Slickrock and Shadow

Waterfall, flowers and redrock located in Zion's Right Fork of North Creek Ever since hiking to Double Falls in 2011, I have wanted to return and explore further.  I made it happen this year and hiked all the way into the deepest part of the canyon possible without ropes, harnesses and such:  Barrier Falls.  While Barrier Falls is not particularly scenic, seeing the "Barrier" remains quite an accomplishment because the hiking here is so slow, rocky and wet.  The last mile is pure bushwhacking and bouldering. Below Barrier Falls, this smaller and idyllic pool and waterfall are located.  The waters are cool on my legs.  I'd often wade up to my thighs and sometimes higher.  I loved the sound of falling water on the rocks and a breeze through the trees.  No other disturbances in this remote location. I loved these little red flowers.  As I saw them, I wanted to include them somehow in a grander photograph of the surroundings.  Getti...

Yellow Rock within Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument is one of many fabulous natural beauties! Yellow Rock, Utah remains one of the most unique and beautiful locations I've ever visited.  I've traveled in pursuit of great photo locations for 12 years now and Yellow Rock remains one of the most photogenic in memory.  I visited this remote location once, in 2008 (before blogging, so I thought it deserved a blog post now).  After 9 years, this photo remains one of my favorite.  I'd ascended the monolith, huffing and puffing, until I reached the top.  I searched around, looking for good photo subjects.  I discovered this wavy line of white and deep purple etched on the yellow sandstone.  Just about this time, sunset happened and the last sun rays shone on the distant cliffs and clouds. Processing note:  This photo was before HDR and multiple exposure blending.  I shot with a Lee graduated neutral density filter to balance out the...

Beachy Head Lighthouse, as seen from the cliffs high above Beachy head is extremely photogenic.  Some pictures of those massive white cliffs are instantly recognizable as England.  They are featured in several movies.  Though the "white cliffs of Dover" are what we learn in school, Beachy Head is what we see in the pictures.  Dover is a bit further east but not as spectacular. What is there to photograph here? 1.  The White Cliffs of Beachy Head can be shot in isolation or with some of the sea birds to give sense of scale. 2.  Coast Guard Cottages -- these are further west and require a circuitous drive but the view with the white cliffs in the background is unparalleled! Coast Guard Cottages and the White Cliffs at Beachy Head, United Kingdom 3.  Birling Gap -- This looks west towards those Coast Guard Cottages and shows the "Seven Sisters". View towards Birling Gap (lighthouse in distance) with Seven Sisters -- the chalk cliff peaks...

Using the 5D Mark IV is a breeze. I got a new Canon 5D Mark 4 (5D Mark IV) 6 months ago.   I’ve put my Canon 1Ds Mark III into semi-retirement.   I thought it might be worthwhile to compare the two exceptional cameras.   If it’s possible to love a piece of magnesium alloy housing mirrors and computer chips, then I loved my 1Ds Mark III.   I still do.   After shooting for half a year, I discovered my new 5D Mark IV can do everything my 1Ds Mark 3 did and more.   What can it do better than the 1Ds Mark III?   Here’s my much-anticipated list of my favorites: TOP TEN THINGS I LOVE ABOUT THE 5D Mark IV: 10.   Touchscreen can be used for menus, zooming, shutter, focus and much more. 9.   Optional battery grip:   you can go "big camera" or "small camera" as you prefer. 8.   Fast frames per second with a larger buffer for those large files. 7.   Multiple Speedlite control remotely from the touchscreen! 6. ...

Purple Blossoms of Spring as seen on the Hellhole (or Hell Hole) Trail in Red Cliffs Desert Reserve The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve is a vast area north of St. George.   The reserve was initially formed, in part, because of the desert tortoise.   These seldom-seen residents are a threatened local species.   The reserve status protects this land for recreational use and I’ve enjoyed several jaunts into various parts of the reserve.   Some have famous names like Yant Flat or the Vortex.   Others are unknown.   On this day I hiked into an unknown area named “Hell hole” because of the miserable heart in the summer.   My visit had clouds and rain and I felt it more like a desert garden than a pit of despair.   I know that a waterfall can appear from the high cliffs if it rains enough.   I hoped for a waterfall appearance . . . but got something different.   The trail heads up a wash on the west side of Red Mountain.   The san...

East Temple as seen from the West Rim Trail Background: The West Rim Trail is one of the top backpacking trips in all of Utah.  It is the best and most renown backpacking trail in Zion National Park.  For over a decade I've had it on my wish list and never seemed to get things started.  Finally I made a short bucket list of things to do, short enough that I could accomplish some of these things each year.  I have less than 10 things on this list.  West Rim Trail made the list and I finally stopped making excuses and instead took those days off work.  Time to stop planning and start doing. The Permit: I went as a walk-in to the ranger station at 6 AM, waited in line and got my lucky top-choice campsite:  # 5.  Why #5?  Campsite 5 is right in the middle of the hike, it's right on the edge of Phantom Valley, it's right where I wanted to be for sunset and sunrise.  And I got it.  Yes!  Campsites 4 and 6 are also on the pla...

Road through Winnats Pass I saw some spectacular photos of Winnats pass when researching the Peaks District.  They impressed me so much I decided to go here for my sunrise.  I started off hiking along the southern edge which became higher and higher.  Deep grass was easily negotiated because there are some footpaths running here and there.  I hiked out to those prominent rocks in the upper picture and shot a mostly-cloudy sunrise.  My result is the photo below. Winnats Pass at Sunrise The small town in the distant haze is Castleton, UK.  I went there for sunrise and found some clouds, a little bit of light peeking through and some colors in the sky.  Looking down, I found much more to be excited about: green like I never see covering all the hills, crags and slopes.  From high up on the canyon precipice I watched the light slowly come into the world.  The vibrant green color and steep canyons here reminded me of Hawaii. After hiki...