Sunny & Windy with Blowing Sand in the Forecast

AlanLichty said:

I like the cropped version - this is a nice scene and I like the flowers (Jerusalem artichokes?)

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JimFox said:

Hey Monika, wow! So these do bloom more then just as single flowers! It’s really cool with these bunches like this. It certainly sounds like horrible conditions to have to shoot in, but wow! What an awesome shot.

I will also go for the cropped version.

How long do the sunflowers bloom like this now? Will they last another 4 weeks, or will they be gone soon?

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Zeph said:

I'll go with the cropped artichoke version, hummm, food.
A cheap plastic bag and a rubber-band thrown in the camera bag can help.

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MonikaC said:

A few weeks ago, I met up with Jim Fox at the Great Sand Dunes NM. There were just a few isolated sunflowers out, so I returned this past weekend to see if they had bloomed on their regular schedule. I wasn't going to shoot the evening I arrived as it was to be steady 30 mph winds with gusts to 60. I did want to scout the flowers, though & my dog & I definitely needed to get out & stretch our legs. Of course, I brought my camera just in case. It wasn't that windy when we started, so I had some fun with the flowers & dunes. Then, just as the clouds were catching some color, the wind really started up. I was shooting in high-speed burst mode hoping that I would get 1 shot where the flowers weren't just a blur. I've been cleaning up my camera with ash & toothpick & my eyes are still burning from being sandblasted.

I have 2 versions here, one with the sky cropped more than the other. C&C welcome, as always!
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MonikaC said:

A few weeks ago, I met up with Jim Fox at the Great Sand Dunes NM. There were just a few isolated sunflowers out, so I returned this past weekend to see if they had bloomed on their regular schedule. I wasn't going to shoot the evening I arrived as it was to be steady 30 mph winds with gusts to 60. I did want to scout the flowers, though & my dog & I definitely needed to get out & stretch our legs. Of course, I brought my camera just in case. It wasn't that windy when we started, so I had some fun with the flowers & dunes. Then, just as the clouds were catching some color, the wind really started up. I was shooting in high-speed burst mode hoping that I would get 1 shot where the flowers weren't just a blur. I've been cleaning up my camera with ash & toothpick & my eyes are still burning from being sandblasted.

I have 2 versions here, one with the sky cropped more than the other. C&C welcome, as always!
View attachment 11161 View attachment 11162

Click to expand...

MonikaC said:

A few weeks ago, I met up with Jim Fox at the Great Sand Dunes NM. There were just a few isolated sunflowers out, so I returned this past weekend to see if they had bloomed on their regular schedule. I wasn't going to shoot the evening I arrived as it was to be steady 30 mph winds with gusts to 60. I did want to scout the flowers, though & my dog & I definitely needed to get out & stretch our legs. Of course, I brought my camera just in case. It wasn't that windy when we started, so I had some fun with the flowers & dunes. Then, just as the clouds were catching some color, the wind really started up. I was shooting in high-speed burst mode hoping that I would get 1 shot where the flowers weren't just a blur. I've been cleaning up my camera with ash & toothpick & my eyes are still burning from being sandblasted.

I have 2 versions here, one with the sky cropped more than the other. C&C welcome, as always!
View attachment 11161 View attachment 11162

Click to expand...

MonikaC said:

A few weeks ago, I met up with Jim Fox at the Great Sand Dunes NM. There were just a few isolated sunflowers out, so I returned this past weekend to see if they had bloomed on their regular schedule. I wasn't going to shoot the evening I arrived as it was to be steady 30 mph winds with gusts to 60. I did want to scout the flowers, though & my dog & I definitely needed to get out & stretch our legs. Of course, I brought my camera just in case. It wasn't that windy when we started, so I had some fun with the flowers & dunes. Then, just as the clouds were catching some color, the wind really started up. I was shooting in high-speed burst mode hoping that I would get 1 shot where the flowers weren't just a blur. I've been cleaning up my camera with ash & toothpick & my eyes are still burning from being sandblasted.

I have 2 versions here, one with the sky cropped more than the other. C&C welcome, as always!
View attachment 11161 View attachment 11162

Click to expand...

MonikaC said:

A few weeks ago, I met up with Jim Fox at the Great Sand Dunes NM. There were just a few isolated sunflowers out, so I returned this past weekend to see if they had bloomed on their regular schedule. I wasn't going to shoot the evening I arrived as it was to be steady 30 mph winds with gusts to 60. I did want to scout the flowers, though & my dog & I definitely needed to get out & stretch our legs. Of course, I brought my camera just in case. It wasn't that windy when we started, so I had some fun with the flowers & dunes. Then, just as the clouds were catching some color, the wind really started up. I was shooting in high-speed burst mode hoping that I would get 1 shot where the flowers weren't just a blur. I've been cleaning up my camera with ash & toothpick & my eyes are still burning from being sandblasted.

I have 2 versions here, one with the sky cropped more than the other. C&C welcome, as always!
View attachment 11161 View attachment 11162

Click to expand...

Douglas Sherman said:

Theses are indeed sunflowers, Monika. David Muench made them famous with an image at the Great Sand Dunes NM but I think you have him topped here. Are those the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the background?

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