Night hiking in the Kofa Wilderness, Arizona with my astro buddy Bray Falls, scouting locations for our upcoming astro workshop! 3rd quarter moon cycle during the Spring time is my favorite: The timing of the moon helped light up all the Pokey Boys (cholla cacti) around us as we did a short hike up to the base of the beautiful Kofa Mountains. The moon set as the Galactic Core began to rise above the mountains- I was able to capture this image during that transition lighting up the desert floor nicely while not washing out too many stars!
One of my most popular images, that was viewed hundreds of thousands of times on Reddit (the best website ever: https://redd.it/61l8us). It is a blend of a sunset and nightscape transition I had the privilege of witnessing one night in the otherworldly desert landscape of White Pocket deep in the Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness, on the border of Utah and Arizona.
The Milky Way over the undulating rock formations of the Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness. This is a blend of images taken in the same night including a foreground image taken at twilight hours (for better detail and less noise, which is a bad effect if you shoot with the typical low light ISO settings on your camera, which most astrophotographers do) combined with a tracked shot of the Milky Way using an a German Equatorial Mount.
A portrait of Shiprock during a night hike into Lost Dutchman State Park, Arizona.
A magical morning in the Canyons of Zion National park late Fall 2017. Yes, believe it or not I can process my shots naturally... Well, only if nature does 90% of the heavy lifting as this picture is hardly edited at all. You can find the RAW (straight out of camera) file after this one. I can't articulate with my mortal words how beautiful Zion National Park is. It has the type of beauty that down to your core, makes you feel thankful to be alive. I hope this image inspires you to consider making your next trip to Zion National Park.
The Milky Way climbing over mangled rock and sandstone formations of White Pocket, Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness.
Spent an amazing night next to the extremely colorful sandstone walls of South Coyote Buttes in the Kanab Wilderness, Arizona.
Amazing rock formations of White Pocket, in the remote region of the Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona.
A creative blend of a vibrant sunset and nightscape including the Orion constellation and nebula I had the privilege of witnessing and photographing during an amazing adventure into the Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona. Blending two images of the same seen just hours apart from one another has been an amazing way for me as an artist to share more fully the experiences and beauty of nature.
An artistic blend of multiple images including the "brain" looking rock formations of White Pocket, a moody twilight with moonlight, and the Milky Way. Taken during a trip into White Pocket, Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness.
A creative blend of multiple images all taken during a night spend in the Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness, Arizona, at the Iconic "Wave" rock formation under the north end of the Milky Way which include the Andromeda Galaxy, The Plediades Star Cluster, and California Nebula!
The Orion Constellation and "winter" Milky Way over the iconic Watchman Mountain and Virgin River, Zion National Park. I had a great time stargazing with my awesome friend and photographer Tracy Lee (http://mstracylee.com/). There are quite a few beautiful shots of the Milky Way core with this composition but Tracy and I wanted to go for something different and we hadn't seen the Orion Constellation shown much love from this position. So with trackers and cameras firing away, we did squats and took laps around the road trying to stay warm, pausing only for astrophotography talk about gear, shooting techniques, the community, and jokes!
An artistic blend of a nightscape including the Andromda Galaxy and sunrise I captured while hiking among the mysterious rock formations and hoodoos of Bryce Canyon, Utah.
A creative blend of a sunset and nightscape I witnessed in the sand dunes of Death Valley, California.
The clarity of mind that comes with being in a life or death situation is one of my favorite parts about adventuring and taking pictures.
Although I wouldn't wish getting stuck for 3 extra days in the remote mountains of Death Valley in the Winter upon anyone... what a perfect place to view the stars and get in touch with that primal human part that's inside of you. The simplicity of surviving out in nature feels good to the core. Thank you my good friend Dimitri Natsis for having a great attitude in spite of the circumstances and for making the best camp fires and BRAUTS- even when things don't go your way, the only thing obstructing you from seeing the beauty in the world are your own perspectives. There's beauty in the messiness and chaos if you choose to see it that way! One of my favorite quotes of all time, and yes, it's a Drake lyrics because I'm soft: "working with the negatives to make for better pictures".
This is a composite/blend image I captured using a German Equatorial Mount to track and stack multiple images of the sky then combined with a still image of the foreground, all taken that night. I didn't capture many pictures this trip because I was too tired from digging out my car and building a stone age road to drive out of the mud on... but I managed to snap a few :)
A black and white image of the Milky Way over Balanced Rock in the Moab Desert/Arches National Park, Utah.
An interesting rock formation and shrubbery placement I found in Arches National Park with the Milky Way roaming over it.
The Milky Way over some of the otherworldly Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness in Northwest New Mexico. The area has some amazing geological history, read more about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisti/De-Na-Zin_Wilderness
"Fire Wave" of Valley Of Fire State Park, Nevada! If you've ever struggled to get the coveted "wave" permits in Arizona, there is another wave in Nevada that is similar, extremely gorgeous, and free!
The Milky Way over the fiery rock striations and formations of Valley Of Fire State Park, Nevada. This is a subtle but creative blend of multiple images including a tracked sky images, 8 foreground shots using a technique called focus stacking to get all the details in focus and sharp, and a late twilight/sunset image all captured after hiking into the park after hours.
Garden of the Gods, Colorado.
My amazing friend and overall human being Justin Dodson organized and brought together a great group of friend who all enjoy camping, nature, and stars! The night was full of laughter, stories, food & camping, and most importantly... astrophotography! Justin and I were the most experienced photographers amongst the group and had a fantastic time teaching others how to get shots of the night sky! Thank you Justin for helping me discover my passion for the night sky through teach and inspiring others, you're the man! (https://www.instagram.com/the_power_of_failing/)
