Canyon De Chelly National Monument
I discovered this national monument near twilight while I was driving south on Hwy 191 in Northern Arizona. I could spend days at this spot....
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I discovered this national monument near twilight while I was driving south on Hwy 191 in Northern Arizona. I could spend days at this spot.
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Nov, 2015Views
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Staff Winter Selection 2015
Peer Award
Superb Composition
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Absolute Masterpiece
Outstanding Creativity
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Top 20 rank week 1Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at Canyon De Chelly at Chinle, AZ right off Hwy 191. As I am a wildlife, landscape photographer, checking out new locations is a great sport for me. This was the first time I had stopped in to see the canyon.Time
I knew I didn't have much time before sunset, but I had seen this canyon on the map and I wanted to stop and check it out. I was thrilled with what I found. But I only had time to catch the first two sites on the map. This was the second one. I was in awe of these 600 ft cliffs. There are old Indian dwellings at the bottom of the wall if you look to the left side of the photo right where the grass meets the rock. Fascinating to me. I took closer pics of the dwellings, but loved the magnificence of the larger view as well. You need a good long - long - day to see all of this driving tour around the canyon.Lighting
I was almost glad I came as late as I did. The lower sun in the sky was casting shadows on the bottom half of the rock. So I waited just a bit until the sun dipped in the sky so I could get a more even light. This location could offer all types of lighting possibilities from early morning sunrise to sunset. You really could pick your time of day to get the effect you want. I will be going back.Equipment
I have a Nikon D5100 and I used my 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 lens for this shot.Inspiration
I love graphic landscape shots. And it thrills me to find something grand off the beaten track. It really was an awesome spot. I liked this particular shot because it catches the depth of the canyon from the river bottom to the top of the cliffs and it reaches clear back into the far cliffs in the background. I was hoping the huge bulge of rock in the front would help to show size and contrast to the rest of the photo.Editing
If I remember correctly I just touched the color a bit to bring it up to what I remembered seeing with my naked eye. I don't have a very sophisticated editing program, so I don't do much to my pics.In my camera bag
I don't leave home without my 18-55mm lens, my Sigma 70-200mm 1:2.8 and my Sigma 150-500mm 1:5-6.3. I also pack a fish eye lens for dramatic landscape, which I used for some shots of this canyon as well. I always keep an extra charged battery for each camera, and several empty SD cards.Feedback
I would just say to look the situation over and try as many angles as you can possibly think of. Try different times of the day if possible. Spend enough time to let your eyes really see what you are looking at. Let the landscape speak to your creativity. Or - let your creativity speak to the landscape!
