Although I’ve captured my fair share of grand vista landscapes, this was my first excursion to Monument Valley. Exploration of the valley was enhanced by sharing the experience with my good friend and fellow photography enthusiast, who was my university roommate forty years ago.

The valley floor is perched at an elevation of 5,000 to 6,000 feet above sea level. It is adorned with monuments that soar to an additional 1,000 feet into the sky. These uniquely shaped enormous buttes, shaped over 50 million years by the relentless forces of wind and rain, stand as a testament to the power of nature.

We had arranged for a native Navajo guide to escort us into the controlled areas of Navajo Tribal Park. Knowing we were interested in the valley’s shifting sand and windblown ridges, he guided us to this site late afternoon when the low sun threw shadows over them.

I quickly scouted the site and manoeuvred to where the erosion curves led to the tree in the background. Knowing the failing light would need a long exposure and a small aperture to capture focus as deeply as possible; I erected my tripod. I mounted my Canon 5DSr atop the Really Right Stuff BH-55 ball head. The image was captured using a Canon EF-17-24 f/4L lens set to 17 mm, settings of F/16 at 1/80 of a second, and ISO 250. Back home, Lightroom was used to darken the sky and add a bit of clarity overall. I finished the image off with some sharpening in Tpoas Photo AI.