On the way to the photo walk in Phoenix, we stopped at White Sands National Park to spend the afternoon and evening. It was absolutely beautiful and exceeded all my expectations. I don’t know if you’re allowed to camp out there overnight, but I think it would probably be okay. I didn’t see any police or rangers around… it was incredibly lonely, except for my friends here in the photo.

Into the White Sands

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 21:14:12
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/160
• Aperture6.3
• ISO200
• Focal Length55.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+1.3

I took this about an hour after the sun dipped below the distant mountain. Incredible, isn’t it? It looks like it’s freezing cold because that’s what snow normally looks like, but it was actually quite balmy and perfect.

If you want to see more photos of White Sands National Park, just click on the category above.

White Sands National Park

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 21:15:15
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/800
• Aperture6.3
• ISO200
• Focal Length219.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

It was a great decision to spend the day on a journey to White Sands National Park. What an amazing place! I wish I had more time there, but I took all the photos I could during the three hours there. I actually don’t even know if there is a hotel or inn nearby. I don’t think so; it’s quite remote. But, either way, this place is definitely worth a day-and-sunset-visit.

Walking in the White Sands

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 20:52:10
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/60
• Aperture16
• ISO100
• Focal Length17.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+0.7

I regret I only had one day here! That’s no good… In fact, I only had a few hours, which is definitely no Bueno. But I really look forward to going back and getting more of these shots. It’s a bit like Burning Man or Aruba where I was able to practice a wee bit of minimalism.

Walking through White Sands

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 20:51:33
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/60
• Aperture16
• ISO100
• Focal Length16.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+0.7

This photo plays nicely I think with the one from Antarctica a few days ago, even though this is taken in White Sands National Park. It’s got many of the same dystopian landscapes as Antarctica, except that it’s nice and warm the whole time! It was even better to go there with friends because we were able to take photos of one another… adding some people into these landscapes is great!

Alone in the snowy sands

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 21:55:24
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/50
• Aperture7.1
• ISO500
• Focal Length240.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

I thought this photo played well with the one from yesterday. It’s from the other side of the world in White Sands National Park in New Mexico. And that’s not a guy from Oman, that’s a guy from New Zealand! That’s Ollie Dale… he was out with me and some other friend exploring this rather magical place!

Another Desert, Another Wanderer

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 21:10:37
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/640
• Aperture6.3
• ISO100
• Focal Length103.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

This one is not Antarctica! This one is in White Sands National Park and it’s one of my favorite photos I took that day. This was after the sun had set the sky was changing color from the west to the east… I took this one as I was walking back to the car with my friends… and the more I look at it, the more I like it! 🙂

More Snow from White Sands?

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 22:05:47
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time0.6
• Aperture6.3
• ISO500
• Focal Length24.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+1.3

Wow getting into this missile testing facility was Really Hard! I really amped up the level of difficulty though with my traveling party! Okay, so here’s the deal. This was 2/3 of the way through our USA Tour and we decided to rent a car and go try to find this place I had heard so much about. We started out in El Paso in a big black SUV.

It was me, Troy, Stu, Jonatas, and Ollie. Here’s the rub… I was the only American (the others were 2 New Zealanders, 1 Brazilian, and 1 Brit), and I didn’t even have my passport and we’re trying to get onto a US Military base to “Take Pictures.” Haha I had to do some fast-talkin’! But we eventually got in. We had to go to this special parking lot and Troy left the car in drive and we almost popped over the curb-thing. OMG we looked so suspicious… haha but we got in and got the shot!

White Sands Missile Testing Range

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 19:05:28
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/320
• Aperture16
• ISO100
• Focal Length13.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.3

How incredible is this spot? I had always wanted to go to White Sands in New Mexico, but it was never that easy to get there. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere! Well, our bus tour was passing through El Paso and we decided to park for a while and rent a car to get out here for a spell. The sand was so white and soft… like warm gentle snow that never melts.

White Sands at Sunset

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 21:32:38
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/125
• Aperture16
• ISO200
• Focal Length106.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-0.7

I was so happy to finally visit White Sands in New Mexico. This is actually the first photo I took as I was climbing up my first white-powdery hill. The colors against that velvety blue sky were brain-flipping. And the way the wind would come along and blow these intricate patterns was another endless source of fascination. I highly recommend this place if you’re looking just to point your camera in any direction and take good photos!

The Limitless White Sands

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2015-08-19 20:33:50
• CameraILCE-7RM2
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/160
• Aperture16
• ISO100
• Focal Length16.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-1