THE HEAVY STONES IN THE FOREGROUND OF TOM SLITER'S photographs appear implacable and invulnerable. But the forces that have shaped them over millennia can be discerned in the backgrounds of the pictures in "Chiseled by Time: Sculpture of the Mojave Desert," the local artist's Multiple Exposures Gallery show. Hot sunlight, soft clouds, and dark skies represent the environment that has gradually eroded the rocky landscapes into their current forms.

Sliter's statement calls his subjects "nature's own Zen gardens," and stones do dominate the pictures in this series. The photographer conveys both the sheer bulk of the boulders and their intricate textures, which he accents by adding sepia toning to the black-and-white digital images. The gently grainy surfaces are set off by shadowy crevices and occasional scraps of spiky or prickly vegetation, blooming improbably from the rock.

Above are skies, presumably blue to the naked eye, that often verge on black. Whether this effect is achieved with filters or computer imaging, the ebony heavens dramatically frame the gray stones and white wisps of cloud. They also suggest the power of wind and rain that, over time, wear and gouge the chunky stone loaves and near-orbs.

All the pictures are medium shots that verge on closeups, save for one widescreen composition. Intriguingly, Sliter carefully tears the edges of his prints. The ragged borders echo the violence of erosion and tectonic shifts, but they also show the presence of the creator. In the digital age, Sliter demonstrates the power of still doing some things by hand.

Tom Sliter: Chiseled by Time: Sculpture of the Mojave Desert

Through March 9 at Multiple Exposures Gallery, Torpedo Factory, 105 N. Union St., Alexandria. multipleexposuresgallery.com. 703-683-2205.