The sky was hazy and partially cloudy yesterday evening. I am told that that there is a lot of haze in the air because dust is blowing over from the Sahara region. This is not the first time this has happened, but I decided I would see about some hazy landscape pictures.
was initially thinking black and white, but I just didn’t like the way that looked. Instead I heavily desaturated the greens in the bottom half of the picture so I could keep the yellow in the sky in the top half. The greens are really over-powering without the desaturation.
Below is a photo shot at 20mm followed by a similar one shot at 16mm. I kind prefer the 16mm as there is more framing. But the sun behind the clouds shows better in the 20mm shot. These are both single exposures with no fancy merging.
I also spent a lot of time bringing out the texture of the gnarly juniper branches in the foreground, which meant mainly masking and enhancing the contrast in that area. I really wanted those gray tree branches there for some interesting detail. There is also the hiking trail in the mid-ground, but you have to hunt for it. The photos I took from the other side of the tree seemed kind of boring to me, so I hope these are more interesting. I went back and forth on whether or not to post these at all as I am not sure that they are that great.
The sun went behind the cloud bank on the horizon and I haven’t seen it since, so there was no beautiful sunset to wait around for.
Nikon D750 and 16-35mm f/4 lens.
Jason Frels 
I am glad you posted them. We are always our own worst critcs you know! I like the hazy view, and the juniper branches adds something to the picture. Good idea, and I am glad that there wasn’t something long and green hiding in any of the pictures. 🙂
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I expect one day I will meet up with a rattler out there, but it hasn’t happened yet.
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Well I hope if you meet a rattler that you are far enough away from it to not get bit! Do you carry a big stick with you? 🙂
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No, with snakes if they see you they will run away anyhow and if you are that close to them that they would bite you, it is too late for a big stick.
The venomous snakes are mostly scared of people and go run and hide. The rattlers are making a rattle to let some dumb mammal know to avoid them. I ran across one and I heard its rattle and then saw it. I back away and it took off in the other direction. I think that you can accidentally disturb them where they are hiding and that can cause trouble, but on the open trail I don’t expect a problem.
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I’m not a photographer and am thus unfamiliar with settings and technical details, but I like the 20mm shot the best; the yellow/gold of the dust shows more and the foreground detail looks clearer. I’m in California, where we’re not seeing the Sahara dust. I’ve been reading about it in news and weather reports and wondering what it looks like; yours are the only photos I’ve seen. I love the gnarled wood and perspective from the hiking trail. I was an avid hiker for many years, but my legs won’t take me on the trail anymore. Photos taken from trails hold a special appeal for me. Thank you for your posts.
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Thanks
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They both look equally good to my untrained eye.
When I lived in Turkey, we used to get dust clouds from the Sahara. I’m surprised they’ve traveled as far as Texas.
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It’s a good thing because Texas is notorious for running low on dust.
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Yeah, especially the western half.
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Both great shots and with my non-professional eye, it’s hard to spot the differences. I love them both!
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One is just wider.
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I was hoping the dust would make for some fantastic sunrises and sunsets, but that’s not what happened.
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There was on OK sunset last night. I got a few pictures but haven’t gone through them yet.
It has put some halos around the moon as well.
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