Travel: Canyonlands National Park, Part 1: Color

Canyon Pinion – Canyonlands NP, UT – Fujifilm X100F

On the same day that I visited Arches National Park in Utah, I also made it to Canyonlands National Park, which is right around the corner. Even though these two national parks are quite close, they are very much different places. Arches is known for unusual and seemingly impossible rock formations, while Canyonlands, which also has some unusual rock formations, is more known for amazing vistas and seemingly endless canyons.

My visit to Arches was marked by poor midday light. On the other hand, since I arrived at the park entrance about 90 minutes before sunset, I managed to catch Canyonlands under much better late-evening light. Even though I spent twice as much time at Arches National Park, I felt that my best pictures on this trip were captured inside Canyonlands National Park.

Another difference between Arches and Canyonlands is that one park had many tourists and the other had only a few. Canyonlands seemed more open and peaceful, and I felt a deeper connection with this place. I enjoyed Canyonlands immensely, and my biggest regret was not spending more time there.

Canyonlands National Park is huge, and I only did the Island In The Sky tour, which is a small portion of the park. Because my time was limited, I missed out on some great locations within the Island In The Sky quadrant. I imagine that one could spend a few weeks at Canyonlands and not see and experience everything.

My gear was a Fujifilm X100F and Fujifilm X-A3 with a Jupiter 21M lens attached. I used many different film simulations, including Velvia, PRO Neg. Std, PRO Neg. Hi, Astia, and Classic Chrome, but mostly Velvia. All of these are camera-made JPEGs. I think a few of them are worth printing.

I love America’s national parks, and one of my favorites is Canyonlands National Park. It has a peaceful yet draw-dropping beauty that begs you to explore and experience. I’ve never been to the north rim of the Grand Canyon, but I image it to be a similar experience. It’s a place where you can relax, reflect and restore. It’s a great place to photograph. I will return, camera in hand.