During my planning stages for my first photography trip to Moab I was well aware of the fact that these National Parks (Arches and Canyonlands) as well as Dead Horse Point State Park have been some of the most photographed locations in the Southwest. Nonetheless, I knew that eventually ever photographer has to add these icons to their collection and hope that there is something different about it. So dreadfully I set out to capture what nature gives me but deep inside I was hoping for some unique conditions. And getting unique conditions is sometimes pure luck but a lot depends on observation of natural phenomena and being at the right place at the right time. And this weekend it all came together for me: snow, clouds and location.

Since I didn’t have much of a plan I decided to photograph sunrise at the Dead Horse Point Overlook. It’s a really magnificent spot that offers an amazing vista of the Colorado River as it cuts a winding deep canyon through the Colorado Plateau. Here is a close up shot of an illuminated Mesa as it is reflected in the Colorado River. I did get a few wider shots but this zoomed in version appealed to me a lot more.

Sunrise Over Colorado River

I had some reservation about shooting sunset at the Delicate Arch since it is such a commonly photographed icon. However, I was watching the building clouds to the east and decided it might be worth the shot (pun intended). The hike to the Arch is about 1.5 miles over some slick rock and relatively well maintained trail that is really easy to follow. So I was ready to share the moment with a large number of photographers. To my surprise I was one of four to get there before sunset. And what was even more surprising, two of them decided to head back before the “show” even begun. I wasn’t really upset about it because they weren’t the nicest of people and complained the entire time about the light, me being in their oh soooo extra wide Canon 17mm frame (sarcasm), and the fact that the trail gets scary after dark. One day I might write about how so many people and their lame excuses frustrate me. But on the bright side, the party police departure meant that I was one of only two photographers to capture the magic. And here is what they missed:

Fire On The Mountain

I hope you enjoy my version of the over photographed icons. My goal for this trip was to make this place my own by showing it a little different. I think I was able to convey that by purposely visualizing and composing images for black and white conversions (my previous post) and getting lucky with some incredible light conditions that are pretty rare in the Southwest. Let me know what you think as landscape photography is a never ending learning process and I value your input.