Cathedral Valley 2002
In April 2002 I planned a trip to Cathedral Valley. It was timed to coincide with the full moon. It is located in the northern part of Capitol Reef National Park. It requires traveling on dirt roads for many miles. When I left cloudy weather was forecasted, but we always hope for the best.
Click on images below to see a larger version.
Canon Elan 2, Canon 28-70mm L, Fuji Velvia
I arrived at Lower Cathedral Valley in time to scout around and find a good location. The only problem was there were too many clouds and not enough sun. The sun peeked through just enough for this picture of The Temple of The Sun.
Canon Elan 2, Canon 28-70mm L,
Fuji Provia
While waiting two hours for a better sunset shot I met another photographer. He was there mainly to take pictures of the formations by moonlight. When we parted at dark the sky was completely overcast. I woke at 2am and the sky was completely clear. He showed up a few minutes later and we took a number of exposures until the sun came up. He didn't leave me his name, but thanks for the idea. This is roughly a 15 minute exposure. This is The Temple of The Moon with The Temple of the Sun in the background. Make sure you look at the enlarged image to see the star trails.
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon PE 150mm, Fuji Velvia
By the time the sun came up clouds had covered most of the sky. We had a small slit on the eastern horizon for the sun to peek through. I managed this exposure of some of the most spectacular light I have ever seen. You can see that the top of the bluff is already receding into shadow.
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon PE 45-90mm, Fuji Velvia
Upper Cathedral Valley is another 25 miles or so further west. This is looking down into the valley from the ridge above. I liked the contrast of the sunlit foreground and the dark somber sky in the background. The enlarged version of this is quite wide. If you have a low resolution monitor you'll have to scroll.
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon PE 45-90mm, Fuji Velvia
This is the Upper Cathedral Valley formation from closer. I couldn't find any names for the specific rocks. Most of these are quite a bit larger than the Temple of the Sun and Moon in Lower Cathedral Valley.
Here's a link to another photographer's trip to Cathedral Valley.