No trip to Arizona would be complete without a visit to the Grand Canyon. If you are lucky, you will be able to spend a week or ten days, the time it will take to visit the South and North rims, explore the inner canyon which is only accessible on foot, by boat or by mule, or even raft the Canyon. At the very least, you need to experience a sunrise and a sunset.

How do you describe the grandeur of the Grand Canyon to someone who has never seen it? Carved out by the Colorado River, at its deepest point it is 6,000 feet deep, and its average width is 10 miles. Over 70 major rapids punctuate the river as it roars through its 2,200-foot descent. Peering at its horizontal rock strata is like reviewing two billion years of geological history. The buttes, outcr, ps and mesas that you see accenting this enormous gorge are really mountains that you are seeing from above. But these are factual statements.

How do you convey the sense of wonder … the human impression of this icon of the world … the ever-changing hue of red, tan, orange and even purple of the canvas before you? In the end, we decide that, rather than try to describe what we see in words (especially since so much has already been written on the subject by others), we will leave it to our cameras to capture the beauty and majesty of this vast and rugged wilderness. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words.

These photographs were taken over a 24-hour period, capturing the sunset and sunrise over the Grand Canyon, as taken from various overlooks along the South Rim.

PHOTOGRAPHIC TIP
We use a tripod, wide-angle (14-24 mm) and medium telephoto lens (70-200) to capture these images. Having located our preferred spot, we set up well before sunset and sunrise and wait until the light provides the shot we want.

IF YOU GO
“Grand Canyon” by Moon Handbooks provides detailed information regarding all aspects of visiting this national monument.

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