Only a handful of times each year Utah's deserts become blanketed in white. The combination between snow & sand is incredible. Castle Valley near Moab, UT[1400x2100][OC]

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image showing Only a handful of times each year Utah's deserts become blanketed in white. The combination between snow & sand is incredible. Castle Valley near Moab, UT[1400x2100][OC]

mtuohyphoto on March 15th, 2019 at 01:51 UTC »

On my final evening in Moab a couple weeks ago, I had a decision to make. Essentially, it came down to whether or not to take the long way or short way home, knowing I had class the following morning. I took the long way, through Castle Valley.

I didn't really plan on stopping to take pictures on my drive through, I've always had difficulty shooting this area of Utah, no matter the conditions. This time, however, during my drive I decided to hop out of the car.

I spent just under an hour wandering through the snow covered hills of Castle Valley. My favorite picture from this evening, however, is one of the first I took when I got out of the car. Simple windblown ridges, a few tufts of grass, and Parriott Mesa standing tall in the distance. The first few stars had just began to show themselves - adding (in my opinion) the perfect amount of atmosphere to this scene.

I spend a ton of time outdoors capturing the places that the US has chosen to protect or those places that are still in danger of being exploited for resources. If you'd like to find some more of my work online, you can find me on instagram at @morgan.tuohy or on my website at https://morgantuohy.com. Thanks for reading!

Shot info for the camera nerds (like me!)

Shot on Sony A7iii with 16-35 GM

Foreground: ISO100, 22mm, f/11, 20s

Sky: A while later, similar place at ISO 640, 22mm, f/5, 20s

Blended in photoshop from the 2 files in lightroom for accuracy of how it felt to actually stand there in the freezing cold.

I'll stick around for a while if anyone has any questions - I'm an open book!

Trashtalk89 on March 15th, 2019 at 02:38 UTC »

Beautiful composition. I feel the cold with the purple shade the picture has. Kudos.

themosh54 on March 15th, 2019 at 02:47 UTC »

I like how Orion is just casually hanging out.