Moving Rock

I just believe this shot...... because I want to... a blue rock... can do everything... JUST GREAT

 

Els

 

 

Hard to believe that wind can do this. Wouldn't the rock just dig itself in at the leading edge? Also, if the rock were moving by the wind, it would want to show itself to the wind in such a way as to offer the least resistance... by this I mean it would tend to rotate to offer the least drag, and in the case of this rock I think the sloped face that is before the camera would have turned around, and the the taller, more vertical face that is not looking at the camera would have then been facing us. Really perplexing.

 

Great, great capture. What a dynamic sky and wonderful light on the hills behind.

Firstly, I need to say that it's a fantastic, atmospheric photo and the large format works really well.

As a geologist I'm intrigued by these features, there's a webpage discussing some thoughts on the phenomenon here.

Best wishes, Hugo

A beautiful photo. A job well done.

 

Regards,

 

Mike

Hugo, that article was interesting, thanks!

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so I guess you guys won't buy into the aliens moved it idea?

 

really nice picture of a very intersting phenomenon

one of the better pics I've seen of this phenomenon.

this rock, I believe, has been shot over and over again. Personally, I like this one better.

 

http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=1812305

My guess is that the rock got caught in a sheet of ice. I've seen it lake ice push huge boulders up the shore like toys.

this is probably the best POW I've seen.. the fact that it's not "staged" just blows my mind. absolutely incredible!! wonderful comp, detail, color... wow. just WOW.

 

love it!

 

7/7

It's one of those pictures that makes you say "How did he do that?"

And as you look for visible signs of how this was done, it is intriguing.

 

But this picture stands up well in its own right without the "moving rock mystery. The lighting, the depth and composition are great.

Very interesting phenomenon. Splendid photo.

 

The neutral grad removes nearly all detail from the hills in the distance on the left side. That's a shame. I think this reduces the image impact. The hard edge of the ND grad could have been pulled up just a bit higher too, so as not to leave the distant ground level noticeably darker. With a bit of manipulation you may be able to bring up the brightness level of the ground in the background, but not much can be done for the lost detail in the hills.

It's well-done enough, but it's certainly one of the cliches of western U.S. landscape photography. I've seen at least a dozen versions by a dozen photographers, all taken at the same location, and they all pretty much look like this, whether in color or black and white. The first time you see it, it's interesting. After a few more times, not as much.

Here are some other versions.

Yeah, it's been done so many times and I've seen stronger versions than this. It's not a bad shot by any means, of course.

 

I figure the rocks move with the wind when the valley is soaked by rain.

 

I'd like to go there myself.

nice picture but i have seen it a thousand times. nothing creative compared to other images of the racetrack.

Martin - you have very pretty photographs in your portfolio but not an original idea and this POW is an example.

Do we always have to blast everyone for not being original? It's a rock in the middle of a plain. There just isn't that much one can do with it. Does that mean he shouldn't photograph it? There is room for all kinds of photgraphy in the world, crazy experimental stuff and classic ideas well executed. It's like a restaraunt ... there can be foie grass berry polenta combinations and there can be meatloaf. Sure, this is meatloaf but it's good meatloaf. I looked at all the other pictures of this location (which is fascinating and I've never seen it before) on the page that the posters above linked us to and this seems better than any of them. It's not perfect ... but it's good, quality work and that's worth something.

I can't help thinking that people need to step back from their critiques before they press the submit button.

 

This is an interesting image and is all the better for the balanced composition and exposure.

 

To those who would criticise the lack of originality, keep in mind that this image has been chosen as the photo of the week, not the photo of the century.

 

Peter

I have been to the Racetrack many times, not boring at all. Yet the time to get shots under

the "good light" is short. I like this shot. I have some similar ones but not looking West as

this one is. The composition is very good.

The rocks need more than water and wind to move. They also need ice. This location is so

windy in the Winter than the winds can push up to 100 Lb rocks if the lake bed is icy.

The sad thing about the place is that it is becoming well known and the dirt road easier to

handle than in the past. The results is that some visitors show no respect to the place and

hike on the playa before it's completely dry leaving footprints everywhere. The first time I

visited, about 6-7 years ago, they were almost none, now you have to hike way past the

first rocks to find a virgin spot. These footprints will last for decades as rainfall is very

small at this location, the reason why the rocks tracks are able to stand.

Sure there are thousands of shots of this location, but this one great all the

same. The light is really fantastic. Awesome capture.

Interesting phenomenon. Nothing much to say about the photo itself IMO, a clean shot, choice of lense and vertical presentation was not the only option... I would have tried horizontal with wide angle (as suggested in the original comments by Jens-A. Wiken , November 16, 2005; 05:51 A.M. here ).

Also funny to see this POW above the NOKIA ads on PNet front page...

"they can only see the dead end...

you can see the path to greatness"

quite a good match! LOL

In looking at Martin's picture, I was impressed with the lighting he was able to capture. Having driven to the racetrack several times, you rarely get decent conditions. And the road/route there is a difficult one to say the least. It's no wonder that they have never been observed moving when you consider how isolated the spot is. Nice job Martin.

Ahhhh, the moving rocks of The Racetrack. These always make good photos and Martin did an exceptional job. The light is well balanced and the image itself is balance, although I would've liked to see a more dynamic composition with the rock in one corner and the track leading more through the image.

 

Good work nonetheless. Keep it up.