Tone Poems in Blue & White: White Sands NM Photo Gallery by Derek von Briesen at pbase.com

Tone Poems in Blue & White: White Sands NM

Aaahhhh . . . what more can be said about White Sands National Monument, . . . a photographic treasure of such extraordinary beauty & limitless
potential that one is left, literally, speechless, atop lonely dunes, in a sea of such, beholding varieties of light & color that sweep this magnificent
landscape in endless patterns of waves, light, and lines?

Watching, searching, seeing, bending, kneeling, crawling, lying prostrate in supplication . . . Surely, you think, he must be mad, speaking in terms of
spiritual reverence and piety. At the very least, . . . a touch melodramatic!

But wait, . . . spend an afternoon there, in the heat of a summer monsoon, watching clouds gather, the sun playing hide & seek,
casting its rays, filtered & direct, here, there & everywhere, each shading of light creating its own special color on the
infinite tabla rasa that is this incredible, indelible white desert.

Or see the sun rise, the horizon subtly saturated in the violets and pale blues of the earth's own shadow.

No less, stay 'til the last breaths of light fade in the evening, contemplating the most sureal variety of colors in the sky and sand at sunset.

Stay 'til the journey back to civilization is fraught with danger, a baited breath game of landmarks and route-finding
over a thirty minute hike with little or no depth perception in the dark, fifty foot tumbles down steep dune faces
threatening every step of the way. Try & keep your eyes adjusted and focused, an effort almost certain to fail as the lush, luminous moon rises full in an eastern sky.

Take great care, for you could miss the road & walk forever (or at least much of the night), although a summer's night in the dunes might not be too bad . . .

Always remember, in the words of naturalist author Charles Bowdoin, to “look and listen and close your eyes and feel.”
“In short,” he implores, “become like a photograph and take in what is before you.”

What you will see, to quote Lawrence Cheek, is “vastness defined, . . .[a] lesson in the power of landscape to seize the imagination and trigger a transcendent moment.”

Transcendent? Indeed! Melodramatic? Hell, yes!! Slightly mad? Probably! . . .

But judge ye not . . . instead, spend a day there, sunrise to sunset, dawn to dusk, and you’ll come to smile knowingly. Go ahead, try & wipe it off your face!!

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comment |

Darrel Giesbrecht		05-Aug-2017 15:06
great gallery Derek!

Reykjavik Impressions / Stefán Ólafsson		24-Nov-2015 23:20
Fabulous images! VVV

Karen Moen		03-Dec-2014 23:29
I am amazed with the high quality of your work as you capture light, shadow, color and strong compositions. You are a true artist. Voted.

Will Hoskins		09-Oct-2013 03:51
These are quite simply the best pictures from White Sands I have ever seen. V

Tony		29-Nov-2009 15:11
Incredible tones, fantastic shots !

stoge		29-Nov-2009 01:02
Simply Beautiful! Awesome!V!

Giancarlo Guzzardi		26-Nov-2009 10:30
great work and compositions

G.Pietro Munaretto		24-Nov-2009 16:09
excellent work

Pedro Libório		23-Nov-2009 20:36
absolutly fantastic gallery!! my vote

Guest		02-Jun-2008 01:44
I can't vote. I would choose each one for a different reason. The clouds make and break a few, but what they lack in spectacular sky you make up for with placed impact. I'm impressed.

Guest		23-May-2008 17:46
Are you kidding me? Long Sigh.................thank you for sharing this! I am again blown away. Absolutely Beautiful!

carol j. phipps		14-Nov-2007 01:59
This is fabulous. V

G.Pietro Munaretto		11-Nov-2007 10:26
Wonderful gallery!!!

Guest		05-Nov-2007 01:36
Stunning gallery! Each image is exceptional. (Miriam)

anuschka		02-Oct-2007 09:39
Big vote for something special, love your words too! V.

Didier Vanderperre		30-Sep-2007 21:09
Spectacular work, as usual.

John Amato		28-Sep-2007 01:47
Fluid and enjoyable. thank you for sharing. V

Guest		25-Sep-2007 22:32
very beautiful gallery ! lights colours great composition vote!

Guest		25-Sep-2007 22:31
very beautiful gallery ! lights colours great composition vote!

Sandi Whitteker		24-Sep-2007 14:37
Love these pictures! White isn't easy to shoot! Well done. V

Guest		22-Sep-2007 15:08
Derek, this is the most elegant gallery ever seen in this site. How you say: is a poeme compliments

Dmitri Markine		21-Sep-2007 18:20
very nice and vivid..voted

H2M		21-Sep-2007 08:50
Beautiful gallery. Excellent work with ligth, shadows and tones. V. Hélène

Marc Demoulin		21-Sep-2007 06:39
Impressive place! Great colection. V. Marc

Guest		21-Sep-2007 00:55
Wonderful gallery! Big vote!

Guest		19-Sep-2007 20:16
Excellent gallery! Great compositions.

Guest		19-Sep-2007 17:19
Excellent textures and compositions.

Mihai		19-Sep-2007 09:50
Fabulous Gallery !! vote !

Kathy Thompson		19-Sep-2007 08:35
Superb gallery with many stunning images. Throughly enjoyed viewing them.

Kathy		19-Sep-2007 05:34
What beauty, captured so lovingly. Thank you.

Susanne v. Schroeder		18-Sep-2007 11:37
Thanks for letting us follow in your footsteps (missed the tumbles though...) Marvelous images!!

Guest		18-Sep-2007 10:52
beautiful pics

Guest		18-Sep-2007 04:33
The attention to form is wonderful. v

Charles Lasnier		17-Sep-2007 07:13
Subtle and powerful!

Milos Markovic		16-Sep-2007 19:20
Beautiful gallery, Derek! Great compositions and textures. Voted

regi olbrechts		16-Sep-2007 09:28
Indeed a very nice, delicate general tone Derek. Great compositions too. Bravo.

Guest		16-Sep-2007 00:15
Great gallery with so beautiful images. Congrats, Derek. V

an nguyen		15-Sep-2007 01:30
It is an awe inspiration images. Simple and stunning.

Guest		14-Sep-2007 22:18
Fantastic!! Vote!

Steve Sharp		14-Sep-2007 02:29
Well this one definitely deserves a vote!

William Hartshorn		12-Sep-2007 19:40
Amazing Gallery once again Derek! You truly know the times and places. One of my favorite locations!! Great imagery... ~V~

Richard Calmes		12-Sep-2007 19:25
I love these images! Great variety and well framed! V

Larry55 Smith		12-Sep-2007 19:03
Outrageous, world-class photography. Simply a stunning repertoire of images from a fantastic place. You simply NAILED these, Derek. I am in awe. Larry

Azlin Ahmad		12-Sep-2007 10:05
It's hard to imagine that such a place can exist! The landscape is stunning, as is the photography. V

Dean Hueber		12-Sep-2007 04:47
Excellent work, Derek...truly glorious!!!

Franz and Renate Rosenberger		11-Sep-2007 23:41
Derek, Thank you for this outstanding gallery! Franz.

Dave Wyman		11-Sep-2007 22:58
Terrific compositions for what some would consider to be a largely featureless terrain.

Guest		11-Sep-2007 20:02
Another Fantastic Gallery! Derek will definately have to put this on my itinerary for a future trip...

Yves Rubin		11-Sep-2007 18:58
Superb work you have created here Derek! Big vote!

Tomasz Dziubinski - Photography		11-Sep-2007 18:31
Great gallery, fine collection of a beautiful images, Vote.

Guest		11-Sep-2007 18:25
This is a gallery of real quality. The tones are beautiful and the lightin is stunnin! ~voted~ Mike :o)

Gus Rosenfeld		11-Sep-2007 17:49
Such an intense high quality gallery; it's really quite overwhelming. You were definitely on a mission to get what wasn't available before. You had plenty of time between trips to design and plot your prey. Or, to pray to your plot. You did a bang up job - couldn't be any better Derek. You made some unique moves on this photographic date; well received. g

Gary Stanley		11-Sep-2007 17:08
Breath taking gallery!

desertgirl		11-Sep-2007 17:01
Awesome work Derek! Very minimalist compositions work so wonderful

Fred Parsons		11-Sep-2007 16:57
Great body of work Derek. The sky was perfect for you. No Flowers? What was the temp there? So many great images would be hard pressed to pick a favorite.

JOhn Galston		11-Sep-2007 16:39
.what an ability you have to capture light, sky and clouds in relationship with the sand......wonderful compositions......

Vikas Malhotra		11-Sep-2007 16:18
Stunning shots, love them. Cheers. V

Brian Klimowski		10-Sep-2007 21:48
Bravo, Derek! Again you've brought out the best in a landscape, and established yourself as a artist of prose to boot! Some phenominal images here...I especially like your minimalistic work with the dunes. Brian

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