Fun Day at White Sands National Park
by
Bob Coates
White Sands National Park is a gorgeous location of gypsum flakes piled in mounds that undulate across the horizon. Making photos there requires opening up your shutter at least one, maybe two, stops above what you camera tells you is the ‘proper’ exposure. Your camera meter is easily fooled in this white wonderland. White Sands is a bit of an anomaly in that gypsum which is left behind when water evaporates usually gets washed out through rivers to the sea as it easily dissolves in water. Enough of the geology lesson. Let me show you how I created this image using my Neewer Technology crystal ball to demonstrate a floating object image.
To get started, a low angle helps in this case and a Platypod eXtreme plate with a small Benro ball-head was just the ticket. I placed the crystal on the small crystal stand that comes with it. Photograph the entire scene. You’ll also need to focus on the crystal ball as well. Note that you need to focus inside the ball and the subject will appear upside down.
‘“Warning! Warning, Will Robinson!!!” Be aware that the crystal WILL FOCUS THE SUN! Watch your hands if working in full sun because you can get burned. Never leave the crystal uncovered near a window at home or in your car. It works as a magnifying glass and could start a fire.
The background is photographed as a separate exposure. I leave plenty of foreground for a composite such as this. After processing the ball image, I extract it. Ensure that the extraction will work seamlessly in your final image by feathering the edges. Since the ball photo is upside down it is rotated to a proper orientation.
Post-processing helps sell the idea of the floating ball. Watch the edges of the crystal as they reflect what they “see.” In this case, I had to remove the blue of the reflected sky and the brown of the sand after the rotation. In addition, a drop shadow was added.
One trick is to use Photoshop’s Drop Shadow in the fx menu to create the shadow. Then, go to the Layer Menu>Layer Style>Create Layer. This will put the drop shadow on its own layer, and it can be transformed and manipulated for the proper look. Finally, use a Soft Light Layer and subtly paint in the shadow side of the ball to increase the apparent roundness. Add or enhance some specular highlights and you are home free.
Do all of the above, and ‘Voila!’ the ball is floating in the scene.
Bob Coates is a Texas School instructor for 2026. His class focuses on Nature, Macro, Floral, Animal and Landscape Photography. Based in Sedona, Arizona with his wife and best friend, Holly, who makes it possible for Bob to concentrate on sharing his photography knowledge. See more of Bob’s work and learn about his photographic workshops concentrating on the night sky at successful-photographer.com, bcphotography.com and coatesart.net.
Check out Bob’s class at the Texas School of Professional Photography.
