Along the Colorado Plateau

Located on the Arizona-Utah state line, near Four Corners is an area rich in history and beautiful scenery.  This area has the greatest concentration of US National Park units in the country.  Ten National Parks, Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, Arches, Mesa Verde and the Petrified Forest are all located here.  Seventeen National Monuments including Hovenweep, Wupatki, Sunset Crater Volcano, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Natural Bridges and Canyon de Chelly are also located in the area.  Added to this list is a vast segment of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands as well as the Navajo Nation.  The Navajo Nation occupies portions of northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah and northwestern New Mexico and is the largest land area assigned on any Native American jurisdiction in the United States.

 

 

Among the beauty listed above is Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii (meaning valley of rocks) or Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. 
 

 

Growing up as a boy I loved watching old black and white western movies primarily John Wayne.  One can not visit Monument Valley or see images from there without seeing the landscape that captured the imagination of thousands as they watched John Wayne battle the bad guys.  I like to say that visit Monument Valley and you'll see the most two-most famous Johns in American film history;  John Ford the director and John Way the actor.

 

 

 

We've been going to Monument Valley several times a year and each time always visit Valley of the Gods which is situated less that 30-minutes east.  This last trip has turned into what we believe is the best due to extremely great weather conditions.

Sandy and I stayed the View Hotel located right on the rim overlooking Monument Valley spending 2-days hiking and shooting the area.  The equipment used to capture the images here were simple; Sandy used her Canon 1DsIII and a EF24-70 lens while I used a Phase One DF body, Phase One IQ160 digital back and a Schneider 55mm leaf shutter lens.  We also captured several minutes of time-lapse video which will be included in our next DVD.

 

Monument Valley is primarily a location you drive using a 17-mile loop around the valley floor.  There is however a hiking trail that allows one a closer look.  Wildcat Trail (3.2 mile loop) is a fairly level/easy route that loops around the West Mitten Butte.  No matter the time of year you should be cautious making certain you carry plenty of water.

 

 

These are just teaser samples of what we were fortunate to capture during our stay.  There's still plenty of processing and test printing to do.  Most of the images will eventually end up in Volume 5 of our DVD with a couple being offered for sale as a print in our web gallery.   

 

 

Thank you for allowing us to share and remember, your comments are always welcomed.  Stay tuned for more and watch for the release of DVD Volume 5 coming within a couple months.

 

Sandy & Don

 

 

 

Sony NEX-7 and infrared photography

Just a teaser for now.  I've decided to get back into infrared photography after selling my camera a couple years ago. 

 

The last camera was a Canon 1DsII that I had converted to infrared using a 665nm filter and began searching for a suitable candidate a couple weeks ago.  Don't want to bore anyone with the various cameras I looked at and why they didn't pass muster; however I did decide on the Sony NEX-7.  The 2-main factors in my decision was the ability to swap lenses and 24.3 megapixel.

 

I was fortunate to pick up a gently used camera from a trusted source last week.  The camera is now in transit to Life Pixel to have the conversion to 665 nm done.  I'm told that I should get the camera back by the end of the month and look forward to sharing more information and images then. 
 

As I said in the beginning - this is just a teaser so stay tuned for more.

 

Don

Photographing Death Valley

Racetrack, Death Valley

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (70mm) f/14 1/250 ISO50

Racetrack, Death Valley

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (41mm) f/14 1/250 ISO 50

Death Valley got its name from a group of pioneers lost in the winter of 1849-1850; as the party eventually climbed out of the valley over the Panamint Mountains, one of men turned, looked back, and said "goodbye, Death Valley". 

We've visited Death Valley before however this was the longest stay to date.  Staying at the Furnace Creek Ranch we shot for 5-days visiting Badwater, Artist Palette, Zabriskie Point, Stovepipe Wells, Teakettle Junction and The Racetrack.

Racetrack, Death Valley

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (67mm) f/14 1/250 ISO 50

A little "behind the scene" of Don stalking a rock at the Racetrack.

This is the finished product of what he took - a 2-shot panorama.

Racetrack, Death Valley

Cambo WRS/IQ160 HR40mm f/11 1/250 ISO 50

Just a quick peek at what it looked like while we were at the Racetrack.



There's been numerous television shows lately showing Death Valley and just how dangerous a place it can be for those who are unprepared.  To quote the National Park Service " GPS Navigation to sites to remote locations like Death Valley are notoriously unreliable. Numerous travelers have been directed to the wrong location or even dead-end or closed roads.  Travelers should always carry up-to-date road maps to check the accuracy of GPS directions.  DO NOT DEPEND ONLY ON YOUR VEHICLE GPS NAVIGATION SYSTEM."  We'd also add to pay attention to the road signs; if it says primitive road or high clearance vehicle recommended, best heed the warning.

We had been calling this formation the "mother ship" but learned later its' name is "The Grandstand".  This is the first formation you see as you get closer.

The Grandstand, Death Valley

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (24mm) f/14 1/250 ISO 50

Just to give you an idea of the vastness of the area - remember Don is 6'-9" - can you spot him?

Racetrack, Death Valley

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (39mm) f/13 1/250 ISO 50

Along side Ubehebe Crater

Canon 1DsIII 24-70 (38mm) f/11 1/320 ISO 50

Near Teakettle Junction

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (24mm) f/11 1/250 ISO 50

While most locations we visited this trip were just off major paved roads one wasn't.  The Racetrack is located in the northern section of Death Valley just past Grapevine.  The actual road leading out is within the same area as Ubehebe Crater.  Racetrack Road is a 27-mile gravel, washboard, heavy rutted road.  There's a speed sign a couple hundred yards in that states the speed is 30 MPH - do that speed at your own peril.   While there are some sections where you might be capable of 30MPH the vast majority is much closer to 10 and below.  You can't be in a hurry to reach the Racetrack - figure at least 2-hours to get to the northern portion and depending on conditions another 10-minutes to reach the southern.  As a point of reference, we've traveled to the Racetrack in a small 2-door Jeep, a 4-door Jeep and this year in our Ford Raptor.  It doesn't matter the vehicle, you still need to go slow or risk vehicle damage and severe back problems for the driver and passengers.  And, while you don't necessarily need a 4-wheel vehicle you should at least drive a high-clearance vehicle.  If you get stuck out here there's no cell-phone service and a tow truck will cost much more than an arm and a leg.   You've been warned.

 Devil's Golf Course

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (44mm) f/11 1/250 ISO 50

Phase DF/IQ160 55mm LS f/11 1/260 ISO 50

Devil's Golf Course

Cambo WRS/IQ160 HR40mm f/11 1/500 ISO 50

Photographing Death Valley is a rewarding challenge.  Sunrise/sunset at the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes can be beautiful just as at Zabriskie Point.   Early morning light at Badwater and Devil's Golf Course is not to be missed.  Remember to have a tripod and filters, be patient and you'll capture the colors at Artist Palette and Golden Canyon. 

Artist Pallete

Canon 1DsIII EF17-40 (30mm) f/11 1/250 ISO 50

Artist Pallete

Canon 1DsIII EF17-40 (17mm) f/11 1/250 ISO 50

Artist Pallete

Phase DF/IQ160 55mm LS f/11 1/160 ISO 50

We're including images from some of the locations we visited to give you a sample of what you can find.  Our weather for the most part was good with blue skies and scattered clouds with low temps in the morning before warming up to short sleeve weather in the afternoon.  The wind for the most part wasn't a major concern however the closer it got to our departure the more we noticed it blowing and far less clouds.

Badwater, Death Valley

2-shot verticle panorama

Cambo WRS/IQ160 HR 40mm f/11 1/180 ISO 50

Closeup at Badwater

Phase DF/IQ160 Mamiya 120mm f/5.3 1/100 ISO 50

If you only have a few hours to visit Death Valley then a stop at Zabriskie Point is a must.

Sunrise at Zabriskie Point (6:16 AM)

Phase DF/IQ160 Mamiya 120mm f/5.6 1/6 ISO 50

Zabriskie Point (6:22 AM)

Phase DF/IQ160 Mamiya 120mm f/5.6 1/8 ISO 50

"Cake-Mix" at Zabriskie Point (6:32 AM)

Phase DF/IQ160 Mamiya 120mm f/8 1/10 ISO 50

Equipment used on this trip included a 35mm Canon 1DsIII  along with a range of lenses (17-40 and a 24-70) along with a Really Right Stuff MC-34 Monopod with the MH-02 LR monopod head.  Additionally, a Phase One IQ160 digital back attached to either a Cambo WRS tech camera or Phase One 645DF body was used along with either a Rodenstock 40mm tilt/shift lens (attached to the WRS) and a Schneider 55mm leaf shutter or a Mamiya 120mm manual macro lens on the 645DF.  A Really Right Stuff TVC-34L tripod with an Arca Swiss Cube was used to steady most of the medium format images. 

Zabriskie Point (6:09 PM)

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (44mm)  f/8 1/160 ISO 50

Zabriskie Point (6:11 PM)

Canon 1DsIII EF24-70 (55mm) f/8 1/100 ISO 50

If you look close enough you'll see Don sitting on the edge in the middle.

Zabriskie Point (6:15 PM)

Canon 1DsIII EWF 24-70 (55mm) f/6.3 1/100 ISO 100

Sunset at Zabrisriske Point (6:38 PM)

Canon 1DsIII EF 24-70 (70mm) f/4 1/80 ISO 100

The image files were later processed using a combination of Capture One Pro 7, Photoshop CS6 as well as either Silver Efex Pro or HDR Efex Pro.  The videos included were taken either with our Canon XF105 or a really cheap "truck-camera" both later processed using Adobe Premiere Pro software.

"Dunes"

Phase DF/IQ160 Mamiya 120mm f/11 1/160 ISO 50

We're already planning our next visit which will include some canyons which we've not visited before.  Our next trip is a return to Monument Valley so please stay tuned.

"Storm Clouds" in Death Valley

Phase DF/IQ160 55mm LS f/11 1/160 ISO 50

This turned out a little longer than normal however we wanted to share the information with you.  As always, thank you for allowing us to share and please remember your comments, thoughts and suggestions are always welcome.

Sandy & Don