception to the rule. As the largest National Park in the Lower 48 and spanning over 3.4 million acres, planning was essential for a successful trip. I spent time researching the best places for sunrises and sunsets, must-see landscapes and triple-checking that the weather was great for photography and safe for me. Below are the 3 Projects I decided to take on for this trip, and a few other sites I thought were worth a stop.

My Projects:

  • Sunrise at Zabriskie Point

  • Sunset at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes

  • Sunrise Badwater Basin

Other sites to see while in the park:

  • Artist’s Drive

  • Devil’s Golf Course

  • Darwin Falls

  • Aguereberry Point

Sony A7Riii, 1/80 s at f/11.0-0.3, ISO 200, Focal Length 46.0mm

Sunrise at Zabriskie Point

Zabriskie Point is one of the most popular vistas in Death Valley National Park, but I expected the mixture of textures, contrast of colors, and the multitude of crevices would create a dramatic and interesting composition of light, shadows and color. I knew I wanted to capture first light hitting Manly Beacon with the Panamint Mountain Range in the background and Red Cathedral to the right.

Day 1 of my winter trip was calling for clear skies which is exactly what I wanted for my shot at Zabriskie Point. I took plenty of photographs as the sun rose knowing I would merge one of the more dramatic sky pictures with one of the sun hitting Manly Beacon and the badland ridges & crevices.

If you decide to photograph Zabriskie Point I recommend getting there early, as this is a very popular place to photograph the sunrise. The result after final editing is to the left.

 

Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes

After spending the day exploring Artist’s Drive & Devils Golf Course, it was time to head to Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. The dunes are surrounded by mountains and after careful planning knowing that a storm was rolling in and the clouds should make a dramatic sunset. I wasn’t disappointed. Because this a very accessible there will be plenty of people searching for that perfect photograph. Consider parking about a half mile before you get to the main parking area, this will allow you access the dunes away from the crowds to find dunes that have not been trampled on, or go after a windy day, this allowed me to have a clean picture. After finding a good spot with fantastic composition and leading lines taking me through the picture, I waited for the sun to create interesting shadows. After the sun set, I was treated with brilliant colors in the clouds. If you have an extra day and a 4-WD vehicle consider Eureka Dunes which is the tallest dunes in California and due to its remoteness there will be no crowds.

Sony A7Riii

1/60 s at f/11, ISO 100

Focal Length 46.0mm

 

Sony A7Riii

1/40 s at f/11, ISO 100

Focal Length 65.0mm

Sunrise at Badwater Basin

Day 2 started with Badwater Basin searching for good polygon salts, which is a natural tessellation creating polygon shapes. There are plenty of studies of why and how these shapes occur, which can be found with a simple google search. Badwater Basin is 282 feet below sea level which makes this the lowest area in North America. My goal was to get these polygon salts in the foreground with the sunrise and mountain ranges in the background. This was going to take two shots with the foreground and background in focus and in post process I would merge the two photos together in what is called focus stacking. Unfortunately, mother nature did not cooperate in large distinct polygon salts, so I worked with what was given to me

Top Left:

Artist’s Palette, the highlight of a nine-mile loop of Artist’s Drive where colors in the rocks come to life in the evening just before sunset.

 

Top Right:

Bridal Falls, after a short hike I was rewarded with these falls.

 

Middle Right:

Devils Golf Course, the floor of Death Valley covering more than 200 square miles it is crusted with a variety of salts. This location, crystalline salt spires dot the landscape. I would hate to play golf here.

 

Bottom:

Aguereberry Point Panorama, after an eight-mile drive, one way, on a windy dirt road, the views were spectacular. Five separate pictures stitched together looking north on the Panamint Range.

Lang Smith