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February 21 – Part 4 of 4
Jump to Part 1.
Jump to Part 2.
Part 2 Addendum is here.
Jump to Part 3 here.

[caption id="attachment_1471" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A small fishing boat maneuvers around Horseshoe Bend at daybreak. The first light of the day is making the cliffs glow red in the distance."][/caption]

When you stand on the bluff overlooking Horseshoe Bend, near Page, Arizona, you truly come to understand why words like “immense” were created. I’m a true believer that pictures speak a thousand words, but pictures don’t do this view justice. It is almost incomprehensible what an awe-inspiring vision this is. It is something that truly has to be witnessed first hand to fully appreciate.

[caption id="attachment_1475" align="alignleft" width="540" caption="My shadow on the rich red sandstone. Just a few feet from the edge the view is hidden."][/caption]

Move down.
The walk down the hill to the bluff is pretty unassuming. It gives no clue of the magnificent secret that is kept at the end of the trail. It’s about a 3/4 mile walk from the parking lot. First up a fairly steep sandy hill, then down a rocky sandstone trail with reddish-gray rock everywhere. There are some beautiful cliffs off in the distance but they pale in comparison to the real treasure found at the end of this short hike. It’s only within the last 20 feet or so, as you climb the short rock ledge up to the edge of the bluff, that the view finally gives way and yields this gem of geologic marvel.

While awesome, it raises the hair on the back of your neck in more ways than one. Like the Grand Canyon, there are no guard rails. There is nothing to prevent a fall if you misstep. The bluff at this vantage point is about 1000 feet above the river.

Move down.
Move down.
Move down.
Adam Finch and I were the only ones of our group to make it down to the overlook. Parker Pfister had walked about halfway, but he was nursing a pinched nerve in his ankle that required him to walk with a cane, or a 54inch tripod, whichever was most convenient at the time. After making it to the crest of the hill, he decided it was smarter for him walk back down now fearing that he may not be able to make it back up the hill on departure. Parker had visited Horseshoe Bend before, so it wasn’t quite the disappointment for him that it would have been for me not to make it.

Unbelievably, as we stopped at the crest of the hill to catch our breaths, a stranger that had been coming up the trail behind us walked up, pointed at Parker and asked, “Aren’t you Parker Pfister?” I’m mean, c’mon now. Two rockstar sightings in two days out in the middle of no where. Like before, it turns out this guy had been at WPPI and had seen Parker speak there. Small world, eh? Of course I spoke there too and he didn’t recognize me!

[caption id="attachment_1473" align="alignleft" width="900" caption="Adam titled this image "Twittering on the Edge". After noticing I had cell coverage at the overlook, I posted a tweet that said "Greg is standing on a bluff overlooking Horseshoe Bend and the Colorado River". Several people wrote back that the post was useless without pictures. Here they are! I look like Yoda in red with my $5 Walmart hoodie. At least I was warm."][/caption]

Marcus and Jason, however were the real victims on this last day of our trip.

After leaving Antelope Canyon the night before, we decided that since we were in Arizona, we had to get some Mexican food. We found a bustling little cantina in nearby Page boasting “Authentic Mexican Cuisine”. I guess maybe it was a bit too authentic as both Marcus and Jason came down with a very, very nasty case of food poisoning.

It was pretty late when we finished eating and we were all beat. Once we got situated into a hotel, everyone went straight to bed. We had another 545am wake-up and our plan was to be at Horseshoe Bend by sunrise. There was no socializing until the wee hours of the morning like the previous night.

Sometime just after 2am Marcus and Jason both became violently ill. When I came down to load the truck early the next morning, Marcus was stretched out on the bed looking pretty worn down. It was an unfortunate way to spend the last day of our trip. We still had some pictures to make but we also had about a 9 hour drive to get back to LAX for our red-eye flights home. As Marcus wrote on his blog, he spent most of our last day together asleep in the car or wishing that he was.

The guys were real troopers though. We left the hotel pretty much on time and they slept in the car as Adam and I made our way down to Horseshoe Bend precisely as the sun was coming up over the mountains behind us.

Photographers are trained that the best light is always at sunrise and sunset, and most often that is true. As we headed down to the overlook I was envisioning the bend in full early morning sun. What I didn’t count on was how deep the canyon was. As the sun rose in the sky there was a huge shadow in the canyon and on the river. The top of the bend was in full bright sun. It was nearly impossible at that point to make a usable image without resorting to some high dynamic range tactics. I was glad that I had made a sequence of images earlier when the sun first creeped over the mountain and splashed light on the distant hills. As it turned out, our first opportunity was our best.

Adam and I kept hoping the sun would rise quickly and fill the bend with light, but after two hours of wishful thinking we decided to head back to the car, feeling a little guilty about our sick and injured friends.

[caption id="attachment_1484" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A fishing boat heads into the golden reflection of the canyon wall in the morning sun."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1485" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A pretty interesting vantage point for another photographer not in our group."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1486" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Adam Finch at the overlook at sunrise."][/caption]

After getting back to the car, Adam and I found that Marcus and Jason were still having a rough go of it. We loaded up, got in the car and prepared for the long drive from Page to Los Angeles.

Jason had mentioned earlier in the trip that he really wanted to see a bit of Americana. Part of our trip would run parallel to historic Route 66, made famous in John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath. There was considerable discussion in the car about getting off the Interstate and driving a portion of Rt. 66. Parker and I were a little nervous about it as we had a lot of ground to cover in getting to LA.

At this point I had pretty much done all of the driving. From Vegas to Springdale, Utah to Page, Arizona. About two hours after leaving Page I had reached the point that I could barely keep my eyes open.

We stopped for gas about an hour from Flagstaff.

There was a little coffee shop next door to the gas station, so those of us that could still stomach food decided now was a good time to grab a little breakfast. The ladies working the grill were making some delicious looking breakfast burritos.

Move down.
Move down.
Movedown 

[caption id="attachment_1494" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Parker's Spam filled burrito."][/caption]

Adam and I each ordered one. Parker ordered one too, but he got SPAM instead of sausage or bacon. I hadn’t seen nor heard about Spam since I was a kid. I’m not talking about the email Spam, I’m talking about the canned meat Spam which is rumored to be able to outlast a cockroach following nuclear holocaust.

After breakfast Parker agreed to drive for a while. I just didn’t think I could keep my eyes open for many more miles and needed a nap. I was already asleep by the time our wheels hit the Interstate again.

About two hours later I woke up just as Parker was pulling the truck into quaint little Seligman, Arizona. Rt. 66 runs through the heart of Seligman and the town has made an industry out of preserving this historic stretch of highway.

Ordinarily I would have been all over this town making pictures. I was so tired and groggy when we pulled in that I didn’t pull the camera out until about 20 minutes after we got there. We only spent about 30-40 minutes there total. Fortunately Jason was finally starting to feel better at this point and we all wanted him to enjoy this real taste of Americana, even though we were on a tight travel timeline.

I probably didn’t walk more than 100 yards away from our car. I was so tired I just couldn’t get into it. Seligman is definitely a town I would like to return to and spend some time in. It looked like a lot of fun. Even though I didn’t shoot as enthusiastically as usual, I did manage to make a few worthwhile images.

 

[caption id="attachment_1496" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Studebaker outside The Rusty Bolt store."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1497" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Motorcyle on the roof at The Rusty Bolt."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1498" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Biker driving down Rt. 66 in Seligman."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1499" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Among friends outside the Rusty Bolt store."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1500" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Marcus still hurting from food poisoning and catching a few Z's wherever he can."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1501" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="J-Starr not looking like a happy camper."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1502" align="aligncenter" width="387" caption="Adam doing a little shooting and shopping."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1506" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="P-Diddy."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1504" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Marcus finally starting to come around just before leaving Seligman."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1507" align="alignright" width="540" caption="A cool sequence of images Parker shot in a dry creek bed beside the Interstate."][/caption]

After leaving Seligman, we hit the road for good headed straight to LAX. We stopped a time or two for food and fuel but the photo-ops were pretty much over. Parker did find a nice little dry creek bed beside the highway once when we swapped drivers, but for the most part we were all ready to put the long drive behind us. We got into LA on schedule and didn’t run into any traffic hassles. We cruised right into the rental car drop-off and after re-packing our gear, boarded the shuttle bus to our respective terminals.

This is where the first annual Roadtrip of the Woolly Mammoths comes to a close, and perhaps fittingly so. Each of our airlines were in different terminals. As the shuttle made its way through the airport, we parted company quickly, efficiently and without much fanfare. A gruff uncomfortable man-hug here,  a handshake there – enlightened heady goodbyes were exchanged like “had a great time” and “it was a blast”. Pretty soon Marcus, Adam and Jason were checking in to their Quantas flight, Parker was getting comfortable over at US Airways, and I was boarding United flight 44 on my way home to rejoin my family.

February 20 – Part 3 of 4

Jump to Part 1.
Jump to Part 2.
Part 2 Addendum is here.

[caption id="attachment_1363" align="alignleft" width="630" caption="Marcus parades through a wonderfully serene setting in the middle of nowhere."][/caption]

We had just spent a great morning in Zion National Park photographing some beautiful and rugged scenery. The decision had been made that we would drive 3 hours to Page, AZ to visit Antelope Canyon in the afternoon.

We were already late leaving and were pushing it just to get to Page in time to even see Antelope Canyon before sunset.

Just after leaving Zion we passed a beautiful open field covered in snow. It had the most gorgeous perfect blue sky overhead. Immediately cries go out “stop the car, stop the car”. Cries shoot back “we don’t have time, we don’t have time.” There wasn’t much battle to be fought on this one so we pulled off the road and grabbed the gear.

Move down.

Marcus and Parker are raving about the landscape that is laid out before us. “This is the most beautiful place I’ve seen on the whole trip” they both say. After all, they ARE the resident landscape photography experts.

I’m thinking, yeah, umm, okay…white snow, blue sky cool, but it’s a little, ahhhm, empty doncha think? Well, yes it was quite empty and that was exactly the point. What a perfectly serene setting with such crisp, unmarred crystal white snow.

[caption id="attachment_1365" align="alignright" width="540" caption="Parker shooting along the roadside in Utah."][/caption]

As we are all shooting with our back to the road, a car pulls up behind our Ford Expedition. A guy jumps out with a camera.

He says “I figured if I see Parker Pfister shooting something beside the road, then I better stop and shoot it too.”  Turns out this guy had been to WPPI and recognized Parker from his speaking engagements there.

Figure those odds, here we are in the hills of southern Utah, miles from any civilization, and one of the few cars that passes by is driven by someone that recognizes Parker. There’s a rockstar moment for ya.

We continued to work this scene for a bit while Parker and his new friend did some catching up. We couldn’t waste a lot of time here however, as our mission for the afternoon was to arrive in Page by 4pm. If we didn’t make it by 4, we were afraid we wouldn’t be able to get into Antelope Canyon.

Move down.

Move down.

Antelope Canyon has a bit of an interesting story. The canyon sits on Navajo territory and the local Navajo tribe there runs the tour operation. To get into the canyon you have to meet a guide in a parking lot just outside the park.  The guides are usually set up and waiting with their trucks. You just show up, park your car, pay them cash, and they drive you down to the canyon entrance.

The guides usually don’t stay late into the afternoon, especially on a Friday afternoon in February, so we wanted to make sure we got there before they took off for the day. Otherwise we had no access and our afternoon spent driving would be a complete waste.

We finally hit the road for good right around 1:30PM. A little late but not too bad. We had to make a quick hit at a gas station for some food and fuel.

Here are a few last frames before we headed out.

I love this first one of Marcus. Reminds me of Elmer Fudd. “We’re hunting wabbits.”

[caption id="attachment_1415" align="aligncenter" width="700" caption="That's me ready to catch Jason when he falls. Or should I say catch the moment when Jason falls! "][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1407" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="The gas station we stopped at had quite a lot of character. It was so cool they even had a wooden Indian. I haven't seen one of those in year."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1409" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Marcus making like ET to phone home."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1410" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Here's a frame from Parker. Jason Starr waiting patiently for his lunch."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1418" align="alignleft" width="567" caption="All the gang outside the entrance to Antelope Canyon in Page, AZ."][/caption]

The 3 hour drive to Antelope Canyon seemed to take forever. After not getting much sleep the night before, and already being tired from a week in Vegas, I almost has to resort to propping my eyes open with toothpicks. We drove through some very beautiful scenery in southern Utah but we were on a mission to get to Antelope a few hours before dark.

I was SO happy to finally pull into the parking lot, not only because I was tired of driving, but because there were still a few guides there to give us access to the canyon.

Antelope Canyon is a much different place from the immense bluffs around Zion. Antelope is what’s known as a “slot” canyon and is much, much smaller. A slot canyon is created over time by the wear of water rushing through the sandstone. In fact, the area around Antelope is prone to flash flooding and that’s one of the reasons the guides have to drive you to the entrance.

Move down.

That little sliver of an opening behind us in the picture above is the entrance to the canyon. The entire canyon is about one quarter mile in length. There are places so narrow you can extend your arms and touch both walls. At it’s highest point the canyon walls may reach about 100 feet or so above the ground.

Inside the canyon is one of the most breathtaking and tranquil places you can imagine. The canyon walls have been beautifully etched grain by grain by the wind and water over time. The light and shadows created by the narrow creviced openings from above accent the curves and swirls of the sandstone magnificently. We were fortunate that there were no other tourists visiting while we were there. For about two hours, we had the place entirely to ourselves.

We actually got into the canyon around 4:15pm. It was already very dark inside. Supposedly the best time to visit is on bright sunny days. When the sun is high in the sky shafts of sunlight beam down to the ground making the interior landscape all the more dramatic. Even though it was very dark inside, there were still many opportunities to play with the light and texture on the walls.

[caption id="attachment_1425" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Stepping inside the entrance, the first view is spectacular."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1431" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Antelope is a great study in form, light and texture. The very basic elements of photography."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1433" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A couple of Parker's images from inside Antelope Canyon."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1434" align="aligncenter" width="531" caption="Here's Parker doing a some light painting with two video lights."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1435" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="That's me doing a little Rocky Balboa dance after climbing that steep sandy hill."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1436" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="This is a picture I made from up on top of the canyon. This view really shows the large gully where the water that shapes the canyon flows. At bottom right you can see the "slot" or creviced opening that forms beginning of Antelope Canyon. You can also see the circular patterns the guide's vehicles make when they drop visitors off at the entrance. Those teeny-tiny people down below are Parker and Adam. It was a great stroke of luck that we had the whole park to ourselves the entire two hours we were there."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1440" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A picture that I made of Parker on the left just after he made the image of me on the right."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1441" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Our Navajo guide that drove us out of the park at dusk. A large power plant is at left and is very near the park. "][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1442" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Power Station at dusk - Page, Arizona"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1535" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Parker's panoramic version. He is a panoramic machine."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1443" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Parker snagged a nice image of the sky just after sun had set."][/caption]

February 19-20 – This is an addendum to the previous post
Post 1 can be found here.
Post 2 can be found here.

Parker just sent me a a great set of images from the trip and I wanted to get a few of them up to go with what’s already been posted. A little addendum won’t hurt, so here are a few of Parker Pfister’s images from Day 1 and Day 2 of the Woolly Mammoths Roadtrip 2009.

Day 1

[caption id="attachment_1385" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Marcus grabbing a frame from the truck window at 65mph in Nevada."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1386" align="aligncenter" width="700" caption="Another view of that gorgeous roadside in Utah at dusk."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1387" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="A stitched panorama of the beautiful star-filled sky over the canyon walls at Zion National Park."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1397" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Another panoramic view of that gorgeous sky framed by the canyon walls."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1388" align="alignnone" width="900" caption="Clockwise from top right - Marcus, Greg, Jason and Adam."][/caption]

Day 2

[caption id="attachment_1389" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Another panorama stitched from two separate images."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1390" align="aligncenter" width="398" caption="Same tree as the image above. It's amazing sometimes what a simple change of angle can produce."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1392" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Team photo."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1394" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Marcus was shooting a very serene scene on the way out of Zion when a bus full of Japanese tourists pulled up."][/caption]

February 20 – Part 2 of 4

[caption id="attachment_1275" align="alignleft" width="630" caption="Woolly Mammoths L-R Marcus Bell, Greg Gibson, Adam Finch, Jason Starr and Parker Pfister seated."][/caption]

It was really hard to get up when the alarm went off at 530am. Really, really hard. Since I was the designated driver, I managed to drag myself out of bed, throw on some clothes and gather my gear.

My room at the Pioneer Lodge in Springdale, UT was across the narrow parking lot from the rest of the guys. When I stepped out of my room, I could see their windows, all of which were dark. Dang, I can’t be the only one up can I?

I walked over to the other rooms. No one seemed to be stirring. Fortunately the coffee shop was open so I ducked inside to grab a coffee and a muffin. I was inside for about 10 minutes and when I walked out the door, there was Parker with his Walmart tripod setup in the middle of the parking lot photographing the moon setting over the adjacent canyon wall.

[caption id="attachment_1291" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Moon above canyon wall at daybreak in Springdale, UT just outside of Zion National Park."][/caption]

Move down.

[caption id="attachment_1280" align="alignright" width="560" caption="Marcus has his eye on the image above."][/caption]

Parker ran in to get a coffee while I setup my mini me-pod to bang off a few frames of that beautiful crescent moon hanging over the red canyon wall.

No sign, however of Marcus, Adam or Jason. The sun was starting to come up and Parker and I deliberated a bit as to whether we should wake the other guys. I mean, we were up REALLY late the night before. It seemed a bit unusual that they would all over-sleep at the same time.

We decided to let them sleep and that Parker and I would make a quick run up to the top of the canyon to get our bearings. We had quite a magnificent trip up the switchbacks watching the sun rise over Zion. (You know, every time I type the word “Zion” I feel like I’m in The Matrix). We only stopped a time or two to make pictures however, as we both felt a bit guilty about leaving our friends back at the hotel.

We returned about an hour later to find Adam out in the parking lot shooting the same moon that Parker and I had both shot earlier. Jason was coming out the door but there were still no signs of life coming from Marcus’s room.

Parker and I learned that our friends hadn’t really over-slept. Turns out they just didn’t have the advantage of having a US cell phone with them.  Our phones had automatically adjusted for the time zone change from west coast to mountain time leaving Las Vegas. Their watches were still an hour behind! Fortunately they hadn’t missed very much. We rousted Marcus from his much needed beauty sleep and set off for a great breakfast at the Pioneer Restaurant next door.

At breakfast we decided that we would stay in Zion National Park for most of the morning, then head to Bryce later in the afternoon. However, everyone we talked to afterward seemed to think that Bryce was better photographed in the morning rather than the afternoon and it was already too late to get there for the morning.

Parker kept raving about this little town he knew called Page, Az. He said there was a beautiful place called Antelope Canyon that was gorgeous and maybe we should go there instead.

Parker pulled a few pictures of Antelope Canyon off the internet. Once we all saw it, we knew we had to go there. Another side benefit of Page is that Horseshoe Bend, the entrance to the Grand Canyon, is there also. No brainer – the plan was set. Photograph Zion until 1:00PM, then head for Page.

After a great breakfast we loaded up again and started making a slow ascent up the canyon in Zion. There were frequent stops for photo-ops. In fact, it got to the point where we had to set time limits for each stop as we were getting dangerously close to missing our scheduled departure for Page. Finally we just had to throw our hands in the air, put our blinders on and drive past some really beautiful scenery without stopping.

We could have photographed in Zion all day. Everywhere you looked there was gorgeous scenery. There weren’t a lot of words spoken on this leg of the trip, other than “stop the car, stop the car.” Everyone got down to business.

Move down.

Move down.

There were places in Zion that looked like the mountains and the canyon walls had actually been etched by hand with a brush.

I made this picture of Jason and Parker as I was walking back from the location above. Behind them, you can see the locations of the last two images in this blog post. The horizontal tree on the icy rock face is directly above Jason’s head, and the vertical image of the other tree is on the right side of the frame.

In part 3 of this series tomorrow, I’ll talk about the trip from Zion to Page and show some pictures from Antelope Canyon. Parker is supposed to be sending me some of his image so maybe I’ll have a few of his to post also.

February 19 – Post 1 of 4

I had never seen a sky like that.

Never.

Not even in the outback of Brazil miles from a paved road with no electricity to power any light polluting illumination.

[caption id="attachment_1238" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Star-filled sky framed by canyon walls in Zion National Park."][/caption]

“I think there is a big, like, cliff or something next to us” came a voice from the back seat tinged with a heavy dose of Australian twang.

I slowed the car, rolled down my window and stuck my head out. Sure enough, an enormous bluff was silhouetted against the night sky staring down at us like a great gentle giant. It was so large I had to crane my neck up to see it. Otherwise I was just peering into the blackness of the wall.

I pulled the car over as quickly as I could and killed the lights. Overhead was a magnificent star filled sky, the likes of which I have never seen. I popped out the $15 Walmart tripod I had purchased just a few hours earlier, gleefully attached the camera, and made a series of 30 second exposures. Unfortunately the only tripod Walmart had left was a short 24″ one, so I spent most of the time laying on my belly on the cold dirt shoulder. Certainly not very glamorous, but well worth the effort.

[caption id="attachment_1219" align="alignright" width="500" caption=" Nearly 1000 miles traveled in 3 days by 5 grown men in a Ford Expedition."][/caption]

So began this fun little adventure that shall henceforth be known as “The Woolly Mammoths Roadtrip 2009.” We chose “Woolly” because, well, we’re a little older than those *other* Mammoth Men. No worries, however, there won’t be any pictures of us cavorting in our underwear.

The trip was born innocently enough back in January with a short email from my friend Australian photographer Marcus Bell. The note said something about his not being able to get a flight back to Australia from WPPI until 3 days after the show ended and was I interested in doing a road trip to go “shoot something”.

Well, of course I was interested in doing a road trip with Marcus. Besides being a great friend, Marcus is also one of the best wedding photographers in the world.  He has a fantastic sense of the moment and he has built a fabulous body of imagery brimming with emotion, beauty and personal connection. His work is one of the greatest sources of inspiration for me and represents many of the same things I strive for in my own work.

A few days later I received a follow-up email from Marcus letting me know that another good friend, Parker Pfister, would be joining us on the trip along with a couple of Australian friends. Mostly likely, he said, we would just “go out in the desert and shoot some landscapes.”

“Landscapes!!! Uh-oh” I thought. Well, landscapes ain’t really my bag, you see. Give me some cowboys, horses and crocodiles in the Brazilian outback any day, heck, give me a woman in a white dress, but landscapes…hmmm. Not only that, but both Marcus and Parker cut their teeth on landscape photography when they were first starting out. Both of them have fabulous portfolios of landscape imagery. I was a little nervous, but what the heck, it was a great opportunity to get out and have some fun with a couple of guys I really respect and admire.

[caption id="attachment_1244" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="J-Starr gettin' his redneck on."][/caption]

Other than simply confirming that we were all definitely doing the trip, that was pretty much all the pre-trip communication. We agreed we would figure out the logistics once we got to Vegas.

Needless to say we spent 8 days in Vegas without really talking about the trip in any detail. It wasn’t until Wednesday, the night before we were supposed to leave, that a small triangle of chairs was formed amidst the crowd in the back of the ballroom after the WPPI awards dinner and reasonably serious discussion began.

Joining us on the trip would be a couple of Australian photographers, Adam Finch and Jason Starr. Adam works with Marcus at Studio Impressions as an associate photographer and shooting assistant. He’s a smart, young guy with a great eye for images. Jason has his own studio, Studio 60 in Brisbane and produces some outstanding imagery of his own. In fact, he was featured in a nice article in the February 2009 issue of Rangefinder Magazine.

It was decided that Adam and I would head to the airport the following morning to secure a rental car. Marcus and Parker had an obligation to help Joe Photo with his Thursday morning presentation. Adam and I would snag a car, and by the time we got back to the hotel, everyone would be ready to go.

Just where we were going was still a mystery. Maybe Death Valley, maybe Salton Sea, maybe somewhere else. Just get a GPS with the car and we’ll figure it out in the morning we decided.

Let me just say that showing up at the airport without a reservation is never a good idea, particularly when you are traveling with five photographers. Each of us had quite a bit of gear and luggage, so we needed a really big vehicle, like a large SUV. Finding a large SUV in Las Vegas, wasn’t particularly easy, especially since we were departing from Los Angeles and needed a one way rental. A few places that had them in stock wouldn’t let us return them at LAX. Not only was it difficult to find the specific type of vehicle we needed, but there must have been 50 people in each line at the rental car agencies. In fact, some of the car companies didn’t have ANY vehicles available. I’m not sure what was going on in Las Vegas after WPPI, but whatever it was it must have required some driving!

Adam and I were finally able to obtain an Ford Expedition, albeit at a highly inflated price that fully took advantage of our desperate situation.

We returned to the hotel, grabbed a quick lunch, got everything loaded, and were finally ready to depart, although several hours later than originally planned. Of course, we didn’t know where we were going yet so that still had to be determined.

After a little deliberation it was decided that we would go to Bryce Canyon. Another photographer had mentioned to us that it was a beautiful place to visit, was only 3 hours from Las Vegas, and was a can’t miss for pictures. Perfect! We punched the location into the GPS and off we went.

It had also been determined that I would drive. Parker would ride shotgun since he had a pinched nerve in his ankle and needed the room, and the 3 Australians would ride in the back seat. Parker and I both were a little nervous about having our Australian friends do any driving, since in Australia they drive on the opposite side of the road! We didn’t want any inadvertent head on collisions.

[caption id="attachment_1242" align="alignright" width="630" caption="Adam and Jason load the car outside Walmart. Parker fits his new designer hiking boots."][/caption]

As we left Vegas, I had no idea if we were driving north, east, south or west. That’s the beauty of a GPS. Just turn left and right like the lady tells you. I had heard of Bryce Canyon and was enthusiastic about going, but I had no idea where it actually was. I certainly didn’t know it was in Utah and in the exact opposite direction of the airport we were departing from on Saturday .

About 20 minutes into the trip we realized that since it was February and we were heading into some elevation, there might be snow on the ground. None of us had any cold weather clothes, and really not much in the way of proper shoes for hiking rough terrain.

About an hour outside of Vegas we found a Walmart and stopped for provisions. In addition to some munchies and water, I picked up a $5 long sleeved wool shirt, a $5 sweatshirt, a $25 pair of boots and the above mentioned $15 tripod. Unfortunately I let Parker beat me to the last 54” tripod, which was a mere $5 more than the 24”. That’s only .16 cents per additional inch! What a bargain.

[caption id="attachment_1246" align="alignleft" width="560" caption="Marcus grabbed this shot of Jason rapid firing from the window at 65mph."][/caption]

Anytime we hit any scenery, it sounded like machine gun fire coming from the back seat. In fact, it usually didn’t matter whether there was scenery or not. Marcus, Jason and Adam were shooting rapid fire out the windows of the truck at just about anything. Road signs, warehouses, gas stations…you name it, they shot it.

We were hoping to get to Bryce before nightfall but our late departure and impromptu shopping trip had put an end to that. We had entered Zion National Park in complete darkness. Zion was on the way to Bryce and our GPS was taking us right through the heart of the massive canyon walls that form the National Park there. We had no idea what to expect and this is where we came across the brilliant, starry sky pictured above and below.

After a 30 minute stop to make pictures we decided to head back to the little town of Springdale, UT to spend the night. This little town is just outside the park boundaries at Zion and we had passed several lodges and restaurants there.

Marcus and Parker seemed to have some strange desire to find the cheapest and nastiest looking hotel possible to stay in. We found one great bargain for $39/night but ended up having to pass because the hotel had no wireless Internet. We ended up getting a great deal at the Pioneer Lodge, which was thankfully NOT a dive hotel. We paid about $50 for each room, plus they had a nice coffee shop, restaurant and free wireless. Actually, the lodge was a really nice place to stay. Unfortunately they roll up the streets in Springdale around 9pm in the winter and we got in too late to get dinner anywhere. We ended up making dinner out of our Walmart munchies.

After everyone got settled we reconvened in Parker’s room to download cards, compare images and dine on some fine pepperoni and cheese crackers.

[caption id="attachment_1267" align="alignright" width="540" caption="Marcus shooting roadside scene at dusk in Utah."][/caption]

Parker Pfister is someone I have known for several years but have never had the opportunity to really get out and spend time with him. This first night out on the road with him proved to be quite an eye-opening experience. First he showed us a slideshow of wedding images that was simply mind blowing. One jaw-dropping image after another. Then he showed us a slideshow of personal work, that again, was nothing short of amazing. To finish it off, he showed a slideshow of portrait work that was also phenomenal. Over the past few years Parker has amassed one of the best bodies of photographic imagery that I have ever seen. It has been fun to watch his progress and quite humbling to see the result.

One of the things I admire most about both Marcus and Parker is that I consider them to be true photographic “craftsmen”. That is, not only do they have the ability to capture great images with their cameras, but they have the talent to complete their vision with the way they finish the images in post-production. They are “master printers” in every sense of the word, as we would have said back in the film days. Their images not only have great content but the content is enhanced to convey exactly how they envisioned the image in their minds at capture. Many photographers have a tendency to be too heavy-handed in post-production, leaving their images looking fake or manipulated. These guys seem to have the knack of doing just enough bring out every subtle nuance.

We had a lot of fun that first night. At some point someone looked at their watch and noticed it was 3am. We had planned a 545am wakeup call so that we could be out in the canyon at first light. We decided a couple hours of sleep were definitely in order, particularly after a week in Vegas where none of us got much sleep anyway. Funny how time flies when you’re having fun.

Tomorrow I’ll talk about our first full day’s adventure and post some of the images I made.

Marcus has posted images from this trip on his Studio Impressions blog. Adam Finch has also posted about the trip on the Studio Impressions blog here.

[caption id="attachment_1247" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Roadside scene near Springdale, Utah at dusk without Marcus."][/caption] [caption id="attachment_1248" align="aligncenter" width="900" caption="Another view of the night sky at Zion National Park."][/caption]