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Storm Light over the North Rim – Grand Canyon National Park, Az.

 Arizona, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Photography Trips, sunrise  No Responses »
May 132012
 

Storm Light over the North Rim • Grand Canyon National Park, Az.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. I am still embroiled in the day to day activities of my daughters last few weeks in high school. Time is really rolling now and the days are seemingly compressed with so much to do. To get away I returned to some recent files from a winter trip to the Grand Canyon. Time here does not roll at a frenetic pace. Or so I thought. I have long thought the canyon was the “energy” center of the earth. I feel so much power here and I tend to slow my movements and thoughts. I have never tired of the far-ranging views or the labyrinthine forms of the inner canyon. It has always been this way for me.

On this trip I was treated to several days of incredible light and atmospheric conditions. Storm clouds rolled over the canyon dropping snow on the North Rim. From the South Rim it was like watching a movie where natural forces collided. The relative stability of the buttes and rock formations seemed under assault as wind driven clouds dropped tendrils into the canyon, bent on covering the world with a foggy mist. Even the sun joined the fight seeking to break the hold of the clouds. So even here in a place of timeless evolution the pace can seem to quicken. My heart raced as I alternately watched the drama and composed the images in my camera. After hundreds of shots I just went on a sensory overload.

When I look at this image today I can still feel the natural power of that day. Standing alone on a finger of rock I was embraced by the changing opera of nature. Life goes on and we simply have to let it play out. These are hard words that I find difficult to live by right now. My child is growing up and I can no more hold on to her as to try and keep the winds at bay. Hard as it is to except, life goes on. It has always been this way.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Walk in Peace

Bob

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Twilight over the Sinking Ship – Grand Canyon National Park, AZ

 Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, High Dynamic Range, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Lightroom, National Parks, Photography Composition, Photography Technique, Photography Trips, sunset, Twilight Photography, Wide Angle Photography  1 Response »
Mar 102012
 

Twilight over the Sinking Ship • Grand Canyon National Park, AZ.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. Just a short post today featuring a recent image from a February trip to the South of the Grand Canyon. I was there for some NPS work but got out for a little photography in between meetings and surveys. To say I had some incredible weather would be an understatement. I have been to the canyon many times but I have never had the sustained atmospheric conditions I witnessed on this trip. On successive days clouds rolled over the canyon creating dynamic and dramatic light. Clouds passed over the buttes and also dropped into below the rim to drift in and out of the formations. In the evening the clouds moved up allowing beautiful twilight shooting conditions.

This image was shot at one of my “secret”, favorite shooting locations along the South Rim. A short little off-trail scramble brings you to a series of rocky ledges that affords eastern and western views within the canyon. Looking east you can see the giant mass of Coronado Butte, and west affords incredible views of the Sinking Ship formation, aptly named as it appears to be an ocean liner sinking into the water. This image of the Sinking Ship was shot about 10 minutes into civil twilight. The clouds had begun to lift and some subtle re-lighting illuminated the foreground rocks and large buttress to the right. I used these elements to frame the vista to the Sinking Ship.

Technical Details: This image is a composite of two exposures, one for the sky and one for the foreground. The two files were processed in Lightroom and opened as layers in Photoshop. The two files were hand blended using a luminosity layer mask before completing the usual contrast and color layers I typically employ.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

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Twisted Tree and Winter Light – South Rim, Grand Canyon National Park

 Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Lightroom Workflow, Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, High Dynamic Range, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Lightroom, Lightroom Enfuse, Moab Masters, National Parks, Photography Technique, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, sunrise, Trees, Winter  3 Responses »
Feb 242012
 

Twisted Tree and Winter Light • South Rim, Grand Canyon National Park

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. I am currently sorting through about 3000 exposures from my last trip. I have been shooting differently on my last few outings which includes more bracketing of shots for manual blending in Photoshop. I am after more dynamic range in the light and though the Photoshop work takes more effort I think the results are much better.

Today’s image was made from Maricopa Overlook on the Hermits Rest Road. During the winter months the Canyon stops the buses and visitors are able to drive on the Hermits Rest Road which makes access to some of the more dramatic overlooks easy. On this morning there was a fairly heavy cloud cover and I was not to hopeful for a sunrise shot. It was also quite cold at 16 degrees. Still recovering from pneumonia I was not to eager to leave the warm car or my cup of hot tea. But a cold fog had descended on this side of the Canyon and some of the trees were painted with a coat of light hoar frost. No matter how I played with the compositions I just “wasn’t feeling it”. I found this gnarly tree on the walk back to the car just as a bit of soft sunlight began to break through the cloud bank. The yellow glow as very nice and gave a nice halo around the top of tree. So I began to work with this composition placing the top of the tree against this light. In post processing I used several Selective Color Layers to target the Reds, Yellows, Blues, and Whites and followed up with a Dodge and Burn Layer to sculpt the form of the tree. The amazing contortions in the tree truck are testimony to the harsh environment along the South Rim. Beaten by wind, snow, and cold temperatures in the winter this tree is an amazing survivor. In a funny way the tree became a metaphor for how I felt-not feeling well, but surviving.

Technical Details: This image is a blend of three exposures using Enfuse for Lightroom. It was composed for three exposure, one for mid-tones, one for highlights, and one for shadows. The resulting file is sent to Photoshop for final finishing. I like Enfuse as it prepares a very natural looking file without the artifacts that can come from HDR Software. You can get the plugin from The Photographers Toolbox.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

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Clearing Storm on the North Rim-No. 2 • Grand Canyon National Park

 Arizona, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Moab Masters, National Parks, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, sunrise  No Responses »
Feb 092012
 

Clearing Storm on the North Rim-No. 2

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. Today is just a quick post as I am in packing mode to head back to the Grand Canyon to finish the trip I started a few weeks ago. As most of you know I was laid to waste by pneumonia while out at the canyon and had to return home early. Though the doctors have said I could see residual effects for awhile I am nonetheless on the mend and ready to get back out. I have promised everyone (fingers crossed :-) ) that I will take it easy. But the plate is full and includes a bit of work for the park as well as several shooting side trips with Tony Kuyper and hopefully, after three attempts, a trip into Canyon X with Charlie Moore.

The image today was shot as I left the canyon a few weeks ago to head home from my shortened trip. It snowed 8″ the night before coating the North and South Rims is a blanket of white powder. Though cold and not feeling well I was still determined to get off a few shots. I don’t want to get to metaphysical here but somehow I think the canyon knew of my situation and gave me a beautiful gift of low lying clouds hanging just below the rim. I have not seen the canyon in this way before and consider this a special treat. In this shot, taken just after sunrise, you can see the clouds wrapping around Buddha Temple (left), Manu Temple (small, in the center), and Orza Butte (just to the right of Manu).

Thanks for stopping by today. I will be back in a few weeks and hope to share more images from the canyon and surrounding area.

Bob

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Clearing Storm over the North Rim • Grand Canyon National Park, AZ

 Arizona, Desert, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Photography, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Mountains, National Parks, Photography Trips, Robert H Clark Photography, sunrise, Twilight Photography, Winter  5 Responses »
Jan 292012
 

Clearing Storm over the North Rim, Grand Canyon National Park

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. As most of you know who follow this blog I have been away on a combined work/photography trip to the Grand Canyon. I was anticipating a great time with my shooting pal Tony Kuyper. We had compiled a list of places I have not been and was looking forward to bringing back some new images. Alas however that was not to be. Going back nearly a month to my shooting trip to Death Valley I contracted a nagging cough that weeks later was still with me. By the time I arrived at the canyon I was feverish and in quite a fix. I spent most of Sunday in the hotel unable to move and by Monday was in the Grand Canyon Medical Center with several IV’s stuck in my hand. The diagnosis was pneumonia. Needless to say everything was cancelled and I made the flight home two days later. Just to fill in the rest of the story I am on a new antibiotic that is working and I am on the mend.

Despite my condition, on the way out of the canyon to get to the airport at Flagstaff, I still managed to capture a few images. Well let’s just say I was bound and determined to shoot something despite how I felt. Over Monday night it snowed 8″ on the South Rim turning the canyon into a magical sight. Across the way on the North Rim it looked like nature had dropped white sugar sprinkles over the spires and buttes. A layer of clouds had dropped below the rim and was drifting among the canyons formations. As the sun rose and kissed the buttes with light the composition was complete. In this shot you can see the Cheops Pyramid (right), and the Isis Temple (left). Overhead the early morning light turned the clouds a subtle magenta. This was a special sight to see and though I really did not feel well I was bolstered, even if only for a brief period, by the experience. Nature has powerful healing forces. At least it does for me. This image will forever be linked to one of the worst trips I have had. But every time I see this image I will remember it fondly.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Bob

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Escalante Butte – Lipan Point, Grand Canyon National Park

 Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Colorado River, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Nikon D3x, Photography Technique, Robert H Clark Photography  No Responses »
Aug 042011
 

Escalante Butte and the Unkar Plains, Lipan Point, Grand Canyon National Park. Shot with a Nikon D3x and Nikkor 70-200mm lens at 150mm. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f11 for 1/2 of a second.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. This one is short and sweet. I am leaving early Saturday morning for the North Shore of Lake Superior for my workshop with Alec Johnson. Alec and I are heading up early on Saturday to set up for the workshop and to get in a little shooting before everything starts in earnest on Sunday. We are looking forward to a great photography event for the week. I might be able to get in a post but time will be limited so for now I will leave you with another view from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. This view is from Lipan Point on the South Rim. The massive formation in the foreground is part of Escalante Butte. This is a late afternoon shot with an open, cloudless sky, and a hard blowing wind. I used the rock outcrops on a point away from the parking area to find some shelter from the wind. With the bright sky and no clouds I choose to shoot some of the canyon details and after some exploratory compositions settled in on this view of Escalante Butte and the Unkar Plains along the Colorado River. The low sun angles lit up the Escalante formation which provided at beautiful contrast to the diffused, soft light in the inner canyon.

As to technique I shot from a low tripod position for a more solid platform to combat the high winds. I also use mirror lock-up to help eliminate any other potential camera shake. The light was not changing too quickly so I had plenty of time to wait for the winds to cycle. Pretty simple, I know, but in windy conditions it pays to be patient and consistent in your shooting methods.

Well that is about it. I’ll send out an update if I can from Lake Superior.

Thank you for stopping by today.

Hozógo nasádo (Navajo): Walk in Beauty

Bob

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Coronado Butte – South Rim, Grand Canyon National Park

 Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Colorado River, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, Nikon D3x, Photography Trips, Singh-Ray Filters, Split Neutral Density Filters, sunset  4 Responses »
Jul 292011
 

Coronado Butte, South of the Grand Canyon. Shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikkor 24mm PC lens. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f13 for 0.7 seconds.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. I am a week away now from the North Shore of Lake Superior Workshop and I am busy balancing my work load and getting ready for the trip. Packing is not really a problem for me as I keep shooting and outdoor gear organized. I do not like last minute packing because this is where you can forget something in the mad rush to head out the door. I have also been working on several new blog posts and I have to pull images to present at the workshop. So its never a dull moment.

Light at the Grand Canyon can go from contrasty and dull to sublime in a matter of minutes. And sometimes it takes just a little longer for the magic to occur. Several days before I took this image I scouted this location which required an off trail climb to get out to the rim. It is a spectacular location that works equally well for sunrise and sunset. This is Coronado Butte looking east at sunset. To the west a massive cloud was blocking the sun and for over an hour I pondered my chances of the sun being able to clear the cloud bank and dropping along the horizon. I knew if the cloud shifted enough the sun would drop into a clear slot and light up the butte. Within minutes of sunset my patience payed off and Coronado Butte was bathed in a brief but beautiful light. The rim edge glowed in the warm light as the clouds overhead revealed a deep blue sky.

This image was all about pre-visualization. I knew the sun angles and given the right atmospheric conditions I would be rewarded with an atypical Grand Canyon image. I used a Singh-Ray 3-stop soft edge split neutral density filter to balance out the sky and foreground exposure. My white balance was set to 5500K which I adjusted slightly in processing the RAW file.

Hopefully I can get out another post before heading out to Lake Superior. If not I will see you back here in a few weeks.

Thank you for stopping by today.

Hozógo nasádo (Navajo): Walk in Beauty

Bob

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James Uqualla- Havasupai Elder

 Arizona, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Native American's, Nikon D3x, People Photography, Photography Technique, Photography Trips, Portrait, Portrait Photography  2 Responses »
Jul 142011
 

James Uqualla, Havasupai Elder. Shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikon 70-200mm lens at 150mm. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f5.6 for 1/640th of a second.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. My last visit to the Grand Canyon was work related and included attending the grand opening ceremony of the new South Rim Grand Canyon Visitor’s Center. Prior to the opening ceremonies for the visitor center a Native American Blessing Ceremony was performed by James and his sister, Dianna Sue Uqualla. It was a beautiful dance at the new amphitheater, located at the rim of the Grand Canyon near Mather Overlook. After the ceremony I had the opportunity to talk with James and to thank him for his words which all seemed to touch each person in a different way. I have always though of the canyon as the “center of the earth” and a place from which I seem to draw energy. James’s words touched on this asking each person to draw strength from this sacred place and pass it on in the name of peace.

I met up with James a little while later after many people had left and asked if I could shoot a portrait. He agreed without hesitation. In my mind the light seemed just right and I suggested a few test shots to determine my histogram. But as I raised my camera to the viewfinder and focused in James’s eyes just pierced the lens and straight into me. I fired three shots and just lowered the camera. The shot was done. James did not really pose. He just looked in to me with a sense of peace and calm. I felt it immediately. Normally I would take all manner of images but I just stopped after the three. I never checked the histogram knowing that it was right. I thanked James and we parted ways. Later in the afternoon I had a chance to photograph James and his sister performing an Eagle Dance and while I like some of the images they do not speak to me in the same way as this portrait. It is hard to put into words but when I look at this shot I feel his connection to the place and ultimately to me.

Originally I thought of this shot in black and white but in processing felt some color tones should be included. So the RAW file was processed twice, once for color, and once for black and white. The two files were layered in Photoshop and I went through some exploratory processes to achieve the final look. I worked on the file off and on for about a week to get to this final rendering.

Thank you as always for stopping by to visit.

Hozógo nasádo (Navajo): Walk in Beauty

Bob

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South Kaibab Trail – Grand Canyon National Park

 Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Colorado River, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, National Parks, Nikon D3x, Photography Composition, Photography Trips, sunset, Uncategorized  No Responses »
Jul 122011
 

Along the South Kaibab Trailhead, South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikon 70-200mm lens at 200mm. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f13 for 1/2 of a second.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. One of my favorite things to do when visiting the Grand Canyon is to get a cup of coffee and take and evening walk along the Rim Trail. It is a wonderful way to wind down after a busy day and experience twilight along the South Rim. Invariably I will meet other strollers and engage in the kind of general small talk reserved for such occasions. As the vastness of the canyon recedes in the dying light the subject of conversation often turns to the notion of scale. Many first time visitors, and even those who return often, are struck by the sheer enormity of the canyon. I have many trips to the canyon and never tire of its sense of scale, or in reality, my perception of it. It is of such proportions as to leave you spellbound. But the sense of scale can be confusing. Standing along the rim near the El Tovar you can see down to Indian Garden and out to Plateau Point on the Tonto Platform. As a rock falls, so to speak, it is not that far. But take the hike down and you soon realize that it is much farther than you thought.

Looking across towards the North Rim and the vastness is almost incomprehensible. When I was on a helitack crew at the canyon I had the opportunity to make many helicopter flights into the inner canyon and along the Colorado River. Dropping off the sheer cliffs of the Abyss towards the Tonto Platform was like taking a roller coaster ride. You soon understood how small you were in relation to the canyon environment. Huge, vertical walls, towering pillars of stone, buttes and temples, warrens of confusing canyons and washes all combined to overpower the senses.

Consider today’s image. It is a shot of the upper portion of the South Kaibab Trail. To find the trail just come down the upper slope from the rock pillars to a horizontal line that angles slightly down from right to left. Do you see it? This is still near the top and there are many miles to go before reaching the inner canyon and the Colorado River. Beyond is the North Rim. In a shot such as this, compressed by the telephoto lens, scale is hard to determine. Not even the trail helps. But take a look at the image below. It is an enlargement of the image. Look inside the white circle and you will see two small hikers. If you look very closely you can just make them out in the image above.

Detail from the South Kaibab Trail. Look inside the white circle to see the two hikers.

Now the immense scale of the canyon is evident. Dwarfed by the landscape the hikers have entered a world that can literally swallow them. The next time you make a visit to the canyon I would invite you to take the opportunity to experience this landscape up close and in person. Move away from the rim and let the canyon swallow you for a few hours. I can promise you will have a different sense of scale when you return.

Thank you as always for stopping by to visit.

Hozógo nasádo (Navajo): Walk in Beauty

Bob

 

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South Rim Sunset, Lipan Point – Grand Canyon National Park

 Arizona, Colorado Plateau, Colorado River, Desert, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Circle, Landscape, Landscape Photography, National Parks, Navajo Lands, Nikon D3x, Photography Composition, Photography Trips, sunset  No Responses »
Jul 092011
 

South Rim Sunset, Lipan Point, Grand Canyon National Park. Shot with a Nikon D3x and a Nikon 70-200mm lens at 85mm. Image exposed at ISO 100 at f13 for one second.

Hi everyone and welcome to today’s post. I am finally home after being away for the last ten days to participate in my daughters pole vaulting camp. Not too much in the way of landscape shooting but a lot fun photographing the vaulters. Now that I am back I can concentrate on some of my latest landscape shots from my last trip to the Grand Canyon.

Today’s image was made from Lipan Point on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. If I had to make a choice of favorite shooting locations on the South Rim, Lipan Point would get the nod. The vista looking towards the East Rim Palisades is truly remarkable. In my humble opinion when I think about the grand landscape my mind invariably goes to this view. It is an arguable point and some of you may choose other locations from Yellowstone, Glacier, or even Yosemite. But my heart lies here. On a recent trip to the National Gallery of Art I found myself pondering some Albert Bierstadt paintings. In many of his paintings the foreground was rendered in detail which gave way to a vastness of suffused light and detail. His paintings often used atmospheric effects such as dramatic lighting, fog, clouds, and mist to complement his work. Though I am not comparing my image to the work of Bierstadt, his paintings were on my mind as I shot this day. The late afternoon light was beautiful. A gusty wind whipped up dust in the inner canyon and the Painted Desert beyond. The wind, in fact, was brisk and I had to find a sheltered shooting position on a point out from the overlook. Shooting with a large lens like the 70-200mm can present problems with camera shake in the wind. To help I shot from a lower position with my tripod legs spread wide to provide more stability. Focusing was done manually through live view and I used a small weighted beanbag on top of the lens to dampen some of the wind movement. I also set the camera to shoot with Mirror Lock-Up. In most cases, not always though, wind comes in cycles of high intensity to near stillness. When confronted with wind pay attention to the cycles and wait for the calm cycle to trip the shutter.

At this time of the day, and year, it pays to understand how the sun will illuminate the canyons features. As the afternoon sun moves lower in the sky, light will begin to soften in the inner canyon to the point where certain landforms are lit while others are not. In this image the sun is strongly illuminating Escalante Butte, to the left, and Cardenas Butte, to the right. The inner canyon light is softer and there is only a hint of light along the upper rim of the East Palisades. The effect is truly beautiful and dramatic. The image has a strong foreground with detail that gives way to an atmospheric condition brought on by wind blown dust particulates. The paintings of Bierstadt were indeed on my mind this day. To understand how the light changes and is affected by other environmental conditions compare this shot with the June 23, 2011 post which was shot on a different day.

The image was processed to emphasize the leading lines that draw your eye into the image. The line of “light” running up Escalante Butte on the left gives way to the darkened ridge line that frames Cardenas Butte. From there I increased the contrast and detail in the Colorado River to lead the eye towards the lighted rim of the East Palisades and the mass of Temple Butte in the Upper left. This image remains one of my favorite shots I have taken from this location.

Thank you as always for stopping by to visit.

Hozógo nasádo (Navajo): Walk in Beauty

Bob


 

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