Goblin Valley
I've now visited Goblin Valley State Park in Utah twice. The first time was back in 2005 when I spent an excited morning with my "new" digital camera, a Kodak D260 (hard to believe it was only 1.3 megapixel camera!). We only spent one night there and that morning I had a great time running all over the place as the sun came up.
My wife and I returned in 2013 and, while we originally planned on only staying a few days, we ended up extending our camp site privileges several times for a total of five nights in the end.
Since it was all about photography for me, I rose before sunrise each morning and hiked into the park with a pack filled with lenses and my heavy tripod. I'd hike back to the campsite a little before 10 and, around 4 or so, I'd hike back in again for sunset shots.
At the end of this set I kept the original photos from the 2005 visit. The color is noticeably different but I like some of the images and they remind me of my first visit and that one morning when everything was new.
Read MoreMy wife and I returned in 2013 and, while we originally planned on only staying a few days, we ended up extending our camp site privileges several times for a total of five nights in the end.
Since it was all about photography for me, I rose before sunrise each morning and hiked into the park with a pack filled with lenses and my heavy tripod. I'd hike back to the campsite a little before 10 and, around 4 or so, I'd hike back in again for sunset shots.
At the end of this set I kept the original photos from the 2005 visit. The color is noticeably different but I like some of the images and they remind me of my first visit and that one morning when everything was new.
Early Morning Light on Goblins
One of the nice things about Goblin Valley State Park is that you're allowed to go wherever you like - which includes climbing on top of formations to gain a different perspective.
The morning light moves pretty quickly over the formations and, even after several mornings photographing the same general area, I wasn't always sure what a particular composition would look like when the sunlight hit the tops of the rocks. So I'd set up before the light was there and wait.
