An Evening at Delicate Arch

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I knew for quite some time that I wanted to go to Moab, UT and visit Arches National Park but kept putting it off for one reason or another. On the evening July 11 2011 with my sweetheart Sharie by my side we arrived at Arches National Park after a solid two day drive from British Columbia.
I have no clue what the temperature was (HOT) but when you combine this with the 7,200 foot elevation change from the previous morning it was a surprise to my system. Packing what felt like a small truck load of camera gear up the two mile hike was a reminder that I need to respect the heat and pace myself.

The following photos are a few of the keepers from the four hours that we spent up at the arch.
It's definately time to go back again!

When we arrived at the top I was happy to just sit back and relax. The view was amazing but I was surprised at the number of people that had also made the hike.

Just a few of the people that were around the bowl/ rim to view the Delicate arch.

As the sun fell below the horizon the majority of the visitors made there way back along the trail to hike back down before it was dark.

One of my personal favorite photo. Not only from this trip but overall.
Prints available

Having seen hundreds of photos from around the Delicate Arch I wanted to come away with a few shots of this icon or trophy location that was an original composition that showed the arch in a new way. I feel this is that shot and like how this angle allows the viewer some sense of scale that is hard to achieve without a person in the photograph.

Sharie brought along a lantern and we both had thought that we would be the only people that would stay after dark. Much to my surprise there were quite a number of people that hung round long after the sun went down.

I wanted to try some light painting and see if I could produce a unique dark sky image unlike anything think I had seen previously. Once the after glow from the sun was gone nearly everyone had left the bowl but there was one guy that I overheard talking about light painting. Imagine my surprise finding someone planning to light paint the arch too. This is where I met name of Michael Portaro from MP2 Photography (http://www.mp2photography.com)

This is my final shot of the night and one of my earliest milky way photographs. Though Sharie had brought a battery powered lantern along and I had planned to make this shot I owe a huge amount of thanks to Michael for making this image possible. Without his light source I would not have had enough light to paint this image effectively.
Prints available

Before shooting this image I can not recall ever seeing an image of the milky way behind the delicate arch. Though it's quite a common image today I was really happy to come away with this beauty and have something that was unique... even if it was only have a short while ;-)

I have two of the above images available on my website at http://www.uniquecaptures.com/

Thanks for checking out my shots.