Death Valley Spring and Night Photography

Death Valley Spring and Milky Way

March 4-9, 2024

We’ll explore Death Valley’s sand dunes, salt flats, eroded badlands, and spectacular vistas. It also has sites with a rich history of mining, and rustic cabins and head frames remain. We like the early March timing to shoot the Park, before the worst of the oncoming heat starts to arrive in mid to late March. We also timed this to be close to the new moon date, so we will be able to shoot the Milky Way in this “International Dark Sky Park” as well! While a “super bloom” is rare, we usually find a few decent patches of wildflowers. The timing peaked in late February into early March in 2016, so we should have good timing if this is another healthy bloom year.

We watch where plants are growing in December and January, so we have a head start on where to look when we return in early March. We scouted in November 2023 and held workshops in December 2023and January 2024, and we’ve never seen a stronger wildflower bloom in winter. As February starts, Death Valley is forecast to get more rain in the coming days, which should water any germinated seeds. We’ll know where to bring you, to maximize your success! See results of our site, seasonal condition, and weather

What’s included:

Guiding to subjects & light, based on our 60+ trips exploring the Park
Constant fine tuning of itinerary based on forecasts & conditions
Photography instruction, composition consultation (if desired)
Post-processing instruction

What’s not included:

Lodging (lodging recommendations will be provided upon registration)
Transportation
Meals/snacks/beverages
Entrance fee to the park
Group lodging terms (high price, poor cancellation terms, etc.)

Sample Itinerary

To ensure you get the best pictures and to accommodate for weather, we keep the exact itinerary flexible. This is an example of what to expect, though it may change slightly as necessary during the workshop. We change lodging once to cover more ground while having less time driving, more time shooting, while getting more sleep before our sunrise shoots!

Day 1 — Travel. Meet in the afternoon in Stovepipe Wells after everyone has checked in to their hotel. We’ll photograph sunset, possibly blue hour, then head in for dinner. We may opt to go out and get a few night shots before retiring to our hotel rooms for the evening.
Days 2 — We’ll meet for an optimal sunrise near Stovepipe Wells, and make a few photography stops on our way to breakfast. We’ll grab a quick bite and then head back out for more photography, particularly in the directions west and north while it’s most convenient. We’ll break for lunch and dinner as needed, perhaps get a meal to go so or in Beatty or Panamint Springs, we can shoot away in more interesting places, away from the crowds. Nights we can practice night photography or conduct post-processing demos. On some of the clearest mornings we’ll go out for Milky Way photography.
Days 3 — Similar, but moving to the Furnace Creek area for recommended lodging so we can have shorter drives to points south.
Days 4, 5 – Similar optimal sunrise at a predetermined place based on weather and sunrise forecasts, we may make a few photography stops on our way to breakfast. We’ll grab a quick bite and then head back out for more photography. We’ll break for lunch and dinner as needed, sometimes take one to go so we can shoot away from the crowds. On some of the clearest mornings we’ll go out for Milky Way photography.
Day 6 – meet for sunrise, have a farewell breakfast, and head back to our hotels to check out and make our way homeward.