The Southwest

These images came from a trip to the desert southwest over Memorial Day weekend. My wife Ellen, my son Dale, and I traveled through Utah and Arizona, ending in Las Vegas. Along the way, with guides, we photographed at Monument Valley and Antelope Canyon on the Navajo reservation. On my fourth visit to the Valley of Fire in Nevada, I introduced Ellen and Dale to one of my favorite places to photograph wind and water sculpted red-rock formations.

Monument Valley

After an initial stop at The Goosenecks -- a spot where the San Juan River contorts itself to present four sections of the river, right before our eyes -- we headed to Monument Valley visitors center to meet our guide, Larsen.

Larsen is one of the fine photographer guides for Navajo Spirit Tours. A fine photographer himself, he knows special places...many available whilst in the accompaniment of a Navajo guide.

The photos progress from Friday, to Friday evening, and then to Saturday morning.

[for all galleries, I suggest clicking on the first thumbnail image and then clicking

to the right of an image to advance to the next photo]

Upper Antelope Canyon

This was my third visit to Upper Antelope Canyon, and I was excited to share it with Ellen and Dale. Though a bit crowded, for those of us on a photographer's tour, the guides do an excellent job of directing traffic to give us time to capture the ethereal light beams that pierce the high canyon, all the way to its floor.

Though I've been guided by Carol Big Thumb's guides with Adventurous Antelope Canyon Photo Tours in the past, for this trip, George of Chief Tsosie Antelope Slot Canyon Tours, did an excellent job for us.

Valley of Fire

You can see other photos that I've taken at Nevada's Valley of Fire State Park by clicking here, as this was my fourth trip to this marvelous place. Red rock formations have been carved by wind and water over the centuries into fantasy shapes. Here are more photos, taken from just this one trip.

Page, AZ Area and Navajo National Monument

Finally, here are a few photos from the area around Page, Arizona -- particularly photos taken near Wire Pass, and along House Rock Road, which is shared by both Utah and Arizona. And, just an eight mile drive off the main highway, you can find Navajo National Monument, like the well-preserved Betatakin cliff dwelings that you can see below.