Travel Photography: Desert Road Trip

Course details

Every type of location presents its own photographic challenges. For the stark wilderness of Death Valley National Park, these can include harsh desert light, stark landscapes, and a vastness that can be daunting to capture in a single frame. In this course, travel along with author, teacher, and photographer Ben Long to Death Valley to learn about the challenges and techniques behind capturing the exotic beauty and surprising details of the desert.

Learning objectives
Looking at the light
Composing a shot to show rock texture
Taking a shot with haze and working it in post
Shooting sand dunes in changing light
Exploring the vistas for a more dramatic shot
Understanding the pace of a place

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Intro to desert landscape photography
02 - Understanding where this course will take us

1. Desert Roadtrip - Day One

03 - Looking at the light on day one
04 - Getting a shot that includes the road
05 - Why shoot in places you've shot before
06 - Shooting in the old mining town of Ballarat
07 - Working a shot with an old truck as a subject
08 - Composing a shot to show texture in Devil's Golf Course
09 - Racing the light to get the last shot of the day

2. Desert Roadtrip - Day Two

10 - Exploring the plan for day two
11 - Taking a shot with haze and working it in post
12 - Shooting the sand dunes in changing light
13 - Wrapping up the sand dune shots

3. Desert Roadtrip - Day Three

14 - Planning out the third day
15 - Exploring the light in the dry lake bed
16 - Working the light in the dry lake bed
17 - What to do when the good light is gone
18 - Exploring the vistas for a more dramatic shot
19 - Composing the vista shot
20 - Evaluating the vista shot

4. Wrapping Up the Trip

21 - Understanding the pace of a place
22 - Wrapping up the trip