Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

20th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest The American Experience
Mojave Joshua

While on a 2 week photo journey to the American Southwest, and after seeing New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado, I was driving home through the California desert. I was winding down from the exciting photo opportunities in the previous days when I noticed the drama unfurling across the Mojave Desert. This grabbed all my attention and I had to pull off the highway. With camera in hand with only a wide angle lens, I began walking out into this unknown area. I only needed a few steps to my left to properly place this Joshua tree in alignment with the churning sky. After a quick review to make sure there were no rattlers nearby, I made a couple of exposures and walked back to the truck. Little did I know that this image would become my favorite of the trip, and not even from any of my destination states. This was a good day.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 08.2020
Date Uploaded: 09.2022
Photo Location: Near Barstow, CA, California, United States of America
Copyright: © Jeffrey Sipress