Mesa Arch, Canyonlands National Park, Utah, 2006 photo

Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Eighteen: Light and Landscape – combining personal vision with nature’s gifts > Mesa Arch, Canyonlands National Park, Utah, 2006

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22-SEP-2006

Mesa Arch, Canyonlands National Park, Utah, 2006

Very few images of this famous arch only show half of its bottom half. Most predictably show the entire arch framing the canyon below. I wanted to stress the warmth of the reflected sunlight on the underside of the arch, and use it as a counterforce to the curving side of the mesa below it, so I include only about one quarter of the famous arch in this image. The view of the canyon completes the image.

Leica D-Lux 2
1/500s f/5.6 at 6.3mm iso80 hide exif

Full EXIF Info
Date/Time	22-Sep-2006 09:45:03
Make	Leica
Model	D-LUX2
Flash Used	No
Focal Length	6.3 mm
Exposure Time	1/500 sec
Aperture	f/5.6
ISO Equivalent	80
Exposure Bias	-0.33
White Balance
Metering Mode	multi spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Program	program (2)
Focus Distance

other sizes: small medium large original auto

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Phil Douglis		26-Nov-2006 19:32
Ai Li has a wonderful way of expressing the effect of an image -- her insights are eloquent and meaningful.

david procter		26-Nov-2006 06:43
Beautifully said AiLi!

Phil Douglis		19-Nov-2006 01:05
Good point, Ai Li. The frame is like a hand over the eyes, allowing us to peer into the canyon below. And yes, it is unconventional -- I try to be as unconventional as I can in not only my framing, but also in terms of vantage point.

AL		18-Nov-2006 15:31
Unconventional framing, the way you like to work well :-). Felt as if the arch was a hand, shielding from the warm sunlight and peeking at the beautiful canyon beyond.

Phil Douglis		31-Oct-2006 17:23
Hi, Danny -- thanks for the comment. Be sure to go to Mesa Arch in the morning -- the earlier the better. That's when you get the glow on the inside of the arch.

Guest		31-Oct-2006 11:54
I was there last March. What a spectacular place! Hope to go back again in 2007. I will make a point to get to this place. This shot has that special quality which makes the viewer suck in a deep breath! Its truly a framer! My VOTE!

Phil Douglis		30-Oct-2006 19:39
Thanks, David and H.L, for your comments. Mesa Arch itself was worth the trip to Canyonlands, about an hour from Moab. You have to hike a mile from the parking lot to get to it, but the glowing arch justifies the effort.

Guest		30-Oct-2006 14:14
Wonderful color frame. V !

david procter		30-Oct-2006 09:44
Wow! A real surprise for the eyes arriving here via Tim's shot of you. Breathtaking.

Phil Douglis		30-Oct-2006 05:40
Yes, Carol, I had to crouch for this one as well. but it was worth it. This was my favorite shot from Canyonlands -- a vast and often foreboding park. The glow in that rock was a good antidote to the barren canyon below.

Carol E Sandgren		30-Oct-2006 04:06
Well it was worth crouching for! The warmth from close up looking at the cold, vast landscape beyond. We don't want to go there but it is good to look at from a comfortable place, and makes the warmth of where we are so much more apparent. I love this!

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