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Picture of the day - January 30, 2009
Daybreak at Mesquite Sand Dunes
Photo courtesy of
Dave Toussaint.
(Click the photo for a larger view)
Many folks prefer to spend their early mornings lying in bed,
oblivious to the dawning of each new day. But for others, daybreak
is the perfect time to be out and about as the rising sun transforms
the landscape into a magnificent work of art the likes of which you
simply cannot experience at any other time.
Photographer Dave Toussaint got up early a few days ago to take some
early morning photographs at Death Valley, and today's picture shows
the result of his effort. The following is his story behind the
image:
"This photograph was taken at the Mesquite Sand Dunes in Death
Valley National Park near Stovepipe Wells, CA. To take this photo
I
headed out well before sunrise and trekked the mile to the east
end
of the dunes - this is the area least visited by tourists and
with
that, no footprints! Plus the smaller dunes on the eastside
are more
interesting than the larger dunes to the west.
This photo was taken at 6:33am, 40 minutes before sunrise. This
is
also an HDR photo merging five images. I used a Canon EOS 40D
with manual focus
and
manual settings. 17mm lens, ISO 100, Auto
White Balance and Evaluative Metering. From there I just bracketed
my images."
--Dave Toussaint
Mr. Toussaint invites you to visit these galleries where you'll find
more of his wonderful images:
Visitor Comments...
Name: Rick Rouse
Town: Abingdon, VA
Love the beautiful colors - great job!
Name: Maxine Meadows
Town: Little Rock, AR
I have always thought of Death Valley as a place to be avoided at
all costs, but this amazing photograph had changed my mind.
Absolutely stunning!
Name: Tony Heathcock
Town: Perth, Australia
Photographs like this remind me of why I plan to visit the United
States at the earliest possible opportunity.
Name: Phyllis Helton
Town: Bristol, VA
Oh! Wow!!
Name: Tim Briggs
Town: Santa Clarita, CA
Amazing shot....this was well worth getting up early and making the
hike before sunrise. Well done!
Name:
Winston
"Rocky" Rockwell
Town: Kirkland, WA
Mr. Toussaint has done a masterful job capturing the fabulous colors
of a desert sunrise. HDR images often seem artificial and
"overdone", but this one is simply exquisite. Well done, Mr.
Toussaint!
Name: Timothy Landreux
Town: Lake Charles, LA
Fantastic shot you have there Mr. Toussaint! Wonderfully colorful,
and so tastefully done!
Name: Cheria Rouse
Town: Abingdon, VA
Yeah, this is one for puzzle material. I don't usually like this
type photo, but this one is certainly an exception. (don't faint
Rick).
Name: Ron Trees
Town: Spokane, WA
Simply amazing photo today!! The colors are just out of this world.
NO BODY can paint like our Heavenly Father. Mr. Toussaint, my hat is
off to you!! You have done an amazing job here.
Name: Dave Toussaint
Town: Riverside, CA
Thanks for the kind comments on my photo. I recently got into HDR
and try and keep it looking a bit surreal without going to the
extreme some folks do.
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