great basin

Landscape Photography: Snow Recce in Antelope Valley CA

D. Craig Young · March 4, 2021 · 1 Comment

Snow filled the valleys of the western Great Basin at the end of January, when lake-effect squalls, energized as they traversed Lake Tahoe, cycled through the valleys southeast of the lake. We approached two feet of coverage at St0neHeart, with deep drifts along fence lines and out-buildings. So early on a Sunday morning, I decided to chase the light while the snow was still fresh and deep in the fields and foothills of Antelope Valley, across the state line but not far from home.

There had been rumors of fog in the forecast, but the the pre-dawn sky was clear. As I traversed the ranch roads that crisscrossed the ranchlands of the valley bottom, little motivated me to leave the warmth of the truck, it was 18F (-8C) along the Walker River. Cattle barely noticed me, refusing to lift their heads from their early-morning feed.

I ventured into the pinyon hills of public land on the valley’s east side, but the deep snow and bunchy trees turned me back. As I regained the truck, I noticed a heron gliding along an irrigation ditch banked in snow and willows. It disappeared on wide wings, seeming to drop into the snow. I eventually found the bird patiently watching riffles in the flowing water, a slight bit of turbulence at a confluence of ditches. It made sense that any morning meal would have to pass this now-dangerous intersection with a great blue heron (Ardea herodias) in waiting.

**Waiting**. A Great Blue Heron patient in the cold.

I too waited. The heron never moved. I finally crept slowly away. Full disclosure: I never left my truck — resting my long lens in the window and sharing time with one of my favorite birds.

Antelope Valley Collection

I had basically given up for the morning and turned for home. I had the one image of the heron (or, at least, I would get one from the several I’d captured) and was happy with that. But from the highway I saw strange patterns, starting with perfect circles on the ice of Topaz Lake — still frozen at its southern shore. I’m still not sure how they form, but the simple pattern turned me around and I found a pullout above the steep drop to the lake.

**Topaz spots**. Abstractions in the ephemeral ice of Topaz Lake.

**Connection**. Some patterns are too cool to explain.

I was happy to have stopped to check the patterns. For a popular lake typically overrun with boats of all kinds, I have had some very good, quiet images from its shores. And it can be very nice that it usually presents these things as one passes on Highway 395.

Further north I caught sight of a string of mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) moving slowly in their beaten trail. Bounding occasionally to clear obstacles I could not see. It was the spacing that caught my eye. It’s a wide image, so give it a click and get the full view (note: you can do this with all images at Trail Option, usually).

**Leading line**. A well-spaced group of mule deer on slopes of the eastern Sierra.

Antelope Valley Collection

Some times short trips, with few expectations, give the best results — all within 30 miles of home.

Keep going.

Please respect the natural and cultural resources of our public lands.

#naturefirst #keepgoing

Quinn River and the Sentinel

D. Craig Young · June 1, 2018 · Leave a Comment

**Slumbering Hills**. My mild attempt to bring out the light of Maynard Dixon, Great Basin Desert, NV, USA

I have been camped for a little more than a week with an archaeological team in the Quinn River Valley of northern Nevada. Our work focuses on the vast, natural obsidian sources of the Double H and Montana Mountains that rise west of the valley’s broad sagebrush and agricultural land. I have been doing research on obsidian sources in this area of northern Nevada, off and on, for over twenty years, and I am still amazed by the complexity of these ancient volcanic rocks. Of course, I enjoy every opportunity to get into this part of the Nevada outback. While we document the obsidian and archaeological sites throughout the source areas, I get time in the early mornings and late evenings to practice and capture compositions around our project area.

Quinn River Collection

**Sentinel morning**. First light is always fun. Seems a little unbalanced due to the dark outcrop. This is an HDR merge of two images. 1/15 sec, f/22, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, 17-40mm (38mm).

**Sentinel moonset**. The wide angle almost loses the moon. 1/25 sec, f/14, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, 17-40mm (17mm).

Sentinel Rock is a prominent landmark on the western side of the Quinn River Valley. I am on the road early one morning—the morning with a few clouds—to hike the ridge to the volcanic plug. I circle the outcrop to capture the sunrise and the moonset. The images are nice, but I struggle with how to work with the dynamic range while expressing the feeling of early morning light.

The clouds built into isolated and short-lived afternoon thunderstorms, so I worked into the evening to watch the light play on the mountains. I undoubtedly spent too much time on the big views of the light, as I often do, and this results in a general lack of clear subject or foreground interest in many of the images from the Quinn River evenings. It is a basic limitation of moving between camp and the project area, or heading out quickly at the end of a field day; there is little time to get settled into a specific place and find a story or compose one or two thoughtful images that highlight the experience of this part of the Great Basin.

**Orovada rocks**. The rainbows have faded, but the post-storm show had one more curtain-call. 1/20 sec, f/14, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, 70-200mm (168mm).

**Camp after rain**. Our field camp in the Quinn River Valley. 0.4 sec, f/22, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, 24-70mm (55mm).

I like this challenge, but I remain on a slow learning curve. So, my shots remain disconnected snippets of my time along the Quinn River, and yet, there are a couple favorites here that will inhabit my portfolio collection for the near future.

**Scratched**. Rock lines in the talus of Crowley Creek, the view from the Sentinel. I’m always on the lookout for animal tracks, scaled or not. 1/500 sec, f/8, ISO 400; Canon 80D, 70-200mm (168mm).

**Red-winged sentinel**. This noisy friend (Agelaius phoeniceus) followed me through the wetlands of Crowley Creek. 1/320 sec, f/4.5, ISO 200; Canon 80D, 70-200mm (168mm).

**One**. A lone sego lily (*Calochortus nuttallii*) in the sagebrush of Thacker Canyon. 1/1250 sec, f/5, ISO 200; Canon 80D, 24-70mm (53mm).

**Camp host**. A Great Horned Owl (*Bubo virginianus*) at rest in the mid-day, but keeping close eye on me. 1/130 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400; Canon 80D, 70-200 mm (180mm).

Quinn River Collection

Keep going.

Holiday at Planet X

D. Craig Young · November 24, 2017 · Leave a Comment

One of my favorite respites from road-weary travel in the Black Rock – High Rock country of northern Nevada is a stop at Planet X Pottery. John and Rachel have become great friends over several decades of occasional, but all-too-rare, visits to their home and gallery northwest of Gerlach. Our shelves are lined with the basin-born art, pieces having evolved to daily utensils that maintain our connection to the desert at the foot of the Granite Range.

We went out to visit John and Rachel and to share Thanksgiving dinner, taking a holiday break with a drive into northwestern Nevada. We are rarely confined here at StoneHeart, but we will take any opportunity to shrink into the space of the Smoke Creek Desert. The forecast called for a chance of an early-season, slider storm. Hard to predict where the fast-moving fronts will have an impact, but they usually provide an active sky.

Planet X Collection

I took some time in the evening to follow the build-up of moody skies. I circled the property, walking the desert in search of compositions that would give a sense of space while also highlighting some subject of interest. I kept coming to views of the Planet X gallery set against the changing skies. John and Rachel often use images of the gallery and its desert habitat to advertise gallery shows and to highlight its unique setting. I thought I might try to add a few to their collection, a thankful expression of many years of welcoming visits and a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner to come.

**Wind vane, Great Basin, Nevada**. Installation on Smoke Creek Desert.

**The vanishing at Planet X**. I love lonely, straight-line roads, especially where good friends are found. 1/50 sec, f/8, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, Sigma 20mm F1.4.

**First storm**. The skies turned ominous in the late evening of Thanksgiving. The storm, however, passed us by — dramatic decoration only. 0.5 sec, f/8, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, EF 17-40mm F4L (17mm).

The skies cleared in the early morning. After a few very early excursions outside the house, watching the constellations spin above the desert, I drove into the pre-dawn darkness to work on a series of sunrise shots in the arroyo of Squaw Creek west of the gallery. These are the kinds of images I really want to make work. Arid landscapes with prominent landforms or compelling evidence of geomorphic process and change—highlighting the beauty, subtlety, curiosity, and occasional drama of the natural systems of deserts and mountains. High hopes, and though unsuccessful this morning, I enjoyed, as always, engaging the landforms and watching the light of the morning come alive. It was good practice.

**Arroyo dawn**. Waching sunrise over Squaw Creek arroyo at the margin of the Smoke Creek Desert. If I am going to highlight landforms, I need to compose with their features as clear subjects of interest. The sunrise dominates this composition. 1/4 sec, f/16, ISO 100; Canon 5Div, EF 17-40 F4L (17mm).

I spent the mid-morning wandering the gallery taking hand-held stills of the beautiful habitat of art and life around the gallery. This was not something I’d practiced at all previously and I enjoyed the outcome.

**Morning bell**. A scene from the porch gallery at Planet X. 1/160 sec, f/7.1, ISO 100; Canon 80D, EF 24-70 F4L (35mm).

**Wheels and wood**. Looking for patterns and contrast. 1/640 sec, f/5, ISO 100; Canon 80D, EF 24-70 F4L (26mm).

**Broken window**. Painted ceramic by John Bogard; my favorite of his motifs. 1/125 sec, f/5, ISO 100; Canon 80D, EF 24-70 F4L (42mm).

Planet X Collection

Thanks so much to John and Rachel for our holiday escape to Planet X. We will return with pies someday soon.

Keep going.