White Sands
White Sands National Monument in south–central New Mexico is unique in many ways, but, by far, the most striking difference from the surrounding landscape is the sand from which the monument gets its name. It is actually gypsum that has washed down from the nearby San Andres Mountains. The gypsum, mixed with water flows on to a large playa (seasonal lake). As the water evaporates, the gypsum sand is left behind, and is then carried by the wind to become part of the dune field.
The White Sands dune field covers approximately 275 square miles of New Mexico’s Tularosa Basin. A little over half of it is part of White Sands Missle Range; the remainder (approx. 115 square miles) comprises the monument. It is an amazing place where the vegetation, and the wildlife cling to life by the most tenuous of threads.
In the summer, daytime temperatures can reach over 100° F., and in the winter, they can plunge to below freezing. If you plan to visit, be sure to come prepared for any kind of weather, and carry plenty of water.
No matter what time of year you visit White Sands, you will be treated to an amazing landscape, and the opportunity to find solitude in the dunes.
Nice photos. I am such a mountain girl, though, so it is harder for me to appreciate the desert, I think.
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March 4, 2011 at 10:20 am
I had not heard of White Sands National Monument before. Your images are stunning. Thanks for sharing them.
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March 4, 2011 at 10:26 am
The textures in the sand are super-cool…almost other-worldly.
Truly haunting images – thank you for sharing!
🙂
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March 4, 2011 at 10:27 am
Those pictures are breathtaking.
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March 4, 2011 at 10:27 am
Beautiful. Wonderful contrast, both light and texture. My daughter and son-in-law live near there. Hope to visit soon.
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March 4, 2011 at 10:38 am
Beautiful photos, wow … a place like that exists, amazing! Congrats on Freshly Pressed.
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March 4, 2011 at 10:40 am
So pretty. I absolutely love the sand “Waves” that the wind forges — it’s all very ZEN. Great work!
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March 4, 2011 at 10:49 am
Really beautiful pictures and great blog, I’m glad I found it!
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March 4, 2011 at 10:50 am
Great pictures….thank you!
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March 4, 2011 at 10:54 am
i’ve been craving to go. maybe this year…
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March 4, 2011 at 10:55 am
Gorgeous images, Jim. I love how you manage to both fill the frame and yet convey the desolate expanse of the landscape. Well done, and congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
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March 4, 2011 at 11:22 am
Absolutely beautiful photographs! Congratulations.
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March 4, 2011 at 11:25 am
Those sure are white sands!
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March 4, 2011 at 11:28 am
i love the ripples in the sand made by the wind.
beautiful pictures, thank you for sharing !
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March 4, 2011 at 11:31 am
Gorgeous pictures!
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March 4, 2011 at 11:32 am
Stunning – absolutely stunning! I’d love to know what kind of camera and lens you use to capture such detail.
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March 4, 2011 at 11:37 am
Kathy:
This image was made with a Nikon D700, and a 16-35mm f4 lens with a circular polarizing filter
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March 4, 2011 at 5:02 pm
doesn’t even look like sand!!! Amazing photos!
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March 4, 2011 at 11:37 am
Thank you for two gorgeous ying/yang shots of an amazing landscape!
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March 4, 2011 at 11:40 am
Pingback: White Sands (via Jim Caffrey Images Photo Blog) « Manushya Chitt
Absolutely beautiful photography! I had no idea these white sands existed in New Mexico, I really need to visit! Congrats on being FP!
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March 4, 2011 at 12:09 pm
That is gorgeous! Nice work.
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March 4, 2011 at 12:40 pm
That first photo is fantastic – makes me want to be there.
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March 4, 2011 at 12:47 pm
Stunning! This is now a “must see” for me!
Congrats on being Freshly Pressed!
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March 4, 2011 at 12:58 pm
Wow, those photos are incredible!
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March 4, 2011 at 1:01 pm
Stunning! From the cowfields of Tennessee, thanks for a look at the beauty of a different nature 🙂
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March 4, 2011 at 1:13 pm
I’ve been to New Mexico about three times but have not been to this area. Would love to live there, it’s so perfect to me.
Your photos are wonderful and just what I needed to keep my dream alive of moving to New Mexico!
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March 4, 2011 at 1:16 pm
Wonderful pictures. And congrats on being freshly pressed!
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March 4, 2011 at 1:57 pm
I have plans to visit White Sands sometime in the next year or so. Thank you for posting these pictures.
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March 4, 2011 at 2:18 pm
breathtaking!
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March 4, 2011 at 2:50 pm
Really beautiful, I need to drive down there soon!
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March 4, 2011 at 3:00 pm
Exquisite pictures! I’ve never seen anything like it before!
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March 4, 2011 at 3:17 pm
The contrasts with the light and dark cloud-filmy sky agasint the rippled white sand, the spiky yucca…really captures the essence of the place.
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March 4, 2011 at 3:17 pm
so beautiful. want to be there right now.
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March 4, 2011 at 3:22 pm
Oh wowww you take beautiful shots!! 😀
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March 4, 2011 at 3:33 pm
I live and work in El Paso and we love to take trips over to White Sands. Your photo captures my favorite “look” of the park. I love how it can remind you of a beach… without the water. The sky is endless and beautiful. Thanks for sharing your work and making it the “Fresh Press” Page!
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March 4, 2011 at 3:36 pm
I’ve always wanted to visit the dunes. Your pictures are gorgeous. Congratulations on being FP!
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March 4, 2011 at 3:41 pm
I love your landscapes – breathtakingly stunning. I have been to White Sands – only my photos don’t look this gorgeous 🙂
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March 4, 2011 at 3:56 pm
That was new. Thanks.
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March 4, 2011 at 4:22 pm
i want to sleep on that sand
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March 4, 2011 at 4:58 pm
Great post . Amazing Pictures .
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March 4, 2011 at 5:22 pm
I am honored to be “Freshly Pressed”, and I would like to thank everyone for their kind words about my blog and my photography.
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March 4, 2011 at 5:30 pm
Very beautiful picture. Thanks for sharing.
http://melodyinwonderland.wordpress.com/
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March 4, 2011 at 5:57 pm
Those pictures are very cool !
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March 4, 2011 at 6:30 pm
This is BEAUTIFUL.
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March 4, 2011 at 7:09 pm
Congrats on being ‘freshly pressed” – great pics – simple beauty! My family and I visited some friends in the San Luis Valley (CO) side of these sand dunes and hiked them. I hail from west Michigan near Lake Michigan where we see sand dunes all the time. I was amazed at the dunes in the mountains. Thanks for bringing back great memories. Keep up the good work!
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March 4, 2011 at 7:36 pm
very nice capture! makes me want to get my hand into the monitor, grab a handful of white sand and put em in a glass jar
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March 4, 2011 at 7:56 pm
Such beautiful photos! You are good at this. The ones of Pueblo Pintado are amazing, just love them. Congrats for being Freshly Pressed.
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March 4, 2011 at 7:57 pm
MMM, how lovely!
Thanks for the photos, and yet again another beautiful window into the world of Mexico!
Muchas Gracias!
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March 4, 2011 at 8:19 pm
It’s fantastic
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March 4, 2011 at 9:07 pm
Absolutely beautiful!
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March 4, 2011 at 9:24 pm
Love those images you have of the white sands in New Mexico … awesome captures would love to visit there myself one day ….
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March 4, 2011 at 11:13 pm
Oh I really wanna be there~ it’s so wonderful
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March 4, 2011 at 11:36 pm
Very unique indeed.
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March 5, 2011 at 2:08 am
I so want to visit this place with my family!
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March 5, 2011 at 2:34 am
Excellent photos, great choice on the lighting. The same scene can look very different as the light changes during the day.
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March 5, 2011 at 2:40 am
What beautiful desert photos. Sand texture in a different light!
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March 5, 2011 at 2:48 am
Beautiful!
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March 5, 2011 at 3:11 am
Love these — love sand — especially when it has the beach with it! These are great!
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March 5, 2011 at 4:27 am
That first shot is fantastic, love that sand pattern.
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March 5, 2011 at 4:54 am
amazing photos! wants to see more!!!
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March 5, 2011 at 5:21 am
amazing photos! want to see more!!!
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March 5, 2011 at 5:23 am
Pingback: White Sands (via Jim Caffrey Images Photo Blog) | sedoff09
Your photos are fabulous. I have been to White Sands and it is such a phenomenal site, just as your pictures depict. Thanks for the photos. Beautiful.
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March 5, 2011 at 6:13 am
What an amazing image! I love all the additional info you provide, as well. My students are shortly to begin a regions project in Social Studies. I think this would be some amazing information for them to have on New Mexico! Thanks!
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March 5, 2011 at 6:13 am
Thanks Christy. White Sands is a great place for kids, and there is plenty of information available at the Visitor’s Center. Enjoy!
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March 5, 2011 at 10:24 am
Incredible! Amazing! I am in awe of your talent!
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March 5, 2011 at 6:49 am
I live about an hour from here, u really captured the beauty, well done 🙂
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March 5, 2011 at 7:03 am
Stunning photograph. The colours are amazing.
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March 5, 2011 at 7:12 am
Beautiful! Love the yellow orange light and the blue in the shadows, and the way the plants lead your eye into the photo. Was it morning or evening?
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March 5, 2011 at 7:14 am
Thank you. It was evening.
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March 5, 2011 at 7:59 am
It’s wonderful
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March 5, 2011 at 8:16 am
next best thing to being there. very cool.
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March 5, 2011 at 9:15 am
Wow! Amazing landscapes, solitude indeed!
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March 5, 2011 at 9:18 am
I really love White Sands! Awesome shots!
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March 5, 2011 at 9:31 am
Thanks. It’s a truly amazing place.
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March 5, 2011 at 12:29 pm
Jim this is very nice work and the shots are great. It’s close enough that I already should have been there. Looks like a good route to the Dunes in Colorado from Phoenix.
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March 5, 2011 at 9:39 am
Hi Scott:
I would highly recommend a stop at White Sands. Great Sand Dunes in Colorado is also pretty amazing. Enjoy your trip, and thanks for the comment.
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March 5, 2011 at 10:20 am
Beautiful. It looks like the snow drifts out here, with a few dessert flowers splashed in. Thanks for sharing this part of our country with us!
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March 5, 2011 at 9:40 am
Breath taking.
Blessings,
Ava
xox
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March 5, 2011 at 10:13 am
Thank you Ava!
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March 5, 2011 at 10:16 am
Love the pics. Brings back tons of memories when I lived out there in 1980’s 🙂 It is one of the amazing “Must See’s” in the USA
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March 5, 2011 at 11:46 am
Thanks Miles, I agree: it is a must see. I try to get down there at least once a year.
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March 5, 2011 at 11:58 am
Absolutely wonderful pics and thans for the info.
Not a single footprint on the sands. It is worth framing.
Great Capture.
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March 5, 2011 at 11:55 am
Thank you. I hope you get a chance to check it out.
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March 5, 2011 at 11:59 am
Amazing pics!! The white sands look like snow in a desert!
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March 5, 2011 at 2:59 pm
grerat photos Jim…keep up the great work.
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March 5, 2011 at 4:09 pm
Thanks Margaret.
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March 5, 2011 at 5:41 pm
Hello, the landscape is absolutely beautiful and your photographs magnificent!!
I love desert landscapes.
Thank you for sharing.
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March 5, 2011 at 4:39 pm
Thank you so much Iguana. The desert is one of my favorite places to photograph.
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March 5, 2011 at 5:42 pm
I had no idea a desert could look so much like a beach. The second shot is my favorite, with the color in the sky.
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March 5, 2011 at 5:05 pm
Thank you. It does resemble a beach. There’s no water (to speak of) in the vicinity though!
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March 5, 2011 at 5:44 pm
Beautiful images.
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March 5, 2011 at 6:30 pm
Nice pictures
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March 5, 2011 at 6:55 pm
Completely awesome and breathtaking. makes me wanna travel…some more.
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March 5, 2011 at 7:33 pm
cool composition.
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March 5, 2011 at 7:49 pm
it’s look like beach sand..
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March 5, 2011 at 8:30 pm
cool. like snow~
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March 5, 2011 at 8:40 pm
I have to see this! Beautiful photos!
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March 5, 2011 at 8:49 pm
Love love this.. being a Girl (Now in Texas) from Cruces.. have not been to White Sands since I was a girl.. thanks.. for the nice roll back in my memory..
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March 5, 2011 at 9:41 pm
Wow! The pictures are so beautiful.
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March 5, 2011 at 9:52 pm
Nice! I love the colors and the balance in the composition. Thanks for sharing!
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March 5, 2011 at 10:05 pm
Beautiful pictures and wow 🙂
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March 5, 2011 at 10:26 pm
Great desert shots. Ive been to the Yuma area several times and visited several deserts within a 3-hour drive, but haven’t yet been visited White Sands. Definitely on my list now though.
JT
http://www.jltyler.com/silouette
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March 6, 2011 at 1:03 am
It is a good picture. What drove you to capture the picture of White Sands?
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March 6, 2011 at 1:50 am
Lovely pictures, could I use them giving the source?
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March 6, 2011 at 2:57 am
Beautiful, beautiful landscape. I’ve marveled about this landscape for a while, but have never visited. I have photographers like you to thank for bringing this different scenery available. Many thanks!
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March 6, 2011 at 4:43 am
gorgeous images. Really beautiful landscapes
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March 6, 2011 at 5:13 am
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
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March 6, 2011 at 5:54 am
Jim, your photographs are gorgeous (so is your writing, btw). I’ve been blessed to have driven through the White Sands national monument area once in my life. I vaguely recall its beauty; thanks for the visual reminders. God bless.
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March 6, 2011 at 6:28 am
nice pic ^__________^
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March 6, 2011 at 9:07 am
beautiful photos of a beautiful place
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March 6, 2011 at 9:54 am
Its funny that this image showed up on WordPress as I was logging into my own site. It immediately caught my eye because I’ve been fascinated with this place – I’m going to New Mexico in April and really want to visit White Sands but from what I hear, it’s quite a trek south from Santa Fe area – any recommendations on best route (and necessary time) to get there?
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March 6, 2011 at 10:12 am
Hi Denise:
I think it’s about a 4 hour drive from Santa Fe, maybe a little more. But, it’s well worth it, especially if you’ve never been there. I try to get down there at least once a year. Head south on I-25 from Santa Fe about 140 miles to the San Antonio, NM exit (I think it’s exit 138), this will put you on US 380 eastbound. When you get to Carrizozo, turn right onto US 54 and stay on it until you get to White Sands. As I said, the trip is well worth the effort in my opinion.
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March 6, 2011 at 10:29 am
beautifully captured 🙂 good job!
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March 6, 2011 at 10:21 am
Pingback: White Sands (via Jim Caffrey Images Photo Blog) « Barbara Edwards Soprano
Barbara:
Thanks for the kind words about my photography, and for the link. I appreciate it.
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March 6, 2011 at 11:23 am
This is a different place than the Great Sand Dunes National Park, is it not? This looks interesting too. Will try to get there some day.
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March 6, 2011 at 11:56 am
Yes. Great Sand Dunes is in south–central Colorado. White Sands is in south–central New Mexico. They are both amazing places to visit and photograph.
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March 6, 2011 at 12:00 pm
Stunning photos. The world can be amazingly beautiful and you have captured her beauty with great success. Thanks for sharing these pics and congrats on being FPd.
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March 6, 2011 at 12:05 pm
Love that top shot of the dunes, Jim. Beautiful!
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March 6, 2011 at 12:22 pm
Loved your commentary on White Sands. Very easy to read, logically laid out thought and interesting, including very interesting detail about the cause of the white sands.
I liked the pictures, but I prefer a sharper wide range focus on large landscapes.
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March 6, 2011 at 3:44 pm
Wow, your pictures are great! I recently moved to Eastern Europe for work and have been having a hard time explaining to people here in words just how beautiful the deserts in America are. Your pictures of White Sands, NM are absolutely beautiful and I’ll refer my new friends here to your blog so they can see what I fail to describe… Thanks for the beautiful pictures, really amazing!
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March 6, 2011 at 4:05 pm
I know nothing of photography, but that first picture is beautiful.
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March 6, 2011 at 4:46 pm
Marvelous photos. Great compo, nice wnhite, beautiful texture. Congratulations and Regards.
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March 6, 2011 at 5:01 pm
Loved the photos.
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March 6, 2011 at 5:22 pm
I have skirted Whites Sands many times on my way westward. You have convinced me to stop and visit. Thanks for the beautiful photos.
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March 6, 2011 at 5:28 pm
I love the colour tone in the horizon but I wonder if adding some light to the increase detail in the foreground plants would have enhanced the visual depth and overall power of the image???
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March 6, 2011 at 6:24 pm
These white sand pictures look like my grandmother’s comforter before she died in Barre, Vermont.
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March 6, 2011 at 6:40 pm
Beautiful…your use of and anticipation of light and shadows is gorgeous. Well done. I’m a photographer as well, but you sir are an artist. 🙂
Dug
http://thf2.wordpress.com
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March 6, 2011 at 6:44 pm
Nice shots dude
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March 6, 2011 at 7:34 pm
nice..
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March 6, 2011 at 8:09 pm
this is my first time to know gypsum..
nice photos..
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March 6, 2011 at 8:10 pm
Beautiful photos of a stunning place. I was at White Sands when I was in my early 20s, several decades ago. It was gorgeous but the most remarkable thing to me was the total quiet…I’ve never been anywhere else where there was absolutely no sound. It was fascinating and a little frightening. I was with my parents and my mother kept talking, I think it made her very uncomfortable. My dad had been stationed there during WW2 so they had seen it all before and were back to remember the old days.
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March 6, 2011 at 9:18 pm
The first image is amazing! I want to go to there.
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March 6, 2011 at 9:45 pm
nice pictures, thanks for sharing.
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March 6, 2011 at 10:42 pm
Hi, those sand dunes pattern with the orizon in the back ground is amazing. The ryt light makes the photo even more perfect. There is another place called Allepey in Kerala, India, where you can take a snap all year around and still get the best shots.
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March 6, 2011 at 11:03 pm
The textures in the sand are super-cool…almost other-worldly.
Truly haunting images – thank you for sharing! very cool!
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March 7, 2011 at 1:26 am
nice images… would love to be there..thanks for sharing the images..
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March 7, 2011 at 1:50 am
Amazing and fantastic photos, the picture clarity and detailing of sand is extremely amazing.
Thanks for the share.
Vanimator
http://www.vanimator.com
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March 7, 2011 at 1:51 am
Your pictures are gorgeous.
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March 7, 2011 at 2:41 am
Absolutely stunning…. superb!!
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March 7, 2011 at 3:08 am
Your world is beautiful…
Great pics are Byproduct of beautiful imagination…
Thanks for sharing your world with us…
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March 7, 2011 at 7:56 am
These pictures are absolutely beautiful.
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March 7, 2011 at 8:48 am
Thank you Isha!
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March 7, 2011 at 8:49 am
Gorgeous ethereal light – congrats on being “Freshly Pressed” 😉
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March 7, 2011 at 9:07 am
wow ! .. very nice photos ! . talented. I would love to take a trip there, very beautiful settings.
http://www.mrcastano.wordpress.com
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March 7, 2011 at 9:18 am
Stunning images! Love the depth and crispness. Would you mind sharing your exif settings for the first one?
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March 7, 2011 at 9:24 am
Nice shot..White sand looks amazing..
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March 7, 2011 at 9:53 am
Wow. Amazing photos. So glad to have found your blog! Thanks for sharing!
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March 7, 2011 at 10:26 am
Wow! Love, Love, LOVE the pics!! Funny, I was just thinking of this place just the other day. I’ve never been, but would LOVE to go! This is only the 2nd time I’ve heard of it. The first time (and then my teenage daughter had to tell me where it was! lol) I’d heard of White Sands or saw shots of it was a 90’s video by Boys II Men…
I wish Oprah or Ellen would do a shoot from here. Most folks outside the region don’t even know this gorgeous natural wonder even exists…
This place should be the NINTH wonder of the world…(smile)
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March 7, 2011 at 1:50 pm
Gorgeous Photographs!
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March 7, 2011 at 1:53 pm
Pingback: White Sands « Fast Food Blogging
beautiful photos, and thanks for the info about White Sands!
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March 7, 2011 at 10:52 pm
Thank you. White Sands is a great place to visit and photograph!
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March 8, 2011 at 6:57 am
Beauty. Wanna visit this place.surely
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March 10, 2011 at 8:36 am
really nice photo
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March 16, 2011 at 12:49 am
serenely beautiful.
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March 21, 2011 at 3:57 am
Thanks Jenny!
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March 21, 2011 at 6:20 am
Beatifull white sand worked by the wind !
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August 5, 2014 at 5:32 am