Deserts and Valleys
You might call these God's own sand castles. Naturally occurring near springs on the floor of an inland salt water sea three times the strength of the ocean, these extraordinarily intricate sand and mineral formations are truly awe-inspiring to behold.
This was our second attempt to stay near Sedona during the winter season and capture some of the beauty that comes after a weather event. The area was blessed with a fair amount of rain and snow and it was wonderful to capture snow on Cathedral Rock during a beautiful sunset.
This juniper tree offered excellent opportunities for framing Cathedral Rock so I could not resist the opportunity. In practice it proved a lot harder getting both the tree and Cathedral Rock to be in focus. This ended up being a composite of two images.
After a somewhat disappointing evening in Canyonlands National Park due to overcast skies, I was starting the drive back to camp when I noticed the sun peeking through the clouds. Of course, it was then a frantic attempt to find an interesting composition before this fleeting moment passed. Adrenaline was pumping as I scrambled around looking for something decent. I feel pretty lucky that this composition presented itself at the last moment.
This beautiful tree caught my attention during a beautiful sunrise at Watson Lake. The boulder like formations at Watson Lake create an amazing other worldly view and each step presents unique opportunities to enjoy.
This image was taken after a recent snow storm at the Desert View Point in Grand Canyon National Park. It was bitterly cold but the scene was mesmerizing as the sun played hide and seek with the clouds constantly revealing different shades of the valley.
The Seven Sacred Pools on the Soldier Pass Road and Trail is an easy hike in Sedona. I found this majestic tree at the location that I could not resist photographing. Getting there for sunrise is a bit of a challenge as there are gates to the trailhead that do not open till much later.
I was returning to Dead Horse State Park after ten years and I was pretty excited as I had remembered the views into the canyons as totally mesmerizing. To make matters more interesting the winds started picking up as soon as we got there and before we knew, gale force winds and amazing cloud formations were starting to happen as the evening progressed. Here is one of the compositions from the evening as I held on to my camera and tripod worried about getting swept across the edge in the abyss below.
This was my first visit to the wilderness of Bisti Badlands in New Mexico. During the month of April, the temperatures are still reasonable but it tended to be extremely windy most of the time. This image was captured during a sunset in the Valley of Dreams area.
The striking red rock and snow at Cathedral Rock made for an amazing scene during this beautiful sunset.
This is one of my favorite spots in Sedona especially after rain as the red rock assumes an even darker color.
We got to enjoy a beautiful sunset at this location called the Robbers Roost in Sedona. Getting here requires a 4WD high clearance vehicle for the last one mile of the drive. The trail that leads to the roost is short – only 0.4-mile one way – but steep and rocky.
We spent a month last year near Moab and had the opportunity to enjoy the grandeur and beauty of Canyonlands National Park. The evening started out uneventfully and I was about to head back home when all of a sudden the wind picked up and before I knew it the dust and clouds started creating these amazing formations in the sky. I frantically grabbed my camera and ran looking for a decent location to capture this amazing scene unfold in front of my eyes.
“I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, "Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.” ― Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
Another image from a wonderful sunset at Robbers Roost in Sedona. The trail that leads to the cave is short – only 0.4-mile one way – but steep and rocky. There is a small part at the end of the hike that requires traversing a sloping ledge with a several hundred feet drop off. So caution is advised.