One place I couldn’t miss on my North American adventure was Arches National Park in Utah where there are more than 2,000 natural arches – the greatest concentration in the USA.
The arches are made of soft red sandstone. They started out as large rocks which cracked and became slabs known as “fins.” Sections of the fins eroded forming “windows” which widened until only the arches were left behind.
Turret Arch, Arches National Park, Utah
There is an 18 mile paved loop road you can drive through to explore the fins and pinnacles and there are many hiking trails that wind around the windows and arches.
On my first evening in the park, I set out to make some silhouettes of the arches. To make these images I used my exposure lock button on the back of the camera to set my exposure for the sky and then recomposed the image to include the rock formations. This made the exposure perfect for the sunset colours while making the rock formations go totally black.
Parade of Elephants, Arches National Park, Utah
Both of these formations are in the “windows” section of the park and are accessible by an easy trail from the parking lot.
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All content © 2013 by Anne McKinnell Photography
Wonderful light and silhouettes Anne. You are right — Arches is not to be missed.
Len Saltiel recently posted..Ten to Twenty
Thank you very much Len! Utah was spectacular.
Stunning Anne. I lvoe the first image with the sun peeking through.
Edith Levy recently posted..Robinson’s Arch Courtyard
Thank you very much Edith!
Anne, so good to see more of your Utah shots. We love Arches NP here in Utah it’s a source of pride for us and is even on our license plates!
Can’t wait to see more!
Howard J recently posted..Transit of Venus – June 5, 2012 Clouds, More Clouds and a Spot on the Sun.
Hi Howard, thank you so much, I have many more images of Utah still to come.
So nice to see a different ‘take’ on subjects that have had countless images taken of them. Well done you!
LensScaper recently posted..The Greens of Rousham
Thanks Andy, that is always the challenge in all the national parks. They have been photographed so often, and I always love the iconic shots, but I try to make something original too if I can.
Love your sunsets, Anne. As I looked at the second image, I uttered, “That’s Mr. Magoo!!” I love seeing faces and images in clouds and rock formations. Best to you.
Lissa @lafcustomdesigns recently posted..A retreat beside North St. Vrain River
Hi Lissa, that is one of the cool things about all the rock formations in both Arizona and Utah, you see so many faces in the rocks. Thank you very much for your comments.