10%

The Namib Desert

from above

By Crystal Stafford

January 7^th, 2018

An aerial photography tour over the oldest desert in the world

This was my first experience with aerial photography and it did not disappoint. The Namib desert is a spectacular place for photography, whether on the ground or in the air. This flight took me from Swakopmund across the desert to Sossusvlei and then up the Skeleton Coast back to where we started. This was my first try with aerial photography, it will definitely not be my last.

an ever changing landscape

This flight covered 610 kilometers of constantly changing landscapes. My camera got no rest during this two and a half hour journey. It seemed that every few minutes the colors and geography migrated into something completely new.

Built in filter

While studying up on aerial photography I read that one should only photograph through open windows. Our pilot said that we would be going too fast to open the windows, so all of these were taken through the window, which added a filtered appearance to the photos.

into the blue

With the exception of a few small towns, this coast line is completely desolate. One can drive for hours and see no sign of civilization other than the fishermen that run up and down the highway.

harvesting salt

Salt crystals large and small litter this coast. This photo captures the commercial salt fields near Walvis Bay.

some perspective

Pictured here is the other plane in our party of two, a tiny speck over the vast expanse of dunes.

the skeletons on the coast

We flew over two ship wrecks, the Eduard Bohlen and the Shawnee which is pictured to the right. The Eduard Bohlen ran aground in 1909 during high fog and sits 400 meters inland. The Shawnee met its final resting place in 1976. We also flew over a couple of abandoned diamond mining camps.

The Shawnee Shipwreck on the Skeleton Coast ran aground in 1976.

An abandoned diamond mining camp in the Namib Desert

The Eduard Bohlen shipwreck sits 400 meters from shore.

The Eduard Bohlen ship has been collecting sand since 1909.

The Shawnee Shipwreck is one the hundreds of ships that have run aground on the Skeleton Coast.

cape fur seal

Hundreds of thousands of seals line this coast in colonies as large as 300,000 to smaller colonies like the one pictured here.

Specks of tourism

Swakopmund is called the extreme sports capital of Southern Africa. Tour groups run numerous expeditions into the desert, from sand boarding to ATVs, you must only choose your vehicle.