Full Moon Death Valley shoot

[Denise Fuson]

Hi, all.
I will be traveling to DV next week and my shooting buddy had to cancel. I'm looking for a photographer interested in shooting the dunes at night and/or hiring a "guide" to come along for a 4-5 hour shoot. I've contacted the Chamber of Commerce in Lone Pine and Death Valley with no hits. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Denise

[John Kasaian]

Watch out for snakes with big sharp teeth :eek:

You could try contacting the rangers at the info desk at DV as they could likely help.

Did I mention snakes with big sharp teeth?

[jetcode]

Hi, all.
I will be traveling to DV next week and my shooting buddy had to cancel. I'm looking for a photographer interested in shooting the dunes at night and/or hiring a "guide" to come along for a 4-5 hour shoot. I've contacted the Chamber of Commerce in Lone Pine and Death Valley with no hits. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Denise

contact Galen Rowell's

http://www.mountainlight.com/

surely someone there will know someone in the area, the gallery is awesome too.

[Eric Woodbury]

There may be a NPS photographer in residence in DV. There was many years ago. Call the park and ask.

[anchored]

In March we spent 1-1/2 weeks shooting Death Valley and the surrounding areas... an awe-inspiring place. We had scheduled only 4-days in DV with the balance of the trip in Zion, but we fell so in love with DV the entire trip was devoted to it (had previously been to Zion anyways, and this was the 1st time in DV).

You shouldn't need a guide to shoot the Dunes... the higher and most impressive peaks are easily seen from driving around and pre-scouting, and the dunes do not cover all that large an area. However, if help or information is wanted, do talk to the park rangers (an office located right near the Dunes). The rangers there were among the most helpful of any NP I've ever visited.

One word of advice about shooting the Dunes... you really need to shoot them right after a rain or windy day. The sand-boarders and kids tramping up and down the area tracks up the area really bad... and at times there's loads of people there tracking up the place... everywhere! The Dunes attracts some of the largest of crowds at the park (especially with lodging right across the street from them)... and most of them seem to enjoy walking up and sliding down the sides of the large sand dunes.

Pristine sand can only be found after rain or wind erases tracks left by others on all but the most minimally sized dunes. We found that sand conditions were perhaps as important as sky and light conditions when shooting there... sand dune pics with hundreds of footprints and tracks left from those sliding down the tallest dunes are less than impressive.

Didn't see a single snake... although some the lizards and beetles and rabbits did look rather intimidating.....

[James E Galvin]

You don't need a guide for the dunes, they are in plain sight from the road and marked on the map you get at the Ranger station. Perhaps a 1/2 mile hike to them. The Eureka dunes are different, a long gravel road. If you break down in the wilderness this time of year, it might be serious trouble. Temperature is expected to be up to 113 in the next few days, so carry LOTS of water. The Rangers can give good advice. I haven't tried the dunes at night, I think they are best at sunrise and sunset. I also haven't seen any dangerous animals in 10 years of vacations there, although rattlesnakes are said to exist.

[Kevin Crisp]

On foot tracks in the dunes, park a little bit further east on the road from where everybody else parks. The sight seeing crowds park just opposite the biggest dune and walk straight in. If you go a big further east and walk in, the only tracks will be yours. The small and medium sized dunes in my opinion are more interesting subjects that the biggest dunes anyway, and when isolated on the ground glass you can't tell if it was a big one or a small one anyway with no footprints.

In terms of needing a guide, this is about 1/2 mile to 1 mile of hiking each way not counting walking around to compose your shots. It would be really hard to get lost out there since you can see the road from the dunes and every now and then (even at night) somebody drives by. Good luck.

[David Luttmann]

Hi, all.
I will be traveling to DV next week and my shooting buddy had to cancel. I'm looking for a photographer interested in shooting the dunes at night and/or hiring a "guide" to come along for a 4-5 hour shoot. I've contacted the Chamber of Commerce in Lone Pine and Death Valley with no hits. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Denise

I'll be there in November or December....can't help out now. Please do let us know how it goes with a few sample pics as well.

Good luck.

[Tori Nelson]

Make sure you have some sort of electrolyte replenishing fluid, such as Gatorade, as well as water. If you are drinking only water you run the risk of sweating out all the good stuff your body needs to help regulate itself. Heat exhaustion or even heat stroke is a real danger in DV this time of year. Read up on the warning signs before you go.

[Glenn Thoreson]

Don't put your hands or feet under anything. That's where the snakies are during the daytime. At night, they come out to hunt. They're not hunting you, though, and unless they feel like they're in danger, they don't pose a threat to those who keep their eyes and ears open. I've had to catch and move many assorted snakes. They would rather escape and run away if they could. Unless they're mad.
If you break down or have an accident in the desert, stay with your car. This is very important. There are lots of people and someone will pass by fairly soon. Enjoy your trip. I wish I could be there.

[Dave Wooten]

"Ranger Bob", posts on APUG and I believe is still currently working in DV.

[Denise Fuson]

Thank you all for some great suggestions!!! "Guide" would have been more accurately described as "someone to keep the boogyman away". I'm familiar with the dunes, but haven't ventured into them in the night by my lonesome...and those long night exposures really can have the imagination going wild, you know.
D

[Kevin Crisp]

You will be all alone. It is too hot and dry for the Bogyman this time of year. I would watch where you put your feet when you walk out there, but then that is a good idea everywhere in Death Valley after it warms up and the snakes come out.

[Kevin Crisp]

The most frightening thing you will encounter is the price of regular at the Chevron station at Furnace Creek. It was $4.85 in March and that was before the current run up.

[anchored]

Oh... there's one added accessory you'll want to be sure to include... a flashlight (and one big enough to see to walk). Walking on the dunes themselves by moonlight is easy enough even without a flashlight, but to get to the dunes you'll be crossing rock strewn flats.

[John Z.]

The most important thing about photographing the dunes is to get there early to catch the early morning light. It takes longer than you realize to hike over to the main dunes, and you have to start before dawn, but not necessarily when it is still dark out. The best early morning light only lasts for about an hour. Other reasons to be at the dunes very early are to beat the heat, and also to avoid having all the footprints from hikers that you will find later.

[Kevin Crisp]

I'm not so sure that the most important thing in planning a night shoot of the dunes in Death Valley is to get there to catch the early morning light.

[Dave Wooten]

I d suggest going in at sundown, setting up and waiting, I have witnessed just at and after sundown, the wind often picks up and can be a real deal breaker. Snakes have been mentioned, you probably won t get to see one, but they are out now and frisky, it is mating season. The bogey man will not bother you and the skinwalkers are actually quite accomodating to photographers.

[Brian Vuillemenot]

Another very useful thing to bring on the dunes is a GPS. Mark the position of your car before you start your hike so you can find your way back at night. Once I hiked out the afternoon in in what seemed like a straight line, and then hiked back to the position I thought my car was in. I actually overshot it in the wrong direction, and then continued walking away from it for about 45 minutes before I figured out I was going in the wrong direction. It was a moonless night, so the only light I had to go by as a landmark was the lights from Stovepipe Wells a few miles down the road.

My favorite time to photograph those dunes is just around sunrise. There's something very magical and fulfilling about hiking out to the dunes in the dark, seeing the gradual changing of the light, and then photographing the dunes as they effervese with a sublime glow for just a few minutes right at sunrise. A few minutes later and the light is flat, boring, and photographically worthless. Here's a 4X10 shot from my most recent trip out there last year.

[jetcode]

Brian I agree about morning light and your latest is simply beautiful

[jetcode]

You don't need a guide for the dunes, they are in plain sight from the road ...

True however my first week in DV was guided by a pro and I saw it all. Something that would not have happened if I did it on my own.

[Hugo Zhang]

Brian,

That's a beautiful shot!

[Dave Wooten]

What Hugo said!

[Brian Vuillemenot]

Thanks guys!