The next image in my year-end lineup includes a human element.  In August, we visited the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah.  Although my “day job” allows for plenty of photography time, my days off to shoot either lie in the heat of summer, or the dead of winter.  Thus, visiting the Escalante in August, was…um…hot.  But it was very worth it.  On our second day there, we decided to visit a feature known as the Golden Cathedral.  Getting there is not really tough–it involves about 5 miles of cross country hiking, but getting there is all downhill.  Plus, once you’re in the floor of the canyon (the last mile) you’re protected from the heat of the day.

We spent about 1 hour shooting in the Cathedral, but my favorite shot to come out of the day was one I took of my friend Brent, who was kind enough to stand still for all 3.2 seconds this exposure took.

Be sure to check out my first two images of 2009 here and here.

Inside the Cathedral, August 2009