Sunset at Horseshoe Bend, AZ

anonymouscuban · Nov 26, 2017

I finally made it to Horseshoe Bend to take my own version of this iconic shot. And boy did it not disappoint. My wife and I just got back this morning from a 7 day camping road trip through Southern Utah and Arizona. We got to Horseshoe on day 3 after spending the 2 prior days hiking Bryce Canyon.

I opted against checking out the dam and headed straight to Horseshoe and I am glad I did. We arrived about 2.5 hours before sunset. I got my choice of spots. Had I waited even 30 minutes more, I wouldn't have had the spot I wanted. It was much more busy than I anticipated for winter. I guess people don't stay home during Thanksgiving anymore.

I had a feeling it was going to be a good sunset because of the clean air and the very high clouds. The light show happened about 25 minutes after official sunset. The sky exploded with color which reflected down onto the landscape. It was quite magical and I hope my photos conveys what it was like in real life.

I'm going to print this on metal. I just did my edit in LR. I usually wait a few days to fine tune things before I share but couldn't resist. My need a bit of tweaking but it looks good to me right now.

Well, thanks for looking.

fishing4sanity · Nov 26, 2017

Mother Nature was really putting on a show that night and you captured it beautifully. As many great shots as I've seen of this spot, I'm sure the 'awe' can only truly be experienced in person.

benhasajeep · Nov 26, 2017

Wow, never heard of it. Or seen pictured of it. But can understand why you said Iconic shot.

Jamesaz · Nov 26, 2017

If you go east on the road towards Kayenta, about a mile before you get to the power plant is the access for antelope canyon. I havent been up there in probably 12-14 years but I believe you need to book ahead now. Anyway, nice shot.

anonymouscuban · Nov 27, 2017

fishing4sanity said:
Mother Nature was really putting on a show that night and you captured it beautifully. As many great shots as I've seen of this spot, I'm sure the 'awe' can only truly be experienced in person.

Thanks. I've seen many photos of this place and always wanted to get my own shot of it. I couldn't be happier with the light show that happened. It far exceeded my expectations. Standing there at the edge, watching the colors change was just amazing. I'm pretty happy with my capture of it. I plan on printing this on metal pretty large and displaying it in my home.

benhasajeep said:
Wow, never heard of it. Or seen pictured of it. But can understand why you said Iconic shot.

It's been photographed quite a bit. It was my first time seeing it in person. Let's just say that the photos don't really prepare you for the scale of this place. It's about an 800 foot drop down to the bottom. Pretty amazing and a must see if you are ever within 100 miles of it. Definitely worth the drive.

Jamesaz said:
If you go east on the road towards Kayenta, about a mile before you get to the power plant is the access for antelope canyon. I havent been up there in probably 12-14 years but I believe you need to book ahead now. Anyway, nice shot.

I was in this area specifically to shoot Antelope Valley slot canyons. Horseshoe was part of the itinerary. This trip, we hit Bryce Canyon, Page for Antelope and Horseshoe, then Monument Valley and a pit stop at South Rim Grand Canyon. We camped 2 days at each with the exception of South Rim. That was just one day.

It was my first time at any of these places. I really thought I had level set my expectations but man, did each place far exceed them. Especially Monument Valley. I could spend an entire lifetime photographing that place. Its funny because I thought this would be a "one and done", "check it off my list" type thing but now I realize I need to go back again!!!

Here is a slightly different edit of my shot. I warmed it up a bit. Cleaned up a couple of dust blobs. This is about ready for printing.

I know it's subtle but do you guys prefer the first edit or the second edit, color wise? The second seems closer to how my mind's eye remembers it.

1st Edit

2nd Edit

Jamesaz · Nov 27, 2017

I prefer #1. #2 is more dramatic but I see #1as more realistic/believable. For what it's worth.

Jamesaz · Nov 27, 2017

Oh yeah, if you come back, try to visit Canyon De Chelly. There is much beyond Whitehorse ruins.

SquarePeg · Nov 28, 2017

I like the 2nd one. I have to respectfully disagree with the previous poster who said the first was more realistic looking. The second edit has more of the true colors of sunset, IMO. Either choice is lovely. I know it's probably a trick of the eye because of the mountains not being level and the foreground not being even but this reads to me as ever so slightly tilted to the right and would drive me insane if it was hanging on my wall.

Designer · Nov 28, 2017

Nominated for POTM, November, 2017.

Landscape against landscape! Vote early, and vote often!

kalgra · Nov 28, 2017

I like the 2nd better as well although I would like to see the horizon line leveled up a bit.

anonymouscuban · Nov 28, 2017

kalgra said:
I like the 2nd better as well although I would like to see the horizon line leveled up a bit.

Thats the natural slope of the mountain range that gives impression the horizon is off kilter. My camera was level on the horizontal on my tripod. I am anal about this and check for level multiple times while setting up this shot.

Here is a shot I took a bit earlier that shows the mountain range with more detail.

anonymouscuban · Nov 28, 2017

SquarePeg said:
I like the 2nd one. I have to respectfully disagree with the previous poster who said the first was more realistic looking. The second edit has more of the true colors of sunset, IMO. Either choice is lovely. I know it's probably a trick of the eye because of the mountains not being level and the foreground not being even but this reads to me as ever so slightly tilted to the right and would drive me insane if it was hanging on my wall.

Yeah... it's definitely the mountain range. Check my post above. It didn't bother me at all... Well, not till you two mentioned it. LOL Maybe I will try getting more detail out of the far background a bit so you can see the delineation of the mountains and the true horizon.

Oh... And I am definitely leaning towards the second white balance version.

KmH · Nov 29, 2017

Google Maps

anonymouscuban · Nov 29, 2017

I reworked the image from scratch again. I noticed my previous edit has some noise in the foreground that I fear will show up in print. I also set a custom white balance keyed off of another image of my wife who was wearing a gray jacket in the same set. This looks closer to what my minds eye remembers.

I may still knock down the shadows in the foreground just a tad. The shot looks great on my 27" calibrated iMac retina display but on my dell work displays, the foreground looks a bit too bright. The monitors are not calibrated so I can't really rely on them.

How does it look on your calibrated monitors?