by Holly Randall
The sand dunes location was the first shoot, at 5:30 AM. When we arrived, the sun hadn’t quite yet risen. We had to hike in for quite a while to get away from the vegetation and the main road. Hiking in deep sand with a two heavy cameras strapped to your back (my still and video cameras) is not fun. Well at least that’s what my husband said, who of course was carrying everything. But once we settled into our spot and the sun finally peeked out from behind the distant mountains, a beautiful golden light washed all over the valley. It was truly a glorious sight, especially with a naked Aria bathed in it.
Afterwards we went back to the motel to sleep for a few more hours. Next was a very long drive out to a ghost town called Leadfield, which was literally in the middle of nowhere. For something to be out in the middle of nowhere in a park that IS the middle of nowhere, we’re really talking about a remote location. My husband and I had scouted the place the day before, so we were prepared for the journey: a 2 hour drive, most of it through an extremely treacherous road, passable only to sturdy 4×4 vehicles. The road got so narrow in parts, and we went around such hairpin turns at such high elevations, that there were several times I thought we just might die. Luckily my husband was a confident driver as I covered my eyes with my hands and let out frequent panicked shrieks.
But the drive was worth it. We were nestled at the bottom of a mountain in a canyon that was completely deserted and tourist un-friendly. Several collapsed mine shafts dotted the area, as did corrugated tin shacks that had somehow withstood the last hundred years. I put Aria in a tight red dress, a black hat and veil, and had her carry a parasol. She looked like a woman who had stepped right out of the time this place would have been a thriving community. In fact, it was almost eerie shooting her there. I could see her as a ghost who still haunted the abandoned town: leaning out a window, waiting for her husband to come home from the mines.
The next day’s sunrise shoot was at the Devil’s Golf Course, a dried up lakebed whose salt content formed into large crystals that make it look like a Martian landscape. Of course it was at this perilous location that I wanted Aria to wear latex and towering heels. Ever the consummate professional, Aria complied—even though to top it off, it was very cold out. The photos I got at that location are probably my favorite: everyone told me not to shoot latex in the desert, but this time I was glad I’m a bad listener. The outfit plus the scenery really made for a beautiful, very alien-looking set.
Again, afterwards we retired to our rooms for more sleep. The next set was the salt flats at sunset, which for some reason we were having a hard time finding. There are many salt flats in Death Valley but we weren’t sure which one was the place we’d been recommended to shoot at. The result was driving around frantically looking for the perfect place to shoot, all the while chasing the sun and it began to slip below the horizon. We found some salt flats, but to be honest I don’t think it was the spot we wanted. By that time it had to be good enough, as I’d run out of options. In the end the photos came out amazing, so I wasn’t disappointed by my choice.
The drive home the next day was long and quiet—we were all exhausted and anticipating the comforts of home. For me, I was looking forward to a hot bath and sitting down to edit my photos. Nothing makes me happier than the hard work behind me and beautiful photos—the fruits of my labor—before me. Despite its namesake, Death Valley didn’t kill me, but instead breathed new life into my work.
See more of Holly’s amazing photos at her website HollyRandall.com