Zion National Park. The Virgin river cuts a deep gorge through Zion park. One of the best hikes is right up the river through what is referred to as “The Narrows” This hike can be done from top down or bottom up. I chose to take the bottom up route, and began my hike well before sunrise….spending hours just wandering in knee-waist deep freezing water looking for compositions. This is truly one of the best places I ‘ve ever photographed. Light for photography is best in the early afternoon as the sun climbs higher in the sky, and sends a warm glow throughout the canyon.

Zion National Park. The view of ‘The Watchman’ from the bridge over the Virgin River is one of the most iconic in the park. I tried three different evenings for something memorable from this spot…and finally on the last night of my time in Zion I was blessed with this sunset that I was able to share with 30 other photographers. In order to make this shot amazing, you need great clouds, and just the right break at the horizon so the cliffs light up in addition to keeping color in the sky. It was a truly amazing sunset.

Zion National Park. Deep in a remote canyon of the park lies ‘The Subway.’ The name was given to this area because the curve in the canyon wall resembles a subway tube. When the light at mid-day is just right, the glow in the curve makes it appear a train is coming towards you. The hike to this location is long, but beautiful. Red rock walls looming above you, and waterfalls and cascades spilling over shelves of crimson rock, Easily one of the best hikes in the park.

Zion National Park. The Virgin river cuts a deep gorge through the park, and one of the best hikes is hiking right up the river through what is referred to as “The Narrows” This hike can be done from top down or the bottom up. I chose to take the bottom up route, and began my hike before sunrise….spending hours just wandering in waist deep freezing water looking for compositions. This is truly one of the best places I ‘ve ever photographed. Light for photography is best in the early afternoon as the sun climbs higher in the sky, and sends a warm glow throughout the canyon. This is another shot from my time in ‘The Narrows’

Zion National Park. Deep in a remote canyon of the park lies ‘The Subway.’ The name was given to this area because the curve in the canyon walls resembles a subway tube. When the light of mid-day is just right, the glow makes it appear that a train is coming towards you. The hike to this location is long, but beautiful. Red rock walls loom above you. Waterfalls and cascades spill over shelves of crimson rock, easily one of the best hikes in the park. This is another popular take on this area.

Zion National Park. The Virgin river cuts a deep gorge through the park, and one of the best hikes is hiking right up the river through what is referred to as “The Narrows” This hike can be done from top down or the bottom up. I chose to take the bottom up route, and began my hike before sunrise….spending hours just wandering in waist deep freezing water looking for compositions. This is truly one of the best places I ‘ve ever photographed. Light for photography is best in the early afternoon as the sun climbs higher in the sky and sends a warm glow throughout the canyon. This is my personal favorite from this trip.

Antelope Canyon. Located on the Navajo Nation, Antelope Canyon is one of the many iconic locations to photograph in the Southwest US. There is an upper and lower portion of this canyon. The upper portion, while more well known…is not any more photogenic than its lower partner…but five times more crowded. On this day I skirted a rain storm…and made a gamble to venture into the canyon to photograph in hopes I could catch a few hours of light before the storms returned and dumped more rain. I was lucky, not only did I succeed in getting the light I was hoping for…I was also the only one there.

Death Valley National Park. After a morning shoot at Mesquite Dunes I was driving on my way towards Zion when I noticed a herd of bighorns near the road. The Desert Bighorn is a very seldom seen animal in the park. I parked, loaded up, and set about trying to capture an image of this animal that showed its strength, but also showed a bit of the desert environment as well.

Zion National Park. The hike to ‘The Subway’ is amazing. A steep descent brings you from the plateaus down to the creek, some 2000 feet below. You follow the creek for a couple miles before the landscape changes, and begins to narrow. From this point on the creek flows over crimson terraces, and gives hikers a treat to the power of wind, water, and time. This little cascade was my favorite section of the hike in. To photograph this one needs to arrive early in the morning to avoid the harsh mid-day light.

Antelope Canyon. Located on the Navajo Nation, Antelope Canyon is one of the many iconic locations to photograph in the Southwest US. There is an upper and lower portion of this canyon. The upper portion, while more well known…is not any more photogenic than its lower partner…but has five times the crowd. On this day I skirted a rain storm…and made a gamble to venture into the canyon to photograph in hopes I could catch a few hours of light before the storms returned and dumped more rain. I was lucky, not only did I succeed in getting the light I was hoping for…I was also the only one there.