Ten years ago, my wife and I drove past the Grand Canyon on our way from Denver to San Diego, and didn't have the time to stop.  We thought 10 years was long enough, so in December we took a spur-of-the-moment trip to the Grand Canyon for New Years Eve.

Here's a brief overview of our trip in photos:

Only one other time have I experienced the vastness of physical space in the natural world - in Yosemite.  Photographing this giant canyon was completely different, and provided specific composition challenges. 

Every part of me wanted to hike down a few hundred feet, to get a different perspective - to get below the rim and the horizon. With a 2 year old asleep in the car, this was not an expedition, so I had to find ways to tell a story where the unforgiving horizontal line was a strength and a feature, not an impediment.

The skies were a special gift that day, adding drama and competing with the massive canyon for my attention.

On the way back home, we took the scenic route through the mountains and Sedona.  It was New Year's Day, and every parking lot and hiking trail head were packed with cars waiting to pounce on hikers returning to their vehicles - so I was only able to shoot a few photos from the roadside (and window of the car!)

And to round out the story of our time on the road, and the beautiful big skies of Arizona at dusk, caught a quick few journey shots:

I love trips like these where I bring my camera along - not just to take photos of my beautiful family and document our journey, but to challenge myself as a photographer with new (and sometimes unfamiliar) subjects, to keep my eye sharp and my mind always learning.