Mesa Arch at Night

Mesa Arch is one of the premier photo destinations in Utah and certainly in Canyonlands National Park. The arch hangs right on the edge of a 1500' cliff and faces east. The arch is famous for the orange glow it gets at sunrise on a clear day. It draws the photographers in thick. One morning we had better than 40 people jockeying for tripod positions. I wanted to try something a little different and I also wanted to stake my spot for sunrise, so one morning I got to the arch about 5am.

I had the whole thing to myself for at least an hour and a half. I made several night images of the stars. I painted the arch with light. I got my spot picked out. And all without the hassle of 40 other people.

Here is one of my favorite from that morning. The stars above the arch and the arch painted with light.

BTW- I went back the next night and got a great self portrait standing on the arch in the dark. See that on my Wilderness Photographer Blog.

Under the Stars

The night skies of the Big Bend country are dark. Thy are very dark. The nearest cities are hundreds of miles away. This area is so dark that the University of Texas has the McDonald Observatory in the nearby Davis Mountains (by nearby I mean 150 miles away).

On dark clear nights you lose count of how many stars you see. The sky is so full of bright stars the constellations are hard to spot.

I often photograph here at night, especially in stretches of cloudless weather or even by the light of the moon.

This image is taken from a small hill looking west some time after dark. The stars are visible across the sky, yet the camera picks up just a hint of orange (not seen with the naked eye) on a lone cloud. The V notch of Santa Elena Canyon can be seen in the image too. You can also see a faint band of light that almost looks like it is coming out of the canyon. That is not an errant flashlight- it is Zodiacal light. This is an astronomical phenomenon that can only be seen in places of dark sky.

And for that-Big Bend is perfect.

Tule Mountain by Moonlight

I arrived in Big Bend National Park in the early morning hours under a clear sky and full moon. I stopped near Maverick and made an image by moonlight of the stars and Tule Mountain.

This is a fairly short exposure of 3 or 4 minutes. The image with the 4x5 was longer and maybe 10-12. The light from the moon was so bright I was worried about over exposure.



This mountain has fascinated me for a long while. I first photographed it several years ago. I have made a few in the day, a couple at sunset, and now a few at night. I still have not gotten it right. One day at the Amon Carter Museum I saw an image taken at twilight of this mountain that was stunning. I might have to give up and find another mountain. I do not remember who the photographer was but it was everything I have tried to make in an image and have failed.