Planning my "Southwest Odyssey" gear question

National parks in the summer can easily see 1-2 hour lines at the gates to get in, I know from experience. I also know that there are tons of areas not inside the parks worth visiting. Also once in the parks you can sometimes find areas that are not as crowded. Arrive early, leave late. As a photographer its somewhat easy to avoid the crowds.

One of the things I've read is that a lot of the nearby towns (where the hotel would be) have shuttles to the parks. Obviously the downside to this is that you are at the mercy of the shuttle schedule and have to ride with a lot of other people. Has anyone utilized this system? Of course it wouldn't help with car lines getting into the parks, you'd just be a passenger waiting in a line instead of a driver waiting in line.

I have never utilized shuttles unless its the only way, some parks require shuttles to see parts of the park. Otherwise I hate being on a schedule that normally sucks for photography. Most shuttles do not run 2 hours before sunrise when I like to make my way to where ever I plan to shoot.

Good point. I didn't even think of that.

I find very few people get up to see the sunrise so that should be your best time to explore and photograph. Sunset is a different story as you can get overrun in the parks...especially one's like the Grand Canyon which is known for it's sunsets.

Personally I'd stay away from the crowded parks as there are so many other spectacular locations that are not parks.

On another note a lot of the parks have a lane at the gates for season pass holders, so look into getting an "America the Beautiful" pass, good for all national parks for a year. If your up for sunrise most of the time the stations are not even open yet so you can cruise right on through with the pass.

Littlejon Dsgn wrote in post #18267870
On another note a lot of the parks have a lane at the gates for season pass holders, so look into getting an "America the Beautiful" pass, good for all national parks for a year. If your up for sunrise most of the time the stations are not even open yet so you can cruise right on through with the pass.

Personally if there is any lineup into a park...I'd rather just skip it. If it's lined up outside the park...what is it like inside the park?

Best thing to do is get your ass out of bed early and head into the parks and then leave before the throngs of people come pouring in after their leisurely breakfast.

Hogloff wrote in post #18267914
Personally if there is any lineup into a park...I'd rather just skip it. If it's lined up outside the park...what is it like inside the park?

Best thing to do is get your ass out of bed early and head into the parks and then leave before the throngs of people come pouring in after their leisurely breakfast.

I agree 100% just giving suggestions as ways to make the trip easier.

Pick up the book "Photographing the American Southwest. There are 3 of them, and you will look for the one that covers Southern Utah and Northern AZ, also known as the Strip. Now, once you have this book, your brain will explode as it covers all things photographic, including best times to be there, some camera settings, etc. Having said this, I will warn you: you will find that the areas are too large to do in one trip. Two weeks MIGHT be enough, but there is a lot of driving involved. Here are a few things:

1. Zion-mostly canyon. You will be required (no other option) to park the car and ride the free tram, which stops at all the major areas. If you are going to walk into the Virgin River, you need sturdy shoes and you might can take a tripod to help you. The place will be crowded. You can drive through the park and stop on the other side of the canyon for hikes off the road. Also, the section north of the main park

2. Bryce will be cooler, but remember this is desert and your body will be losing moisture and you will not realize it. Temps over 100 not uncommon.

3. Take a day or more to Kanab; highly recommend Dreamland Safari tour of the White Pockets areas. www.dreamlandtours.net
They will drive you there, let you play around most of the day and give you lunch. They do not show up at magic hour either morning or night. However you will need a real 4wd to get there; not an all wheel drive car. You are looking at one hour easy on very sandy roads. In the summer not a great place to be stuck. Several of the roads east of Kanab are scenic, and there are numerous places to stop and shoot.

4. Snow Canyon outside of St. George is pretty cool. You can walk in lava tubes.
5. Valley of fire State Park
6. Lake Mead Recreation area
7. I would avoid Death Valley for this trip. It is two hours west of Vegas and will be hot, as others have said. 120 not uncommon.
8. Escalante has slot canyons you can walk to and shoot.
9. Coral Pink sand dunes, north/west of Kanab.
10. You can take one of the major paved roads into Grand Staircase Escalante NM. I have only been into this area a short time, so no real advice here.

Above all, realize this is a vast territory, it WILL be hot, and these areas are not Disneyland. (http://kutv.com …-trail-in-zion-identified) As one sheriff told me "People don't realize they are two hours away from death if something happens to their car".

Have fun.

Awesome information and very much appreciated!
I'll definitely look into the book.

As a companion question that relates to gear, what filters (if any) do you guys/gals recommend for landscapes? Like I said in the OP, I'm not a landscape enthusiast, but would like some information as to bringing a CPL and/or ND filters are worth bringing along.

The photo gear I currently plan to take is:
- 5DIII
- 16-35 f/4
- 70-200 f/2.8
- Fuji X-T20 (I hope)
- Fuji 18-55 f/2.8-4
- Tripod
- The usual array of accessories (batteries, chargers, etc...)

Thoughts?

I would definitely take a polarizer, and usually have a 3-filter setup of graduated ND filters in a holder. Coming from the film days I find that the current crop of graduated ND filters makes very little difference in digital unless I have stacked them. Of course others may have had better success, and even others prefer to fix in in the computer. More than likely the hardest lighting situation will be in areas like Zion canyon, as well as the cliffs along the various backroads of Utah. Here you will have large shay areas on one side and brightly lit areas on the other. Makes for an interesting shoot. Hopefully you do know that a PL is not really effective unless the sun is over your shoulder, and from my experience in the SW almost worthless at high noon!

Someone earlier mentioned Horseshoe Bend, which is in Page, AZ. Page is at Arizona and Utah border. And if you go there, try not to miss Antelope Canyon. It is one of the most photogenic places anywhere.

High noon can work if you're in a gully and need some light to come in.

My only advice (which isn't equipment) is to force yourself to wake before the sun comes up. If you're already a morning person, great. If not, then it will be a drag, but totally worth it. You won't want to miss any sunrises (and obviously sunsets, but those are easy to wake up for. ).

And don't forget astrophotography. It'll be extremely dark out there and you'll see a lot of space. If you're lucky enough to be there during a new moon you'll see things in the sky that are impossible to see in places with humidity and street lights.

I love the desert.

I forgot to add: To the OP: Since you like to take portraits of people, don't forget the American Indians. Do some research and find where they are. The people and their art are amazing.

If you are going to Zion, head to a little town called Grafton. It's a ghost town that has been kept up. They filmed Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid there, and it's a remarkable place to visit. The nearby cemetery has some of my ancestors who were killed by Indians. They (the ancestors) acted like fools, and paid the price.