Chasing Light at the Cracked Eggs Hatchery
Earlier in the day, I photographed the mesmerizing Stone Wings formation, but my real goal lay further south—in the remote and surreal Bisti Badlands. I was determined to revisit the Cracked Eggs, a unique and alien-looking rock formation that’s long been a favorite among landscape photographers.
This wasn’t my first encounter with the site. Back in mid-December 2022, I explored the Cracked Eggs with my wife. That morning, temperatures had plunged well below zero with harsh wind chills, making the short hike feel much longer. Despite the cold, the visit allowed us both to experience this fascinating place—and for me, it became the perfect opportunity to pre-plan a future shoot using PhotoPills.
With my wife away on a personal trip this time, I seized the moment to head back solo. Among the many striking features of Bisti, the Cracked Eggs were top priority. I set out around 2 PM, giving myself a few hours to scout compositions and prepare for a sunset that I hoped would deliver something special.
Scouting the Scene
Research and memory served me well. The eggs are laid out in a slight northward alignment—about five degrees off true north—and are surrounded by dramatic terrain. Tall hills dominate the east and curve around to the south, casting shadows that block early morning light but also providing interesting compositional elements like hoodoos and ridgelines.
Shooting west didn’t appeal to me compositionally, and the northern perspective introduced background clutter. But with the right sky, it could work. What really caught my eye during scouting was a subtle dip in the southern ridge—a feature I remembered from my first visit. It wasn’t immediately obvious as a focal point, but it grew on me as I studied the landscape.
And then, as sunset approached, the magic happened.
When the Light Breaks 
A storm front was moving in, bringing thick, textured clouds. Just as I thought the light might not cooperate, a break opened between the higher and lower cloud layers. Golden hour light spilled through, bathing the Cracked Eggs in a soft, directional glow. The texture and color of the scene changed instantly, bringing everything to life. My meter read a Brightness Value of 7.36 with 0 EV exposure bias—ideal conditions for what I had envisioned.
I framed my shot to take full advantage of the eggs’ natural leading lines, which guide the viewer’s eye toward the distant hoodoos. A second line—a streak of dark sediment and a subtle dip in the ridgeline—pointed upward into the sky, complementing the moody, layered clouds overhead.
The Gear and Technique
To capture this scene, I used my new Colorado Tripod Centennial 4-Series, which gave me the height I needed (up to 70”) for a more dimensional view of the cracked eggs. I paired it with my Sony A7R V, which offers nearly 15 stops of dynamic range—just a touch more than my previous A7R III.
The key challenge was managing the flat ambient light due to the cloud cover while preserving the dynamic burst of color in the sky. I shot everything manually, bracketing multiple exposures to allow for potential blending in post—especially to maintain detail in that brief, glowing gap in the clouds.
Processing and Creative Decisions
Back home, I processed the files in HDR using my MacBook Pro with an M2 Max chip and a pre-calibrated ASUS ProArt display. I leaned on Nik Collection Series 7 for its flexible tone control and consulted AI tools like ChatGPT and Copilot for additional feedback—something I’ve started doing more often after seeing Todd Dominey explore similar workflows in his videos: ChatGPT doesn’t like my photography and MORE surprises using ChatGPT to analyze images.
The post-processing goal was to stay true to the light and mood I experienced in the field while enhancing the tonal range and color harmony. Initially, the color palette was subdued—almost a side-complementary color scheme with low saturation. Through careful blending and tonal adjustments, I nudged it toward a split-complementary palette with more vibrance and richness, especially in the sky.
Final steps included subtle color grading to warm the scene, emphasize the golden hues of the sunset, and targeted dodging and burning to draw attention to textures and leading lines.
Final Thoughts
This image is the result of patience, planning, and a bit of weather luck. Spending hours exploring the Cracked Eggs Hatchery up close helped me see not just the shapes and textures, but the light paths and compositional flow. The resulting image—captured in the fleeting light of a sunset storm—feels like a culmination of both fieldwork and creative processing.
Let me know what you think—and if you’ve ever visited Bisti, I’d love to hear your experience!
