Zion Canyon Photo Essay; or, Wonder Woman Meets Zion Canyon
Susan (a.k.a. Wonder Woman) and I were exploring Utah’s Zion Canyon this week, thus the Zion Canyon Photo Essay. It was hard cutting it down to this number of photos.
Wonder Woman in a narrow cut in Zion Canyon.
Everywhere you turn here stunning scenery faces you, nearly overwhelmes you. Cliffs in excess of 1000 feet have been cut through the red Navajo sandstone by the diminutive Virgin River. It’s easy to be inspired here. It’s easy to take a lot of bad photos. You have to learn to develop a feel for what works and what doesn’t. I certainly have not figured it out yet.
Slickrock formation, Zion National Park
One morning we walked along the river, headed for the top of a mesa. Clouds of gnats hovered above the water. Hummingbirds were working feverishly, fattening up on the bugs. Fascinating to watch- we’d never seen the birds do this before.
Mule Deer buck in velvet.
Springdale, Utah, is the best example of a town catering to tourism that I’ve ever seen. It’s tasteful. There are a dozen choices of good restaurants. Every art gallery we visited, and there were nine or ten, had museum-quality work on exhibit.
And of course there’s the incredible scenery presented by the Zion Gorge.
Petroglyphs in Zion National Park.
The two best things we did in my opinion was 1) to hike up to Hidden Canyon, and 2) to go canyoneering up into the Virgin River Narrows.
When we first started up the Hidden Canyon trail the opportunity came to shoot another moonset.
Susan on a narrow ledge. It’s a long way down.
Susan on an even narrower ledge. It’s an even longer way down.
A sandstone formation in Hidden Canyon.
Susan in the Narrows Canyon. It was a magnificent experience for both of us.
Near the end of our hike up the Virgin River.
I learned that when photographing cacti you must be careful not to touch them, or you quickly become a pincushion.
Prickly pear pad- stay away!!
Life is great and I love my work!
Life is short. Go Adventuring!
John Kumiski
All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2013. All rights are reserved.
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John — thanks for linking to our blog. Your photos are fantastic … and you’re right: it’s easy to take a lot of bad photos in Zion due to the contrast of shadows & light. But on the other hand, there aren’t many spots that aren’t photo-worthy! I suppose makes you appreciate just how good the lens in the human eye is!
Enjoy your week or your weekend!