Black and White Sahara Desert

Encroaching Thunder Storm

The desert and clouds are my favorite subjects for black and white photography, so on my latest trip to West Africa, I was fortunate enough to be provided with both. While the trip included more than just the desert (see the Morocco link for other photos), the trek through the northern part of the Sahara was exceptional. Of my black and white photographs, my favorites are from a thunder storm we ran into half way through the trip. An unusual site by itself for the region, this storm also provided the only rain that they'd had in over two years.

Afternoon Walk

All the photos on this page were taken with AGFA 200 slide film, and the contrast balance you see is achieved by using a red filter to darken the skies and add contrast to the sand, and a polarizer to provide even more contrast to the skies and clouds. The "brownish" pictures are done using Photoshop. This is called "sepia toning", a technique normally done with chemicals in a dark room. Since I work almost exclusively with digital media (except for the pictures, which are still done with film), Photoshop has proven to be just as interesting and exciting as the traditional darkroom.

Morning Run. Who knew a storm would come?

Even at 10am, it's hot

Off in the distance, we can see it coming

Rain in the West...

...and lovely desert to the East

Alone in the Desert

More Afternoon Scenery

Rain makes for hard-packed sand, which makes walking much nicer

Allah sees all.

(More Images) Click Here for Color Photos of the Sahara Desert