Desert Study — Golden Hour

The grade comes on fast in Tempe: the sun drops, the dust turns orange, and for about twenty minutes every surface becomes a reflector. This frame is one of three I shot back-to-back on 50mm, waiting for the wind to settle.

I underexposed by a stop to hold the sky, then let the silhouette carry the rest. The haze you see in the air was real — it was pushing triple digits that day.

It's the frame I keep returning to when I remember why I pick the camera up at all.