The title was suggested by my daughter for a blog article after my recent photography workshop in Death Valley, California along with my friend. My main reason for taking this workshop was to capture Milky Way Arch. Honestly, all I can think of was capturing the MW Arch. It was a four and half days workshop that was albeit pricey and by the end of it, I felt it was worth every penny and more. It involved waking up between 3AM and 5AM for early morning hikes to catch sunrise and timing sunsets at different locations. At this time of the year, MW rose around 4AM and fades around 5AM in Death Valley.
We arrived at our hotel on a Sunday afternoon, with a dear friend, a fellow photography enthusiast and a more creative sort, (aka better photographer), and I. Our workshop coordinator had some bad news. Death Valley (DV) has cloud coverage and possible rain was predicted for the next day. I was tremendously disappointed. We are at the driest place in US, where some years it doesn’t even rain at all, and our MW session is washed out because of clouds and possible rain on Monday and cloud coverage extending into Tuesday. I began to resonate with the immortal words of Blues great, Albert King, ” Born under a bad sign, Been down since I began to crawl, If it wasn’t for bad luck, You know, I wouldn’t have no luck at all “.
We did some sunset shots at Mesquite Dunes, with very fiery sky, and did some sunrise shots at Mesquite Dunes, morning at Mosaic Canyon shooting and spent rest of the day at Artist Palette. The rare cloudy day at Death Valley took on an impossible sky view with clouds playing tricks on eyes.
Clouds with dramatic colors.
Mesquite Dunes Sunset
Sunrise at Mesquite Dunes.
On the way back from Artist Palette to our hotel, we saw our leader stopped by at a different locations to shoot sand dunes. We came back to our rooms and as my friend was getting ready for the evening discussion session, I went back to the location from where our leader was shooting the sand dunes. I turned back from my view and this is what I found. Nature in its full glory. A horizon to horizon rainbow with a hint of second rainbow OVER Death Valley. How often that happens?
True that no rain, no rainbows. But I did not WANT rain. Horizon to Horizon Rainbow at Death Valley.
All in all it was a fruitful day, if I were to change my point of view from MW Arch at Death Valley to Shooting photos at Death Valley.
Eventually rain gods has shown mercy on me and on the last day, the sky cleared. Though the elusive (to me) MW arch is too early in the season to be seen, I have managed to capture a few MW shots. Here is one of them.
Even though my existential angst about not able to shoot the MW arch has not dissipated, the trip was a fantastic experience. I met some great photographers and enthusiasts, kind souls who would not for a minute hesitate to share their knowledge, a great workshop leader and his co-leader who is a forest ranger, both are absolutely wonderful gentlemen, with patience aplenty, great knowledge about locations, and very knowledgeable and creative photographers. Attending the workshop, I have learned something about myself, got out of my comfort zone and perhaps broke some of my (imaginary perhaps) internal barriers in the journey of self-discovery. It was more than a transactional experience.
It was the other views or aspects of the trip that helped me to be a better self. Not bad all considering I did not get to shoot MW arch.
