The Big Three / Personal Relationships (with the land)

All of us that have a passion for photographing the land have special places that we prefer over all others. I am no different. Developing a relationship with the land and the locations where we commit our photographic intent, is just like making a good human friend. It can take time. Places that become special to me, become an entire living organism. They have a personality of their own. They have a mood or atmosphere that I can identify with. They leave me with great memories. My three favorite spots (best friends) are all locations that I have visited and photographed multiple times. It can take time to develop a special friendship. Certainly I have found the great places of the high desert sandstone territory of the southwest the most magnificent to make eye-popping images. Each of those spots that I have visited have received only one visit by me. Enough for me to love and appreciate these great places but not enough for me to become a life long friend. I treasure life above the clouds in the Rocky Mountains and the high country of the Pacific Northwest, but they are not my favorite places to create landscapes. Below are my personal favorites. What are yours?

Morgan Falls/Chequamegan National Forest/Wisconsin

It is no accident that my first friend is located in my home state of Wisconsin. It’s location is around five hours from my home. I met Morgan Falls over twenty years ago. Back in those days there were no signs to guide you through the dirt forestry roads to this fairly remote spot. My first trip was made in the early morning darkness on roads that were barely driveable. I already liked Morgan Falls. Your short hike began by walking over or through a small stream. It was 22 degrees on my initial trip and I proceeded to crash through the ice. When I completed my photography and made my way back to my car, my socks (and feet) were still ice-covered. I was cold at the time but this only served to create another good memory. The path was etched along the side of the hill, and to get the broadest view of the falls you once again had to dance your way across the creek that is Morgan Falls. The trip is easier today but you still have to “dance with the river rocks” in order to get both views of the falls. I have developed my relationship with this quiet little spot by visiting MF over a dozen times in all four seasons. Only on my final visit in 2009 have I ever met another person along the trail or at the falls. My relationship with the falls is intensely personal. I wish for each of you a quiet little friend somewhere near your home.

White Sands National Monument/New Mexico

There is no place I would rather be when my mood guides me to create landscapes made of texture, pattern and light. White Sands is graphically pure and the gypsum sand absorbs whatever light nature is providing at the moment. I have been pleased to photograph White Sands on three occasions and each visit provided better images. That’s how good friends are. You learn their subtle personality quirks and in the end they come through like champions. White Sands is a very special place for me. With all of the workshops that I have taught through the years I have always regretted never teaching at White Sands. Sand dune parks in general and White Sands in particular are full of compositional tools for the creation of landscapes. They are teachers in and of themselves. They teach how to make landscapes that visually guide the viewer through the scene. You become acutely aware of the direction of light and how it creates texture. The color of light is also quite obvious here as the sand changes to a multitude of shades and colors throughout the afternoon hours. If the opportunity arises, give White Sands a try, and it may become a favorite of yours as well.

The Badlands/South Dakota (my favorite)

I can hear it now. Those of you who have been to a lot of places, and if that includes The Badlands, you are likely are saying, well The Badlands are okay, but your favorite? I have been to this national park on seven occasions and have photographed it on four different trips. My first visit here was when I was eight years old. This was my first trip west with my parents. As we traveled from Wisconsin I found Minnesota interesting but too much like Wisconsin. I enjoyed the open prairies of South Dakota but this was not the west I envisioned. Then we came upon The Badlands. This has ever since been my gateway to the west. This is where the American west begins for me.

Many landscape photographers (do The Badlands) but most do not return unless they live in this region. I learn to understand this place a little better on every visit. The differences in shape, texture and color amongst the rock forms here is amazing! Here too, the color changes substantially in different light. I have created images here in sunshine, overcast and during storms and my pictures change even more that they do at most locations. I use every lens here from 18mm-500mm. Stretch! Compress! The Badlands sits in the middle of Buffalo Gap National Grasslands and you can make sparse images with a few rock forms seeming to stand alone against the world in the middle of a prairie. In some spots the rocks are tightly packed together. Different colors, shapes and textures all in one scene. You can do more different things here than anywhere I have been. The past few times that I have been to The Badlands I chose to stay at the one motel that exists in the actual park. It creates an even more powerful mood. I have always tried to sleep in the middle of the places that I visit if possible. Be it in a cabin, motel, my car or outdoors. Experiencing a great location during the day is one thing. Being in the middle of a desert or the mountains in the darkness will give you a different feel and atmosphere. The sounds of the night can be both educational and chilling. All of this is true of The Badlands. I sometimes get emotional when I revisit places like this. It is like a great friend that I have not been able to visit in years. Then just like with your human friends you get comfortable and all seems normal. Then finally it is time once again to leave. You are saddened but you know you will have memories that will last a lifetime, and the pictures to go with it.

Good luck and fortune in your search for your own special places! Many of you already have them and feel free to share them on this blog. Below are a few images made at each of the above locations (friends).

Thank you,

Wayne Nelson

The Badlands

Good Morning From The Badlands 2001