Death Valley, Badwater Basin and a chapel on a hill

My last day in Death Valley was a mix of spectacular, dramatic light and a wind storm that kept intensifying. After my stop at Artists Palette I headed south to Badwater Basin. The National Park Service placed a sign here saying that it’s the lowest point in North America. What’s really freaky is looking high up at the marker for sea level. You’ve undoubtedly seen photographs of hexigon-shaped formations in the salt flats.

Hiking into the Badwater Basin salt flat

I probably hiked a mile to find a composition that I liked. The light and clouds were getting dramatic while I searched for a foreground to anchor the photograph. Some anxiety can creep in when the clock is ticking.

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More challenging than anything else was the wind. You might recall that the wind storm was significant at Artists Palette. By the time I found a composition that was truly compelling that wind had to be over 40 mph. While setting up my tripod my hat was blown off. As it tumbled across the salt flat I said a quiet apology for the unintentional litter.

Compose the frame, hold down the tripod, shield the camera from the howling wind, trigger the shutter then repeat for some insurance. It was a good thing I made a few exposures because the wind affected focus significantly in a few frames.

The hike back was no picnic. Don’t get me wrong, I love an adventure but it was definitely time to go. A mile back, half walking, half jogging while leaning into the wind makes for a pretty good story. Ask me about that over a beer some time. Maybe I’ll share the video later.

Heading home and a chapel on a hill

The idiot lights on the car dashboard stayed off for the whole trip home. Yes, I’m getting the bad tire pressure sensor replaced tomorrow morning. I chose a route that would take me through Paso Robles because there’s an absurdly photogenic chapel that was built on top of a pretty little hill.

To be totally honest. writing about this spot worries me because it’s got potential to be “loved to death.” Serra Chapel has been a favorite spot of mine for a few years. Photographing it in quality light with an interesting sky was something I just couldn’t pass up. If you plan to visit this site then please treat it kindly.

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