Turning Photographs Into Art Part 3: Underexposure and Low-Key Images

Black is the queen of all colors.

Henri Matisse

1 - Dusk in the Chinle Buttes
There is no road there. The only sign of where to turn off was where the tire marks were left by my truck on my last visit. The recent rain and dust storms wiped them leaving scant traces about the path to follow. Several times I drive past the place where I remember turning off until I see a place along the road where the grader pushed dirt off. After a few minutes navigating between the Junipers and the sagebrush I see the rim of the canyon and beyond that the buttes. This is as far as I can go on four wheels.
The backpack housing my 4x5 gear is getting heavy. I have been at it all day, exploring and photographing. I just took my last photograph as the sun set behind the buttes, to capture the last rays of light. I turn back one last time, an old habit to make sure I am not missing anything. It is then I see the crescent moon setting behind two buttes and the sky bathed in purple light. The image I see in...