View into the Grand Canyon from Bright Angel Trail

[JMC]

I'm currently having a mini road trip in the US with my wife, and yesterday we visited the Grand Canyon. We had a quick (3 hour) hike down Bright Angel Trail, and I took my Monochrome Eos 5DSR, Asahi 85mm UAT and Baader U (but no tripod) along with my standard kit. This was a UV shot of the Canyon, about 40mins into the hike, so about a mile into it.

 

The day was clear, with little haze, and this was at about 10AM. The exposure was take at 1/80s, ISO1250, and f8. The Baader U was attached to the lens, and I prefocussed and 'guessed' as to where it was being pointed. A couple of shots got me ths composition. There is no sky in the image, just a background of the Canyon. For comparison a visual light image showed the background clearly.

[OlDoinyo]

Interesting composition. A little curves work could darken the background just slightly and make it more distinct. Nice work, though.

[JMC]

Thanks OlDoinyo. I did try a few different settings when playing with the image. I didn't want to darken it too much, as I wanted the haze to send the image to white towards the top right of the image. Perhaps it is a little too pale, but on my screen I can still see detail towards the top right.

 

I did have a little assistant who came over to help the moment I opened the camera bag. He thought there was food in there, and was fascinated to see the 85mm UAT lens up close :)

 

It was only later in the day when I found out their fleas carry Plague.....

[Bill De Jager]

Good illustration of atmospheric haze that's visible in UV but not in visible light.

 

I did have a little assistant who came over to help the moment I opened the camera bag. He thought there was food in there, and was fascinated to see the 85mm UAT lens up close :)

 

It was only later in the day when I found out their fleas carry Plague.....

 

I expect the critter thought the lens was also a food container. This shows one reason why people shouldn't feed wildlife - you're minding your own business but a rodent comes right up to you expecting a handout.

 

Wild rodents in the western U.S. can get plague, and at least sometimes become ill or die when they do. There is a small chance that a seemingly healthy wild rodent could have plague, but it's not typical. So I'd consistently avoid contact with apparently healthy rodents and their burrows/nests simply as a precaution. On the other hand, if the rodent appears to be ill or dead, stay far away!

 

We average about one human plague death per year here in California. That's among 40 million people inhabiting 40 million hectares.

[Andrea B.]

There you are Jonathan in full hiking mode! I hope you are enjoying the grand sights of the Grand Canyon. It's quite something and I never get tired of seeing it. Thank you for the photo in UV. If ever there was a place to best illustrate UV haze, it is the GC for sure!

 

What hiking poles do you use?

 

I'm now wondering what happened to Bjørn's and my photos of the Grand Canyon when we were there in 2012? We must have posted them on the old Nikongear/Fotozones site. Maybe I should dig them out.

[JMC]

Andrea, I was in full 'gasping' mode on the way back up. To be honest my wife just gave me a set we had in the loft, so I have no idea what they are. Grand Canyon was amazing, as was Monument Valley and Meteor Crater. Now in San Diego getting ready for the conference.

 

Bill, that's good to know, I shall worry less about the Plague now :)

[Cadmium]

Like the squirrel, I am not yet convinced there is not a candy bar in that pack somewhere... ;)