Fall in Arizona
Northern Arizona Mountains
Northern Arizona Mountains
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Jun, 2022Views
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Awards
Chatter Award
Achievement in Originality
Top Pick Award
Staff Favorite
People's Choice in Trees as a frame in the woods Photo Challenge
Halfway22 Award
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in Northern Arizona on the outskirts of Flagstaff in the San Francisco mountain range.Time
The photo was taken around 3PM as the sun was starting to set behind the other side of the mountains. We had been hiking and taking photos along the way since the early afternoon and this was our final point before turning back to make it to our car before sunset.Lighting
Because we were up in the mountains we had found that the lighting was usually best when the sun was more overhead as it really helped light up the leaves and reflect light off of the white trunks of the aspens. This is obviously different compared to most compositions as the lighting of midday is usually one of the worst times to shoot. With the shade from the trees and mountainside it really softened the light and helped make the picture more magical.Equipment
This photo was shot on a Sony a6300 using the Sony 24-108 lens and set up on a tripod at the end of a loop in the trail. Once the shot was framed we set a timed interval and just walked down to a given point and on the way back towards the camera decided to get some more playful shots shown here.Inspiration
We had hiked this trail before but usually were crunched for time and would not be able to go further up past the points that were most densely populated. This time we gave ourselves more time to hike and chose to venture past where we had stopped before and were glad we did. We eventually came across this space that had lots of curves in the trail and found this one straightaway with nobody nearby for at least a mile. We knew then and there we only had 20 minutes or so to set up the shot and try to get it before additional hikers might get into the frame. Initially we just wanted some shots walking down facing away from the camera but on the way back we figured we might almost be out of the frame and wanted to try more playful shots which is where this ended up coming from. In the end we liked these ones much better and were happy with how they came out!Editing
The photos was edited only in Lightroom to adjust lighting and colors as some of the shadows throughout the path were more harsh than others.In my camera bag
Our equipment now is a bit different since we have a Sony a7c that we use as our primary camera now with a Tamron 24-70 lens. We still take our a6300 out on longer trips in case we need it but we don't use it as often anymore. Along with this we've also upgraded to an aluminum Peak Design Travel Tripod to make it easier to switch between camera use and phone to create content that's more immediate. For most adventures we'll just carry that but on longer ones we'll also bring along our GoPro Hero 7 Black and our DJI Mavic Air if we need additional unique shots.Feedback
For a shot like this in the mountains if you arrive early at normal sunrise hours you'll be stuck waiting a few hours before the sun gets up high enough over the mountains. It's best to plan to go as the sun is a bit higher in the sky to make sure optimal light will get through the trees and really bring out the colors. Depending on how long the hike may be to get to where you plan to shoot you'll just need to take into account the light and also make sure you leave yourself enough time to get back down before it gets dark or pack flashlights to avoid hiking in the dark. Usually that sweet spot can be around one hour before sunset since most people will be turning back at that time and you could end up with an empty landscape for your shot.
