Great Basin School of Photography

@jeffsullivan.bsky.social

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Photographer, co-founder Great Basin School of Photography.

The Milky Way and green airglow shine over tufa rock formations at Mono Lake, while high altitude red aurora borealis is visible to the far north. This image shows why we love pursuing, and teaching, wide field landscape astrophotography!
Valley View reflection image from our Yosemite Fall Colors photography workshop in November, 2024.
Rain showers over Panamint Valley in Death Valley National Park earlier this week.
How deep is the salty brine that grows the salt cracks in Badwater Basin? Shallower than you might think! We found this small pool of deep open salty water, with its surface just a few inches below the surface of the hard rock salt playa in Death Valley.
Sand arcs in a curning line, purple on the left, beige on the right, small sandblasted granules of rack sorted by density in Death Valley National Park. The sand ripple patterns are even different across the surface of these two dissimilar materials. The arc of the curve leads the viewer to a couple of tall, pyramid-shaped dunes in the background, dramatically side-lit from the right. The sun only rises about 31 degrees high in the sky in December in Death Valley, and this dramatic "winter light" all day is why we lead workshops here this time of year.
Listing of 2025 landscape and night photography workshops offered by Jeff Sullivan and Lori Hibbett. Destinations include Yosemite National Park, Death Valley National Park, Bodie State Historic Park, Mono Lake and the High Sierra, and more!
Joshua tree againsty snowy Telescope Peak - The mountain had nice side light on it, and there was a lone Joshua tree nearby that could potentially star in a composition with dramatic Telescope Peak in the background. This composition was not visible from the road, it took some imagination to envision the possible arrangement of the tree against the mountain, and a few dozen yards of walking to see if the anticipated shot turned out as well as expected. A few trial compositions later, and I had a selection of images to work with. The size, lighting and texture of the Joshua tree helps it stand out from the surrounding vegetation, making it a strong subject, especially in black and white. Backing up and using 200mm helped compress the Joshua tree against Telescope Peak, and increase the apparent size of Telescope Peak, while f/11 and focusing on the tree rendered Telescope Peak softer than the Joshua tree in the resulting image, helping the tree “pop” as the main subject. continued....
Sunlight shines underneath an incoming strom in Yosemite Valley, as seen form the iconic Tunnel View overlook.
Ephemeral Hosetail fall cascades down the face of El Capitan in Yosemite Valley, selectively lit by a shaft of orange light from the setting sun. This rare spectacle reguires a number of condtions to occur. It's possible to see for about two weeks in late February, but the best nights for the narrowest lighting span less than a week. Snow is needed above Horsetail Fall, the weather that day has to be warm enough to melt that snow, and you need weather clear enough for the sun to be visible on the distant horizon for its last five minutes of color as it sets. So it's best to be in the Park for the better part of a week to have the best odds of seeing it on an evening or two. In 2024 Yosemite will have the day pass limited access program in effect once again to prevent crowding for this popular event. Members of our workshop will get day passes for the duration of the workshop, six days including the departure day.
Ephemoral Hosetail fall cascades down the face of El Capitan in Yosemite Valley, selectively lit by a shaft of orange light from the setting sun. This rare spectacle reguires a number of condtions to occur. It's possible to see for about two weeks in late February, but the best nights for the narrowest lighting span less than a week. Snow is needed above Horsetail Fall, the weather that day has to be warm enough to melt that snow, and you need weather clear enough for the sun to be visible on the distant horizon for its last five minutes of color as it sets. So it's best to be in the Park for the better part of a week to have the best odds of seeing it on an evening or two. In 2024 Yosemite will have the day pass limited access program in effect once again to prevent crowding for this popular event. Members of our workshop will get day passes for the duration of the workshop, six days including the departure day.
Sunset reflection over salt polygons on Lake Manly, on flooded Badwater salt flats in Death Valley National Park. On this night the sunset color lasted at least an hour after the sun set! This was one of the longest sunsets that I've ever experienced. It was also one of the most colorful and surreal. No mater how much time I spend in nature, the capacity of nature to far surpass my prior experiences and my wildest expectations never ceases to amaze me. The water table in Badwater Basin can be very close to the surface. That's how these polygons form: salt-laden water rises up cracks in the salt via capillary action, until it dries and deposits its minerals at the surface. The polygons re-form after winter rains, when the water table again is shallow enough to send salt to the surface. Sadly, many visitors both enjoyed the sight and completely disregarded its fragility. Where people were hiking out to this spot, the polygons were quickly trampled and destroyed.
Sunrise panorama captured on flooded Badwater salt flats. #deathvalley #nationalparkphotography #landscapephotography #photographyworkshops
Stars reflecting in salty water in Badwater Basin, Death Valley National Park. The fairly rare water on the salt flats ended up being the biggest attraction on this trip, and with mild temperatures and little wind, it stuck around for weeks. the salt polygon patterns are caused via thermal expansion cracks in the rock salt, which allow salty water from the shallow water table below to seep up via capillary action. As it dries, it leaves raised polygons of salt. They can be an inch or two high, or sometimes grow to 8-10" high!