A Key Figure

Accepted for Display - JAN 2020

Ephraim Portman Pectol and his brother-in-law, Joseph S. Hickman, were two of the earliest and most active advocates for protecting the Waterpocket Fold area for posterity. It is fitting, then, that Pectol's Pyramid (showcased here) is best seen from the Hickman Bridge Trail, as the main route through Capitol Reef National Park, Utah Highway 24, passes between them in the deeper Freemont River canyon.

Natives of nearby Torrey, Utah, they wrote articles and sent photographs promoting the region to newspapers in Utah, after Pectol's election to the state legislature in 1928. This attention eventually led to President Franklin Roosevelt setting aside just over 37,000 acres as the Capitol Reef National Monument in 1937. President Richard Nixon signed the Act to Establish Capitol Reef National Park in the State of Utah into law in December 1971.

Cockscomb Study (Monochrome)

Accepted for Display - NOV 2021

The Cockscomb (or eastern edge of the Kaibab Uplift) running parallel to Cottonwood Canyon road in southern Utah is a wonderous geologic formation of so many unique colors and textures.

Stripping away the color in this image, I found that the variety of textures, from the thin clouds overhead, through the geologic sandstone formation, into the desert flora, create a visually stunning scene.

Utah's 'Mighty 5' National Parks and the Grand Canyon are definitely the attention grabbers in this region, but do yourself a favor and explore the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. You'll be glad you did!

Golden Hour in the Rocky Mountains

Accepted for Display - NOV 2022

From this vantage on the Emerald Lake Trail, the Front Range summits of Long's Peak and Half Mountain appear orange in the late evening sun. While the forest below begins to quickly transition toward blue hour.

Emerald Lake is a magnificent location in Rocky Mountain National Park with a well-maintained trail from the Bear Lake Trailhead, that passes both Nymph Lake and Dream Lake and meanders along the Tyndall Creek, as seen here.

Even on the first of June (when this image was taken), daytime high temperatures were in the mi-50s at these elevations (around 9900'), which was comfortable for the hike, but became chilly as the sun lowered and darkness set in.

Forged by the Sea

Accepted for Display - JUL 2021

I spent 30 years in the US Navy, eight of those years I was assigned to warships ranging from a submarine to an aircraft carrier. The ships I served in were much more modern than those that fought and won World War II.

This enlisted berthing area on board the USS JOSEPH P KENNEDY (DD-850), reminded me about the rigors facing those young men who sailed into harms way decades ago. These racks, designed to fold against the bulkhead for easier passage during working hours, were the sole areas of comfort for the young men who spent 18-20 hours per day operating and fighting this ship.

There can be no doubt that the men who lived under these conditions were themselves forged of an iron that is seldom found today.

Shadow Evolution

Accepted for Display - DEC 2021

While prospecting for photographic gold around Bodie State Historic Park in the foothills of the Eastern Sierras, I found this unique structure that begged for me to take its picture.

Bodie, California was a gold rush boom town in the late 19th century that went bust by 1915. Preserved in a perpetual state of "arrested decay", it is a popular location for tourists and photographers alike. Recently, while on a photo tour, I came across this above ground cylindrical water tank just outside the sawmill, which was in fairly good shape, with just a light weathering rust, but with a number of rivet and bolt protrusions along its curved surface that created interesting shadow patterns in the late afternoon sun. I thought of early sci-fi movies with crude spaceships flying through space toward a brilliantly lit planet, or perhaps a rare geologic formation of paired mountains in a large desert on Mars. In the end, however you see this image, I enjoyed making it.

Strategic Stability

Accepted for Display - MAR 2021

Fort Jefferson, built on Garden Key of the Dry Tortugas, was constructed in the mid-19th century to protect the shipping lanes accessing the Gulf Coast of the United States. The deep-water anchorage nearby was critical for resupply and refit of vessels and shelter from seasonal Caribbean storms.

Although never actually completed, Fort Jefferson was the largest and most sophisticated in a chain of coastal forts situated along the U.S. coast from Maine to California, becoming a critical enabler to the Union Navy successfully blockading Confederate shipping during the Civil War. In addition to protecting the harbor, it became a prison for Union Army deserters and, for a time, Dr. Samuel Mudd - the physician who was convicted of aiding and abetting John Wilkes Booth.

A remote location, even today, it's hard to fathom the amount of labor and logistics involved in building and provisioning such a formidable structure with the level of precision and durability that allow us to continue to visit it in exceptional condition 175 years after the first bricks were emplaced.

Dawn of the Last Epoch

Accepted for Display - JAN 2023

Waiting for the sun to rise on a rocky knoll just east of the North Window Arch, I saw the pre-dawn light begin to work its way onto this formation.

The red sandstone around the Colorado Plateau is so distinctly different from other places. And, adding to that, these strange formations that occur all around southern Utah just make me think about what pre-historic times must have been like with no trace of man or industry, no trails, no pollution, just the purity of nature in all of its fantastic form.

The brilliant masterstroke exercised in setting aside public lands to protect and preserve them cannot be overstated.

Fall's Last Holdout

Accepted for Display - NOV 2022

I spent a few days in the Eastern Sierras attempting to capture Fall color images.

Hailing from Pennsylvania, I find the shift, overall, to be a bit less captivating than the change in the Northeastern United States, where there exist a wider variety of deciduous trees. That's not to say that fall in the West isn't pretty, it's simply more focused on the Aspens as they turn gold against conifers like Junipers and other pines.

As my trip wound down, I made a last stop at Whitney Portal, the Trailhead for climbing Mount Whitney from the Eastern Sierra. Due west of Lone Pine, I had hoped I might find some remaining vibrant color. Unfortunately, this location was well past its peak, though there were still signs of autumn throughout. I thought this natural leaf catch was a brilliant last stand.

Hello, AAA - Can I Get a Tow to Earl Scheib?

Accepted for Display - AUG 2022

In the high Colorado Desert of Joshua Tree National Park remain the ruins of the Wall Street Mill.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the mill was used to crush gold ore from the several mines located nearby. The cast of characters that made their living in this part of California is full of disreputable individuals, and tales abound of disputes ending in killings and ruinous business investments.

There are a number of relics from the early days of these operations scattered around the site, with a couple of dilapidated jalopies slowly yielding to the desert.

Helluva Place to Lose a Cow

Accepted for Display - JAN 2022

Ebenezer Bryce, a Mormon Pioneer who homesteaded this area in 1875, was known for describing this land of hoodoos in amphitheaters as, "A hell of a place to lose a cow."

A collection of amphitheaters eroded from the Paunsaugunt Plateau in southern Utah, Bryce Canyon became a national park in 1928. Frost wedging and rainwater have eroded the limestone rock to produce brightly colored formations, including hoodoos, fins, windows, and slot canyons.

One of the more famous hoodoos, Thor's Hammer, (featured here) provides a great foreground for sunrise images. Many times, when the horizon is not cloudy, photographers capture the sun as it crests the hammer. On this morning, however, first light provided even more color, by illuminating the clouds in the sky.

Bryce Canyon National Park sits at a much higher elevation than the nearby Grand Canyon and Zion NPs; so, when you visit, be wary of hiking in the mid-day unless properly acclimated. The trails typically drop several hundred feet from the rim and the return can be difficult in the thinner air at high temperatures. Sunrise, even for non-photographers, is an excellent time to visit this park, as the amphitheaters are all oriented toward the east.

I Am the Storm

*1st Place (Other category)* Image of the Year 2022
Accepted for Display - SEP 2022

For over 4,000 years Mother Nature has thrown everything she had at this tree... Unbearable cold, blizzards, gale force winds, drought, searing heat, earthquakes, and unrepentant tourists, and The Guardian has weathered every storm, every threat, every challenge and remained standing, though it succumbed to inevitable mortality over 500 years ago.

This ancient bristlecone pine, situated with one other tree on the edge of a steep slope in the White Mountains has been the subject of countless photographs under a variety of conditions. I was here with a group for an astrophotography workshop, and although I am pleased with some of the images I captured later that night, this one is the one that stands out above all others.

During the last weekend in August, the daytime high temperatures - even at 9,000' elevation - were above 80° F, and at nearly 8 PM, still holding in the upper-60s, while Bishop and Big Pine in the Owens Valley below, roasted in the 90s and 100s. The heat of the valley combined with the cool air crossing the ridge tops above the Sierras to the west create interesting weather and clouds in the late afternoon, which seemed daunting initially, but cleared soon after sunset to allow for clear skies when it was time to capture the galactic core of the Milky Way above.

Into the Unknown

Accepted for Display - MAY 2022

I visited Glacier National Park in mid-June, and I booked my stay near the Western entrance of Apgar. Unfortunately, this was a few days before Logan Pass was opened for the 2018 season, so there were some limitations on places to go and things to do.

The weather during this trip was uncooperative with steady rain, temperatures in the mid-40°F range, and heavy cloud cover. Determined to make the most of it, I drove up the Going-to-the-Sun Road as far as I could go and decided to take a tour of the Trail of Cedars Nature Trail.

Thing is, when it's rainy, chilly, around 7:00 PM, and the height of bear mating season, there aren't too many other people on the trail. Figuring that news reports always highlight the lone hiker ill-suited for grizzly encounters was starting to sound all too close to home, I walked about a 1/4 mile into the dense canopy, before re-thinking my plan, and returning to the nearest outfitters to pick up a bear whistle, bell, and bear spray.

I did manage to capture a few images before I decided to return to more civilized environs, and I definitely whetted my appetite for the next opportunity to get to Glacier NP - better prepared!

Life on Mars?

Accepted for Display - NOV 2022

The soil is a reddish tan, the skies pale blue, the geologic formations strange enough to be called hoodoos and goblins. It's not Mars, but it is Goblin Valley State Park in Utah.

My family and I vacationed around the Colorado Plateau this summer and while driving from Moab to Capitol Reef we took a quick opportunity to visit this unique location. Because it was a brief stop on a long vacation drive, it was the middle of the day with temperatures hovering around 100°F - not optimum for photography, or long exploration. I captured a few images while here and hope to come back at some point and do some night sky photography.

Hopefully, I won't come across any rock monsters or cannibals from Galaxy Quest.

Monochrome Lone Pine Peek

Accepted for Display - NOV 2022

I know. It's a play on words using the homonym.

Mobius Arch in Alabama Hills is an oft chosen frame through which to view the Eastern Sierras, specifically Lone Pine Peak and Mount Whitney.

Whereas Mount Whitney is the tallest mountain in the contiguous 48 United States (14,505'), it is deeper in the Sierras than Lone Pine Peak (12,944'), and thus not as impressive from this vantage. In fact, Mount Irvine, the peak to the right of Lone Pine Peak in this image, which appears significantly lower, is actually taller than Lone Pine Peak by nearly 1000'!

This image was captured at first light, when the sun had not yet cleared the Panamint Range to the east. The indirect light created an ideal (IMHO) condition for a rare monochrome image of this feature.

Path of Least Resistance

*1st Place (Landscape category)* Image of the Year 2022
Accepted for Display - OCT 2022

Not the optimal time of day to capture Horseshoe Bend, but I think this image came out nicely.

On the last day of a 10-day family road trip around the desert Southwest, we toured some of the sights around Page, AZ. Horseshoe Bend is a must stop, as are the slot canyons around Antelope Canyon. Having spent the previous day at the Grand Canyon North Rim, we allowed our kids to sleep in, while my wife and I drove to this location and did the 1.5 mi round-trip hike to the overlook. Around sunrise it's not as crowded and there are plenty of vantage points to look down into the 1000' cut that the Colorado River has made in the rocky plateau.

The Other

Accepted for Display - DEC 2022

Beautiful isn't it?

I read an article which indicated this is the second most photographed spot in Yellowstone.

It is, of course, the Lower Falls, envisaged from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. There are more famous and larger falls in the United States (see Niagara Falls), and a far more famous Grand Canyon. There are more colorful locations within Yellowstone (see Grand Prismatic Spring), and more popular (see Old Faithful Geyser). And yet, there is magnificence; if you had only seen this spot in your travels to Yellowstone, you would come away in awe.

In 1870, an expedition led by Henry Washburn, Surveyor-General of Montana, toured the area that would 2-years later become Yellowstone National Park. Nathaniel Pitt Langford, a member of the expedition, wrote of his experience a few hundred yards from this view, "The place where I obtained the best and most terrible view of the canyon was a narrow projecting point situated two to three miles below the lower fall. Standing there or rather lying there for greater safety, I thought how utterly impossible it would be to describe to another the sensations inspired by such a presence. As I took in the scene, I realized my own littleness, my helplessness, my dread exposure to destruction, my inability to cope with or even comprehend the might architecture of nature."

Visit Yellowstone. See for yourself.

Towers Over Chicken Point

Accepted for Display - JAN 2022

From this vantage near the terminus of the Little Horse Trail, the famous Red Rocks of Sedona tower over Chicken point and this broader valley in Coconino National Forest.

On a bright but cloudy day the contrasts of Sedona, the red rocks and the green Ponderosa Pines, the blue skies and billowy white clouds, create a picturesque scene. Why share the image in monochrome then? Because, even without the colors, the richness of the textures tells a story of its own, from the jagged, but rigidly horizontal lines on the carved towers of rock, to the millions of rough edges on the trees and plants, to the stretched thin cotton of the clouds above.

Sedona is a place that defies explanation, it is a cacophony of sensory pleasures that share space and time to evoke wondrous emotion in all those who encounter it first-hand.

When It's Time to Relax

Accepted for Display - JUL 2022

These guys sitting in the warm glow of the late afternoon after what was probably a long day of work made me think of old Miller High Life commercials.

The area around the Orcas Island Ferry landing is the ideal hunting ground for Pelagic cormorants who feed in the protected inlets such as this. Unfazed by the comings and goings of the ferries, these birds are drying off from their daily swim for food before returning to their nests.

Despite being seabirds who can dive as deep as 140' for their food, cormorants lack waterproof plumage, and thus seek out remote safe places, such as this ferry bumper, to preen and dry their feathers. Also, because their feeding requires considerable swimming, their wings are relatively short and provide less in-flight efficiency than most other migratory birds.

Although I doubt we share a taste in suds, these guys have undoubtedly earned a beer today.

An Intensity for the Game

Accepted for Display - JUL 2023

Anyone who has paid attention to my images over the last several years would immediately recognize that I don't normally shoot people.

In fact, when I tell people I am a photographer, I always follow it up with, "I don't shoot people." That said, my wife, being the frugal sort, wanted senior pictures of our son and would not hear of hiring any of my friends who specialize in senior portraits. At her insistence, I took several images of our son in outfits they picked out, as well as in his lacrosse gear.

This was my most experimental image of the session. What do you think?

Chute & Ladder

Accepted for Display - SEP 2023

Many of the people who follow me are no doubt aware of Kanarra Falls, and are used to seeing images of an old log with metal stairs attached to it.

Well, back in 2021, heavy rains washed that ladder so far downstream that the Kanarraville town council spent $7,000 to build a new ladder. Though since it couldn't be built onsite and carrying it up to these first falls in the canyon would be onerous, they undertook a very cool helicopter replacement that can be learned about here: https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/archive/2021/11/23/ajt-whats-that-in-the-sky-above-kanarra-falls-its-a-bird-its-a-plane-itsa-ladder/

New ladder/old ladder, the hike is still very enjoyable when the water allows. I would highly recommend getting there early (we dallied due to weather concerns, which I now regret). The hike was not crowded (mid-week during the school year), but there were a couple of dozen others on the trail. The morning mist would have made for better images, but I only captured one before the light angles no longer worked for visibility.

Ethereal Fire Dragons in Flight

Accepted for Display - JUN 2023

On location in Anza Borrego State Park to capture Milky Way images above the formation known as the Pumpkin Patch, the temperature was searing at 98°F around sunset, with very little air movement at ground level.

As I waited for nightfall, the few clouds in the sky put on quite a show with the assistance of the sun in its final throes of the day. To the west, these lower stratus clouds took on a brilliant red hue, contrasting nicely with the pale blue sky and white altostratus at higher elevation.

But, what really worked for me was the appearance of the two closest clouds, which had a somewhat ominous look of Chinese style dragons in flight, the lower one having just pulsed its wings and stretched out for full speed, while the upper rears its head in a beckoning cry.

Hot Nevada Slot

Accepted for Display - SEP 2023

Most people go to Vegas to have fun in the casinos. I tend to go to Vegas to visit family and explore the sights outside the city... whether it be Red Rock Canyon or Valley of Fire State Park depicted here.

Of course, the key is to go during the cooler months, when the temperatures aren't north of 100°F. Timing is everything. In this case, we hiked all around Valley of Fire the first week of April this year, and the following week the temperatures reached 99°F and higher. We camped with our dogs for the first time, and they enjoyed the hikes, but not the windy nights. Obviously, there was enough breeze during the day to kick up some sand in the slots, which made them a bit brighter and added to the aura. For my money, these slots pay out better than the ones on the strip any day of the week.

Light Chasers

Accepted for Display - SEP 2023

A trio of Ponderosa Pines reach for the sky from the dark confines of Wall Street, a slot canyon in Bryce Canyon National Park.

I'm always amazed at the determination displayed by trees. If you spend any time in the desert or mountains of the Southwest United States, you see trees growing - and thriving - in the most inhospitable locations. As someone from the mid-Atlantic United States, where there is so much greenery and balanced, temperate seasons, this is foreign to my experience, and I am consistently awed by the tenacity displayed in nature.

Hiking along the Navajo Loop just after sunrise on a late Spring morning, the Wall Street Canyon was pretty dark, but one look up revealed this scene where the organisms living here had learned to seek out the light on their own.

Quiet Night on the Bank of Lake Cuyamaca

Accepted for Display - FEB 2023

Sometimes things just come together. Tonight, my wife and I went out to shoot comet NEOWISE and the galactic center of the Milky Way. I thought that Lake Cuyamaca, a reservoir about 40 miles east of San Diego, would be an interesting vantage for both. Unfortunately, the lights around the recreation center and parking area were pretty bright, and traffic along CA-79 was heavier than I anticipated.

At one point, this image worked out nicely because a car behind me came around the bend from Julian toward Descanso and illuminated the trees and campsite just enough to add some actual color to the foreground scenery. In my humble opinion that worked pretty nicely for this image. Jupiter and Saturn dominate the sky beneath and to the left of the galactic center, but I liked the way this turned out.

Storm's-A-Brewin'

Accepted for Display - SEP 2023

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve just causes cognitive dissonance to me. How this enormous sand dune exits on the high Colorado Plateau (over 7500' in the San Luis Valley) at the base western base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range can be explained by geologists, but it simply doesn't resonate with my concept of Colorado's topography.

On a road trip through Colorado, my wife and I stopped here for a brief visit to check out the dunes up close. Since it was late in the day, we did not go sand sledding, but we did climb a remote slope on the eastern side of the dunes, which was far more difficult than one might imagine.

Seeing the gathering storm clouds and having a tight travel timeline, we decided to depart the park well before sunset, with a brief stop along the entrance road, where I photographed this lone tree looking back across the valley past the dunes toward Mount Herard and the rest of the Sangre de Cristo Range. 30 minutes later, the area was awash in rainstorms.

The Guiding Light

Accepted for Display - NOV 2023

It had rained the night before, so despite having stopped on our travels from San Diego to specifically hike Kanarra Falls, my wife and I awoke to an overcast morning and were hesitant to return to the start point. We waited much later than we planned, with a long drive ahead of us for the day, but finally decided to attempt the hike at 9 AM.

I am so glad we did. Had we been there earlier, this shot would have been even better, and as it was, this is barely what I saw as I tried to put the tripod together and in place before snapping off the images. There was still quite a bit of mist from the morning's cool waters hanging in this portion of the slot canyon and as we turned the corner, the single ray of sunlight illuminating that mist was a "Wow" moment. I got this one shot, before it was too warm, the mist had evaporated completely, and the sun proceeded to move past this angle.

That's how it goes sometimes...

Vermillion Danger

Accepted for Display - APR 2023

Canyon X is the newest slot canyon in the Antelope Canyon region outside Page, Arizona. Located on Navajo Reservation lands, the tours are operated by tribal organizations, and they are closely managed.

The slot canyons are unique geologic formations which are far narrower than they are tall. Steep cuts in the sandstone, which catch an amazing amount of light in the mid-day to create fantastic visions of contour, color, and texture. Their depth and narrow passages can be deadly in inclement weather, where heavy rains anywhere in the region can cause flash flooding to quickly fill the slots, sending torrents of water at high velocity through the passages. In 1997, this canyon held a tragic end for 12 people who were touring on an otherwise acceptable day. No rain fell directly in this area, but the wash from rains at higher elevation quickly overtook their group, leaving only one survivor, badly bruised and battered.

Interestingly, the color vermillion, featured so prominently here, has in its history an element of danger, as it was originally derived from the mineral cinnabar, which contains toxic mercury. Here, it is the color of the light on the sandstone that causes this hue, and not the toxic mercury.

Colorful Potential

Accepted for Display - APR 2024

I really like this rock. Beyond the fact that it is nearly a perfect circle and stands in an upright position displaying more color than its surroundings, it rests on an edge just above a steep slope in rock to the sandy floor below. It reminds me of physics lessons on potential vs. kinetic energy. What adds to the illusion is the color striations in the rock and the swirl pattern, which give it more a sense of motion to my eye. Quite frankly, it's a wonder no one has disturbed it yet. I certainly hope it's still standing at Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.

Images of the World in Which We Live

Darkroomers 2020-2024