Canyonlands Sunset

Last month we went to Moab, Utah, to spend time in the area - and do some shooting, of course.  One objective I had for the trip was a sunset shoot at Canyonlands National Park.  During a previous trip to the park last October, I spent an evening shooting sunset at the Green River Overlook, but between the lack of clouds in the sky and abundance of people on the ground, the experience came up a little short.  This time I wanted to try a different spot.

During that last trip to Canyonlands I had pulled over at the Candlestick Tower Overlook, which is on the way out to the Grand View Point Overlook in the Island In The Sky section of the park, and spent a few minutes looking around and taking a few shots.  I thought this spot had potential for a sunset shoot and tucked that thought away in the back of my mind. When we headed out this time I had my sights set on two spots - Candlestick Tower Overlook and Holeman Spring Canyon Overlook, which is on the spur road to Upheaval Dome.  After taking a look at both spots that afternoon the decision was made - Candlestick Tower Overlook.

I had decided to use one lens for this shoot - my Nikon 16-85 DX VR.  This would give me a good working range, and I was hesitant to change lenses during the shoot given that there would be a breeze and most likely dusty condition.  After we pulled over in the parking area, I grabbed my camera and tripod and worked my way down to the canyon rim.  Sunset was at 7:39 P.M. that night, and by 6:30 P.M. I was in position.  Now it was just time to hang out and see what would transpire.

Before long a bank of clouds started to move across the sun, casting shafts of light towards the canyon below.  I stayed with a wider angle for this shot, so I could get the canyon walls in the foreground and Soda Springs Basin - to the left of Candlestick Tower - in the shot also. 6:35 P.M.

Soon the clouds almost completely covered the sun, and the God rays (crepuscular rays) became the predominant feature of the scene before me.  I zoomed in on Candlestick Tower and tried to emphasize those aspects.  6:37 P.M.

For this shot I zoomed back out a bit to show the golden light on the canyon floor as well as the sun's rays.  Later, when working on the shot in the digital darkroom, I cropped it to a landscape ratio to give the scene a more "sweeping" look.  6:42  P.M.

Then it became a waiting game, taking a few shots now and then, watching the sun slowly descend in the sky.  A few minutes before sunset, as the sun started to touch the horizon, the sky started to glow.  7:30 P.M.

After the sun sank below the horizon the sky turned orange, so I zoomed back in to try and capture that beauty.  7:44 P.M.

This time everything fell into place...

All photos (except camera setup) taken with a Nikon D7000 camera body, and Nikkor 16-85 DX VR lens

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