Go Wide Assignment Winner Laura Zirino

“I went to White Sands hoping for thunderstorms, which of course cleared up the day after I arrived,” explains Zirino. “So instead I got up early and hiked into the dunes in the dark. I just wandered around, seeing what I could find (or what would find me). When the sun rose over the mountains, I was standing at the top of this dune as the first light hit. The dunes glow when the sunlight first hits them! I shot this close to the ground and caught the last bit of color in the clouds, and the low angle emphasized the lines and textures in the sand.”

Canon 5D MkIII, 17-40mm lens. Exposure: 1/4 sec., f/14, ISO 100.