Park Avenue in the Snow, December 27, 2012

A tree points along Park Avenue toward The Organ in Arches National Park, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Rock walls line the Park Avenue trail, with views out toward other landmarks in Arches National Park. This is a composition includes a careful figure-ground arrangement, complete with a tiny Balanced Rock in the extreme distance. The Organ is the more prominent background element, while this insignificant tree is the star attraction.

Grand Canyon Sunrise, December 26, 2012

Sunrise at the Grand Canyon, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

I took plenty of compressed perspective photos, focusing on nothing but rocks overlapping rocks overlapping more rocks. The shadows throughout the day have plenty of variety in tone and color, but I pushed a few of my photos in post to play with even more varied color renderings. Here, I've emphasized the blue aerial perspective, and shifted the foreground reds toward magenta. It might be over the top, but it's worth exploring these hue adjustments to see what you like. I won't call this a great photo, but it's useful to see one possibility.

Infrared Tree at the Grand Canyon, December 25, 2012

A tree stands near the rim of the Grand Canyon, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

I had my infrared camera on my Grand Canyon trip, but I didn't use it much. This is one of the few infrared shots that I liked enough to keep in the public collection. One of the easy compositions at the canyon is to use the trees on the rim as framing and foreground elements in a composition, showing some of the tiny details against a far more massive background. The infrared rendering shows the green needles as bright white. This is plenty of contrast against the red rocks of the canyon, but it has a different tonality than the snow that's also present at this time of year. The dark sky that results from the infrared rendering also helps showcase those bright leaves. It, too, has a different tonality than the canyon rocks, allowing for more good tonal separation.

Storm Clearing at the Grand Canyon, December 24, 2012

Rock faces in the Grand Canyon throw shadows across clouds during a snowstorm, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

When I arrived at the canyon the second day of my visit, I was greeted with a short blizzard. The large scale of the canyon makes for plenty of localized weather patterns that are visible for miles. After the blizzard cleared from the south end, there were great clouds and shadows in the north canyons, and plenty of warm tones as the sun set. As always, it's difficult to show the large and small details at once, so this composition focuses on the various lines created by overlapping cliffs and shadows cast through the clouds.

Grand Canyon Sightseers, December 23, 2012

Two people look over the Grand Canyon, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

Even in the middle of winter you'll find plenty of people at the Grand Canyon. While walking along a trail, I noticed these two visible through a gap in the trees, with a good backdrop. If I remember right, there are a lot more people if you move a pace or to to the left and right. But this keeps the scene more intimate, amid the grandiose surroundings. I don't like the scraggly branches in the upper-right corner. Better see about cropping or spotting them out.

Delicate Arch, December 22, 2012

Mid-morning sun warms hikers as they explore Delicate Arch in December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

It's a bit of a hike up to Delicate Arch. Not terribly strenuous, but watch out on some of the ledges if there's snow and ice on the ground. The overcast clouds opened in places with whisps and blue sky. The sweeping curve of the rocks leading to the arch is a balancing element against the more random clouds above. The distant La Sal Mountains behind the arch provide more depth. I like the strong reds of the rocks, punctuated by snow here and there.

Tenmile Peak at Night, December 21, 2012

A view toward Frisco, Colorado, and Tenmile Peak off Interstate 70, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

While on my way to Arizona, I pulled off the road near Frisco, Colorado, because I saw the mountain with the town before it and wanted to see if I could pull off a reasonable photo. Multiple exposures were definitely necessary to deal with the bright city lights and dark mountain. I didn't have a lot of maneuvering room for the composition, and I don't really like the tree on the left side. There are HDR merge artifacts, though they are minor at a normal viewing distance (I really should do some spotting to clean them up). Beyond that, I like the colorful city lights and strong lines from the traffic on the interstate. It's fun to see the glow on the lower end of the mountain from the city, with the higher end getting only light from the sky. It's worth stopping if you see something.

Inside the Ruins, December 15, 2012

Inside the Ruins, December 2012. (Photo by Daniel Binkard)

The Space Heater of the Gods is difficult to control under the best of circumstances. Nebraska winters tempt the user to set the heater to “11,” which is just asking for trouble. In this case, the beam blasted through the roof and was visible from North Dakota.