Over the last two years I have made it a habit to travel to the South-Western Deserts of the US in late winter and early spring when the temperatures allow comfortable travel and exploring. One of my favorite desert locations is Death Valley National Park in California near the border to Nevada.

In contrast to its name, Death Valley National Park is quite an area full of wildlife and stunning landscapes. It is a very unique place with large areas below sea level while being surrounded by 10,000+ mountain ranges.

The most striking geological location of the park is Zabriskie Point, named after Christian Brevoort Zabriskie, vice-president and general manager of the Pacific Coast Borax Company in the early 20th century which mined this mineral in Death Valley. Zabriskie Point is an easy accessible spot in the park if you capture the scene from the established overlook, but for this VAST image, I selected a unique composition of the badlands: standing high on a range, I watched with a feeling of sensation how the rising sun gently brought the geological features to life.

It was a particular challenge to capture the high detail of this VAST image during the short period of best light. But that's the type of challenge I enjoy.