On Location Grand Canyon, USA
- Chris O'Shea
- Feb 7, 2020
- 4 min read
Photographing the Grand Canyon - where do you start? My tips on locations to get the best photo-shoot experience and how to be prepared. Other practicalities are also described including tips on accommodation, what to see and how much time you need.
Where to stay?
There is accommodation available in the Grand Canyon Village or within a few miles at Tusayan but you have to book months in advance. There are also options along Highway 64 at Valle but this is a very sparse area with nothing but the basic accommodation. I would recommend Williams, a small town 60 miles south on route 66 . It has great character with plenty of bars and restaurants, shops with route 66 memorabilia and an old gas station Museum. If you checkout Airbnb you should find a number of options around the town at a good price. Highway 64 is a straight road and it takes 1hour approx. to get to the South Rim but its worth it.
The ‘Barrel + Bottle House’ opposite the train station in Williams is an awesome place to eat and comes with a great choice of beers on tap if that’s your thing. Be careful though as we found most eateries close just after 9pm.
Route 66 Memorabilia
Plenty of stores with Route 66 Memorabilia on the high street in Williams
Elvis Storefront
Elvis is alive and well and living in Williams!
How much time?
It really depends on what you want to see and do. We spent 3 days in Williams and in that time we went to the South Rim for two days and then one day relaxing and browsing around the local shops in Williams and visiting the Bearizona drive–through wildlife park. And yes, we saw black bears as well as bisons, wolves, deer, elk, goats and more.
How to get around the Grand Canyon South Rim?
On the first day at the South Rim we first took a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon with Papillon located at the Grand Canyon National Park Airport. Although it was painfully expensive it was a fantastic experience and not to be missed.
There is an excellent transport system around the South Rim with hop-on, hop-off buses running frequently between various stop-off points (no charge -covered in entrance fee). It is possible to drive part of the Kaibab Trail Route with some fantastic vista photo opportunities along the way. We went as far as the Desert View Watchtower. On the next visit we explored the Hermits rest route via the shuttle bus (no access for cars).
How Much is the Admission Does Cost?
Admission to Grand Canyon National Park is for seven days and includes both the North Rim and South Rim. Grand Canyon National Park Vehicle Permit - $35 (U.S. Dollars) admits one single, private, non-commercial vehicle and all its passengers. If you are planning to visit more than one National Park (or federal recreation park) you can save money by purchasing a pass called ‘America the Beautiful Annual Pass’ and it Cost $80 (U.S. Dollars). The North Rim is open from May 15 to October 15 each year due to winter conditions. After October 15, the North Rim is open for day use only until December 1 or the weather conditions close Highway 67.
Photo Tips for the Grand Canyon
The view will ‘take your breath away’ and when trying to capture the scene it is easy to loose a sense of perspective due to the wide visual expanse. In order to capture the scale try to include a feature in the foreground to set as a reference.
Make sure you bring a Polarising filter with you if it is a bright sunny day (as it was for us). The polariser will reduce atmospheric haze and increase the contrast between cloud and sky.
To ensure the photograph is in focus near to far-field (depth-of-field) you need use a small f/stop such as f/16 (corresponds to a wider aperture & lets more light hit the sensor). To understand more about this then google ‘Exposure Triangle’.
Also a wide angle lens will come in useful for wider shots but would also recommend a tripod to enable you to compose and take pre-stitched panoramic shots (see my future blog on Photo-merging). Wait a minute, you are thinking-yet more stuff to cart around! You can get mini-tripods that would serve the purpose without adding too much weight or bulk to your load. There are plenty of walls, rocks, etc where you can stand the mini-tripod and get some great shots. I would recommend the Neewer 20 inches/50 cm Portable Compact Desktop Macro Mini Tripod with 360 Degree Ball Head.
The best photo on the Hermits rest route is on the fourth stop at Hopi point where the Colorado river comes into view. Turn up an hour before sun-set (but be prepared for a long queue on the bus back to the village as this is a very popular time and location). Alternatively the Village is only a 5-10 minute walk!
Hermits Rest was built in 1914 to look like an old miner's cabin, complete with a giant fireplace and front porch. Today Hermits Rest has a gift shop and small snack bar. There are great views from the viewing platform and plenty of trees & rocky outcrops you can include in the foreground of photos to set perspective including spruce and ponderosa pine.
Mather point in the village area gives you a great vista with the viewing area in the foreground.
There are some great views along Desert View Drive with a watchtower at the end of the route.
The majority of the images shown are taken using High Dynamic Range (HDR) Photography (see separate blog on this subject). In terms of post-processing the images, I use Topaz Studio 2 along with a number of filters. The ones I used in order are listed below. I do not necessarily apply the filters to the complete image and use selective masking to apply to the areas I am only interested in. I will write a separate blog on post-processing at a future date.
I hope you found this blog useful. Constructive comments always welcome. Please note the photographic images that appear on this blog are not full/high resolution. High resolution images (plus many others) can be purchased as professional quality prints or mounted on various media through my on-line shop.
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