I headed back to Arizona and Utah to revisit some slot canyons and go to some new ones I found out about. On my way there I always go by what (was) known as the Shoe Tree. I was very sad and very angry last year when I found out vandals had cut down the tree !!!!! The Shoe Tree has been a landmark for many years where people tie an old pair of shoes together and throw them up into the tree. Even though I did not make my own contribution to the tree it was always a good feeling to stop here and think of all the lives and memories attached to each pair of shoes. I cannot understand the reasoning or sick pleasure someone would get by destroying things that touch the lives of so many people. I don't know if there have been any leads or arrests but I hope so. As you can see the low-life's went to a lot of work to chainsaw this tree as it was very large. The bottom photo shows it a couple years ago in its former glory.
As the memorial post says: The Shoe Tree lives on in our soles.......................
As I continued on past the Shoe Tree and started getting into some foothills I was admiring the approaching storm with its clouds and shadow-play of light on the hills. I pulled the car over and got out to take some snapshots of that and as I walked a few feet off the road out into the desert to take the above photo, the ground beneath my foot collapsed a few inches as if it was hollow inside. I stood and took the photo and then as I lifted my foot some kind of rodent shot out real fast. Too fast for me to see what it was, but it ran out so fast it knocked one of its babies out of the nest whose entrance I had just stepped on. There were several more babies inside and they were sure ticked off at me with much squeaking going on. The little guy below looks to be a baby Kangaroo Rat. He was not hurt and I tried to get him to go back in the hole but he was so young his eyes were still not open. I figured it best to let mom come back and deal with it.
This is the entrance to a new (for me) slot canyon in southern Utah called Peek a Boo. This is about fifteen or so feet high. The stick is taller than me and aside from the two "pockets" this is almost a vertical wall. There was a Swedish gal here whose boyfriend had already gone up and was exploring. I got up into the first pocket OK but as I got up between the first and second pocket I got to a point where I felt I was stuck and not able to go up or down without slipping and having a nasty fall all the way to the ground. Those of you who might do climbing or canyoneering might think I'm a sissy at this point but I would have been alright if it was just me but I had a 40 pound backpack with a large tripod strapped to the back of it so my balance was off and I could not wedge my back into the top pocket which is what needed to be done and what the gal at the bottom kept telling me to do. She kept cheering me on and with a little contortionist twisting, hoping my hands and shoes would keep their grip I made it. Both she and I were jumping up and down yelling over my small conquest.
The Water Hole
The above photo is a spot about the middle of the canyon. It took me quite a while to get my tripod to stay steady enough with the awkward position I had to put it in to get this angle of view. Not to mention me above the floor braced on each side of the wall to be able to see the viewfinder and camera LCD. It amazes me to think how the water must have flowed to create this design. Parts of this canyon were so narrow I had to take off my water bottle belt and turn sideways to get thru.
The Stargate
This "gate" is not too far from the entrance. If I stand in it I only take up about 1/3 of the height so it is quite large.
One of the reasons it has taken me a long time to post this time is that on this trip I implemented a new photographic technique. Because the light in these canyons can range from very dark to very bright in the same scene and there can be elements very close to me and very far away, I shot multiple exposures both to compensate for light AND for distance. There are 5 focus points that I shot here from closest to farthest elements. At each focus point I also shot 3 exposures for light, a bright, medium and dark shot. So that makes a total of 15 shots. These all get layered in Photoshop and thru steps which align the shots and blend them using only the sharpest elements from each exposure, I get a final image that has all the dynamic range of light that I was seeing and at the same time is sharp throughout the entire image. So much more work both behind the camera and in front of the computer.
One of the reasons it has taken me a long time to post this time is that on this trip I implemented a new photographic technique. Because the light in these canyons can range from very dark to very bright in the same scene and there can be elements very close to me and very far away, I shot multiple exposures both to compensate for light AND for distance. There are 5 focus points that I shot here from closest to farthest elements. At each focus point I also shot 3 exposures for light, a bright, medium and dark shot. So that makes a total of 15 shots. These all get layered in Photoshop and thru steps which align the shots and blend them using only the sharpest elements from each exposure, I get a final image that has all the dynamic range of light that I was seeing and at the same time is sharp throughout the entire image. So much more work both behind the camera and in front of the computer.
The Eye of Stone
click HERE to see larger in gallery.
The above shot is from the bottom of The Water Hole looking back up.
The Guardian Angel
The Guardian Angel is from a spot in Lower Antelope Canyon which I shot last year but felt I needed to go back and get a better composition. This is another of those 15 exposure shots. This photo is so sharp and can be printed extremely large. I will have at least a 32x48 canvas print on my wall shortly.
The Vortex
Another spot in Lower Antelope that I needed to come back and get. The night before there was a storm which flooded half of this canyon. The Navajo tribe that runs this canyon would only let people go half way as this part was flooded. They actually had to let down buckets from the top to clean out what they could. I came back later and was able to make it all the way through.
I have more photos to post soon so stay tuned. As always, until then wish me drama in the skies and awesome light.
