Sunsets and Stars at Great Sand Dunes National Park: Capture to Print

Colorado’s Great Sand Dunes National Park is home to the tallest sand dunes in North America, and rising above them are the spectacular 14,000-foot peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, at the foothills of the Rockies. These elements converge to create one of the state’s best dark-sky locations.

We begin each morning in the classroom, where Glenn, a contributing editor at Outdoor Photographer, covers essential information for both day and night photography, such as how to shoot in high-contrast light and how to use apps, including Sun Surveyor and The Photographer’s Ephemeris. Glenn also shares best practices for planning, photographing, and processing both single-frame and panoramic images of the Milky Way. Afternoons are spent in the field photographing the dunes illuminated by the San Luis Valley’s sunset light, and our sessions continue after dark, when we capture the seemingly infinite array of stars soaring over this surreal landscape.

After three days in the Great Sand Dunes National Park, we drive three hours to Santa Fe and spend our final two days editing and printing our best photographs in The Workshops state-of-the-art digital lab. Throughout, Glenn provides continual feedback on participants’ work. Join him for a thorough introduction to creating stunning daytime and nighttime images in one of the West’s most beautiful national parks.