Kirk Gulledge  

Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona by Kirk Gulledge

February 2025 - Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona

About the Image(s)

This is another shot from the American Southwest, this time from Lower Antelope Canyon in northern Arizona. This is probably one of the most photographed canyons in the southwest, but there are unlimited fascinating angles within the slot canyon, and I've been there three times to take pictures. This particular angle is looking straight up at the sky through the upper slot in the canyon. It helps to show the curving walls and variety of colors you find in Antelope Canyon. I took it handheld with my Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 bridge camera at 25mm, F/8 at 1/100th sec, ISO 125. About the only post-processing was lighting up the shadows and sharpening it a bit. I also used NIK color Efex to slightly increase the color saturation. It's an amazing place to visit that I'd recommend to anyone who is in that area.

6 comments posted

Pierre Williot   Pierre Williot
Wow.... this capture is really nice with plays on colors, light and shadows, curved lines....
Some details are missing on the right and left. I took the liberty of "tweaking" your image a little bit by decreasing the shadows, decreasing the highlights and the "whites", and slightly decreasing the "blacks" to bring these details back.
Another keeper!
  Posted: 02/15/2025 16:47:04
Comment Image
Kirk Gulledge   Kirk Gulledge
Thanks, Pierre. When I took this picture it was really dark to bring out the sky. I took it in RAW and the brightened the shadows to show the walls of the canyon. I agree that the walls needed a bit more lightening, and your tweaking really helped.   Posted: 02/18/2025 17:19:40
Geoff Wiggins   Geoff Wiggins
Love this canyon. Years ago when I was visiting the Grand Canyon I had no idea how close we were to the magnificent cannon that you photographed. You have done it proud great pic Kirk. Lighting, exposure all worked well. It is interesting that you were able to balance the sky light outside with the lighting inside the cannon. Colours just great well done.   Posted: 02/15/2025 23:07:06
Kirk Gulledge   Kirk Gulledge
thanks so much, Geoff! One of the main challenges to taking pictures in the Antelope canyon is that you have to keep moving with tour group- very little time to stop and compose pictures. This is the best of a number of shots I tried to take quickly with the hopes of improving it later in post. I wish they had some slower paced photographic tours of Antelope- the opportunities for interesting images there are just unlimited.
  Posted: 02/18/2025 17:23:24
Frans Gunterus   Frans Gunterus
Hi Kirk. I love to see your picture. It brings back my golden memory in 2016 when my daughter give me a Christmas present ... A trip to Page Arizona for Antelope Canyon ... She bought me a ticket for guided photography tour. I agree with Pierre. Editing Antelope Canyon images is a bit tricky. It looks simple, but, Greg Benz introduce how 'partial adjustment' using luminosity mask can make the stone looks more 'alive'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNqQdi5iAU4&t=19s

I saw a bit of chromatic aberration which be easily removed in PS.   Posted: 02/16/2025 03:35:06
Kirk Gulledge   Kirk Gulledge
Thanks, Frans!
I really enjoyed the information in the video you attached. I have never used luminosity masks, but I can see that I need to get familiar with them. I'm glad to know you found a Photography tour of Antelope: I tried to find such a tour when we were there, but it didn't seem to be available. They had such a demand for regular tours that they were starting them every 15 minutes, and they really pushed us along (all 3 times I visited). Maybe there will be another opportunity for a slower paced tour in the future.
  Posted: 02/18/2025 17:36:19

 

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