The Flickr Alongutahstateroute211 Image Generatr

As I'd begun to plan this trip with the many stops at national parks and monuments, a co-worker had mentioned this as a place worthy of a stop. For this image, I focused on one section that seemed to be covered from edge to edge with stories and art. I felt that that best captured the idea for this monument. Anyone could then image all the stories and history being written and told...

With another image at this point, I'd pulled back on the focal length as I'd wanted to capture a wider angle view that one typically see when wide-eye. Here I zoomed in to focus on this one tree. I decided to keep it to the left for a number of reasons. One was the road right next to it. Another was to have it as something of a frame an anchor to catch the eye. The eyes would then be lead off to the far off mesas. The color contrasts would also add another element to the image with the yellows and greens in the bottom of the image to the browns and reds of the mesas. The blue skies above would then be the final color contrast to complete the image and setting along the Indian Creek Corridor Scenic Byway.

I decided to zoom in with the focal length and capture this view looking across the valley between mesas. While shadows were cast across this valley, mesas off in the distance were bathed in the light of the early morning sun.

A roadside pulloff along Utah State Route 211 with a view looking to the south to awe inspiring views of mesas and buttes in this open valley along the Indian Creek Corridor. Talking with some people in Canyonlands National Park, I was made aware that this area is what was designated as part of Bears Ears National Monument...truly a beautiful view to take in and hopefully to remain with this designation. This area is currently under the BLM and the prominent mesa in the image is a Wilderness Study Area.

So having discussed what this area is, how did I capture it? I used a technique I've come to depend on with many landscape image and a wide angle view. I just angle my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward and include more of the foreground to let the eye sweep across until it comes across the prominent setting I wanted the image to focus. With the image itself, I did some adjustments in Capture NX2 with color and contrast and then exported a TIFF image to use in NIK CEP 4. I found a Sunlight filter best enhanced this setting and brought out a better complement of hues and colors with browns and reds on the mesa walls.

A view looking to the north at a roadside pulloff while driving along the Indian Creek Corridor Scenic Byway on my Way to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. To that this was an amazing and inspiring view might be an understatement! A wide open canyon and valley with towering mesas with their high cliff walls all around. It's one thing to see high mesas like this and be taken in with the view; it's another to capture it with those same views and not have them flattened out, especially with a wide angle view. So I angled my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward including some of the nearby foreground still caught in the shadows. After some adjustment work with contrast and colors, I cropped a portion of the foreground and blue skies above for a more panoramic look to the final image.

So there I was enjoying this scenic drive, having just left Canyonlands National Park after many a mile of hiking and walking, and was on my way to Moab for the evening. And yes, most definitely a location to pulloff along the highway to take in and savor the amazing view! This is along the Indian Creek Corridor in an area previously designated at Bears Ears National Monument. The view is looking to the south with Titus Canyon just a little ways off in the distance. All around where the changing color of tree leaves with their displays of yellow and greens showing Autumn almost here.

For the image captured, I once again angled my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward capturing some nearby foreground with its small bushes and trees. The eye would then lead to the canyon created between the towering mesa walls all around before seemingly becoming wide eyed to take in the full setting. I found that this downward angling also helped to minimize the flattening with a wider angle view. I later used some CEP filters in Capture NX2 (Low Key, Polarization and Graduated Neutral Density) which seemed to best complement the look with the sunlight in the mid-afternoon hours.

A conversion to black & white using Silver Efex Pro 2 where I used some paper toning with a Tin Type recipe to bring out this older faded image with an American West type feel. I later adjusted some color filters to bring out a much richer tonal contrast for the final image.