Trekking Through The Great Sand Dunes
What makes the dunes so Mesmerizing is their unique ability to stay the same even as they change
I was going stir crazy. Between lockdowns and quarantines, I just needed to get out of the house. I’m a wanderer at heart and the idea that I wasn’t able to get out and do anything was becoming unbearable. Plus, it had been awhile since I had taken the old Nikon for a spin.
I pulled out the map and there it was, Great Sand Dunes National Park. I’d been there before but I’d never been able to get into the dune field very far. Usually, I went for a day trip with the family to do some sand boarding, but we just never got into the field. I thought about for a few seconds and decided to go. I had most of the day ahead of me and the weather was shaping up pretty nicely. Plus, I could get out and stretch the legs without fear of running into too many people.
Getting out the Door
I grabbed my gear and headed out the door. A few hours later, I was trudging into the dunes. As I’d hoped for, there weren’t too many people out there. Usually, you would find most of the parking lot full and folks coming and going across the dunes. While there’s always plenty of space to roam, you’re bound to come across at least a few people while crossing Medano Creek. Not today, because there weren’t too many cars and fewer people.
As I made my way out to the field, I could feel the wind picking up and blowing sand everywhere. My fear was that it would ruin the outing after making it all the way there. I carried on, hoping it would settle down enough for some decent shots. I’ve been intrigued by shots of sand blowing across the crests of dunes, but I didn’t want to try it today. My camera and lens setup were not ready for a sandstorm, so I was not looking forward to pulling them out in the midst of the blowing sand.
Once I got to the field, though, things started to quiet down. The wind was still blowing, but it wasn’t as fierce. The sand was gently rolling over the tops of the dunes and it really started to soften things up a bit for my shots. I turned southwest and started making my way along the edge of the field, where I was able to get these great shots looking up on the tops of the dunes.
Textures and Patterns
At one point as I was trekking through the sand dunes, I stopped to swap my lens on top of one of the dunes. While sitting there waiting for the wind to drop, I noticed the patterns in the ripples on the dune. This was one of those moments I enjoy about photography. It forces you to slow down, to take in the scene, and to savor the little things that make up the whole. I had to capture this moment, to notice the fine texture of the patterns that were being created on the canvas in front of me – and that’s how I captured Sand Ripples and Footprints in the Sand.
70mm, f/7.1, 1/250 ISO 100
16mm, f/14, 1/40 ISO 100
A View to Sunset
As the November sun was setting, I changed my camera settings to take advantage of its position. I normally shoot landscapes at f/7.1-f/11, but I like the sunbursts my wide angle (Tokina 11-16mm, f/2.8) is able to make at f/18-f/22, so I stopped it down to the lowest setting first and started playing with compositions and settings. Ultimately, I loved the f/22 aperture the most on this scene, but I did jump between the two positions, as you can see below.
16mm, f/18, 1/50 ISO 100
16mm, f/22, 1/40 ISO 100
For all of us technical geeks, I like to keep my ISO at 100 unless I absolutely have to step it up because of low light. I know most people say that you don’t notice too much graininess in the photo until you get around ISO 1600, but any grain drives me nuts when I’m in post-process. Say what you will, but I prefer to find some other way to compensate for low light if I can help it. Anyways, enough of that. Let’s get back to enjoying the sunset.
The wind died down as the sun set, so I took a few moments to just soak it all in. As the last rays jumped from the horizon, I just sat there thanking God for all of the little blessings He’s sent my way each and every day. Finally, as dusk settled in, I made my trek back to my car for the ride home. Every so often, I just kind of looked back to see my footprints disappearing into the shifting sands, kind of like those moments that pass us each day.
