I’ve rambled on before about the Badlands, but wanted to share this image a little more officially. This is the view from the visitors center. Like, right out the front door. It’s not the first thing you see when you come into the park. If you happen to come in on the eastern side, you’ll pass the “Notch” and “Window” trails and overlooks. If you come in from the west, you’ll actually see most of the park. Well, “most” is a relative term, but I shall not discuss that.
The light was still pretty harsh that day as it was near full sun. A few clouds wandered across the sky, which helped take this image up a step. A bare sky is a curse generally speaking, though it’s also something you cannot control. With this image, it adds depth to the sky, but also helps provide some light control on the ridges.
Timing and light are everything in photography. Both of which you have little to no control over (at least in the wild). You can look at forecasts and hope for cooperative skys. For timing, you just try to be in the right place at what you think is the right time. Sometimes it works, sometimes…not so much. This time though, it all came together as I walked out of the visitors center.