Sunset in the Painted Desert
Not far from Winslow, Arizona lies the Painted Desert. And in case you’re wondering, this corner in Winslow, Arizona became famous because of the Eagles 1972 hit song, Take It Easy. The second verse goes:
“Well, I'm a standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona
And such a fine sight to see.
It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford.
Slowin' down to take a look at me.”
Standing on the corner last month. Photo courtesy of Jon Christofersen.
That reflection painted on the window behind me is the girl in a flatbed Ford.
Two and a half weeks ago I was in Arizona and Utah on a drone photography workshop. One of our stops was the Painted Desert.
There’s one good restaurant in Winslow. And wouldn’t you know, it was closed for a once-a-year deep cleaning. We had to scramble to find another decent, open restaurant. After finishing an early dinner, our small group of drone photographers headed to a nearby abandoned park at the edge of the Painted Desert.
Badlands
Badlands are defined as extensive tracts of dry, uncultivable land with little vegetation. They are made up of extensively eroded soft sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils. Ravines, gullies, buttes, hoodoos, and other such geologic forms are common in badlands.
The Painted Desert took millions of years to create. The brilliant colors are the result of mineral contents slowly layered over millennia into the sedimentary rock. Deposits of iron, hematite, and aluminum cast a reddish hue as they mix with oxygen to create oxides ranging from vivid ochre to scarlet to soft rose.
Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, wind erosion, and torrential flooding sculpted the soft stone and clay soil into a stark landscape with unique formations. Catastrophic events like flash floods and landslides stripped the layers in some areas and built-up layers in other areas. This is especially true in the darker purple areas commonly visible in the southern end of the Painted Desert.
Because it rained the first two days of our trip, the saturated soil held deep, saturated colors. And evaporation from the upper layers further varied the colors.
The Shot
On the late afternoon of March 20, I launched my drone towards some promising formations in the distance. It was overcast with the promise of clearing to the west and the setting sun.
My first photos in the flat, overcast light made wonderful abstracts. But when the sun peaked below the clouds just above the horizon, warm light swept across the formations.
This was my favorite photo from that evening.
Thanks for looking,
Chuck Derus