Blind Salsa Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

Continuing from previous posts from Monument Valley.......
We met our Navajo Guide again about 4pm and he took us into Mystery Valley, adjacent to Monument Valley, and which is also part of the Navajo Reservation, but not accessible without a guide. There are more examples of ancient pueblo dwellings and huge arches.

Our final stop in the valley after 6pm was this unusual rock formation you can see at the bottom of this image. Its name is Blind Salsa, from where you can see many of the buttes in Monument Valley. I had to climb the rock to take this view. I have a view of Blind Salsa taken from the bottom at an angle of 90° so you can see roughly where I stood and also see by the shadows that the sun was very low. On this image the sun was almost directly behind me.

I don't think there's a location for Mystery Valley so I have placed this in Monument Valley. (After all you can see it from here)

ISO100, FL 82mm

Floydian, janusz2054, snunney, besnard, ChrisJ, carper, jlbrthnn, Photo65Net, Cricri, plimrn, fulvio52, cherryripe, Graal, Wandering_Dan, Sistercosmo, Gerrit, shevchenko, cbrman, PixelTerror, pasternak, Royaldevon, ktanska, JCG, chrisnet, Atousa, saylan-cb, papagolf21, josepmarin, riclopes, Didi, Emile, Kielia, stego, axiotea, guillaumejm, avene, Bruno40 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

dta (6145) 2009-01-19 2:01

Hello KAth ,
Wow ! This one is magic . It seems to be in 3D . What a depth in this picture ! An d the clarity is outstanding .
Congratulations
Denis

yquem46 (8449) 2009-01-19 2:14

I did not know this rock as the foreground. It's not the one we usually see and it changes a little bit of the one at the entrance of MV.
What a place anyway
beautiful colors and light Kath
Regards
Patrick

Floydian (30970) 2009-01-19 2:18

Hello Kath,

Trying to impress me with all these MV pictures? ;-)
Well you do, because this is really a great series of pictures you present here. Again from an area we can't go on our own. Very clever people those Navajo's, they know exactly were the best spots are and the only chance going there is through a local guide.
Beautiful those dishes in front, but also those lines in front of them. The buttes on both sides in the back and on top great cloud formations. Lucky you....you really had perfect weather conditions here taking full advantage of the location. Although the organised trips are pretty expensive, it's worth every penny seeing the results.

Have a nice day,

Henk

[2] +

janusz2054 (947) 2009-01-19 2:22

Hello Kath
This view is simply amazing, I love these rocks.
Very good captured, colours and contrast with the sky. Beautiful composition.
Regards
Janusz

stevesaba (3974) 2009-01-19 2:24

Hi Kath!
Wow! Great four-corners photos. This one is a lovely representation of monument valley, with wonderful foreground. Great colors all around!! Nice work, cheers,
Steve

mkamionka (4968) 2009-01-19 2:28

Fantastic foreground for this spectacular panorama.
Congratulations,
M

snunney (35476) 2009-01-19 2:29

Hello Kath,
A superbly composed image. The rich deep reds of the foreground rocks are magnificent and make an excellent contrast with the desert area beyond. I expect to see John Wayne and his merry men come riding up at any moment :-) Thanks for sharing this presentation.

besnard (31072) 2009-01-19 2:52

Bonjour Kath
Un superbe cliché de ce site mythique avec des couleurs bien saturées. C'est de l'excellent travail et tu me rappelles la superbe journée que j'ai passée dans ce lieu.
Merci pour le partage et bonne journée.
Nicole

ChrisJ (70443) 2009-01-19 2:58

Hi Kath

Wow! I am going to have to return to the US! A marvellous warm, cold color contrast, etween the red rock & blue sky. Good sharpness, & a well composed landscape. Tfs!

carper (65696) 2009-01-19 3:14

wauw marvelous place,
what a fantastic colors Kath, a good landscape shot, fine balance and a super quality job, I like it, have a nice day.
regard jaap

Photo65Net (43096) 2009-01-19 3:29

Hello Kath,
Amazing shot !
The FG curves are superb, with their hot color... I like too, of course, the landscape... A great one !
Have a nice day,
JB.

jlbrthnn (38971) 2009-01-19 3:31

Hello Kath,
It is a fantastic, single spectacle! The rocks of the foreground to the so astonishing forms and texture, transfer us onto another planet. Excellent image with much of depth. Cheer.
Have a nice day.
Cordially.
JOël

mortijo (12412) 2009-01-19 3:57

Excellent light and great clarity. A phantastic POV. Thank you for taking me along on this unique trip.
Regards
John

MiguelP (14336) 2009-01-19 3:58

THis is one of the part of the world that I truly look forward to visit. Epic image, Kath, reminds me to the old John Ford´s movies, many of them shot around the landscape you show us. You were lucky with the light and the clouds. Nice One.

npecanhuk (14718) 2009-01-19 4:06

Hello Kath!
Wonderful picture!
Brightness, sharpness, pov and composition are all excellent!
The landscape is awesome and you knew just exactly what to do to show it to all of us in a extremely nice way!
I just love the shapes, colors and graphical design of those rocks in the fg! The wide and wild background is also a real thrill in here!
TFS - Congratulations!
My warmest regards,
Neyvan

gilou530 (35700) 2009-01-19 6:16

salut kath
un paysage grandiose aux couleurs flamboyantes, une grosse profondeur dans ce cadrage et la roche du premier plan nous laisse admirer la beauté que la nature a sculpter avec le temps, beau travail
amitiés
gilbert

Cricri (43762) 2009-01-19 7:44

Hi Kath
Un avant plan de ces incroyable et magnifique rochers attirent sans aucun doute le regard, par ses couleurs et sa texture, bien sur l'arriére plan de manque surement pas intérêt non plus,le WS me plait beaucoup aussi
Friendship
cricri

Dyerco (9304) 2009-01-19 8:30

Hi Kath
What a marvellous FG and one I have never seen before. I am surprised that they let people climb up on these lovely formations however the image is really quite unique. The swirls in the FG rocks are complimented by the upright formations of the monuments.
Phil

plimrn (19720) 2009-01-19 8:47

Hi Kath,
The WS is a splendid photo, great framing, colors and detail...until you compare it with this one with a classic MV view with that bank of white clouds that serves as a stunning background for the intense detail and color of the rocks. I can imagine their formation at the bottom of sea. another stunner!!
HLJ, Pat

mark_mk (246) 2009-01-19 8:58

Hi Kath,
I hope your MV series won`t be over too early, all your images from there are high class and this one`s no exception! The rocks in teh foreground and the lone tree look great, nice idea to include them in the composition. A image straight out of a western movie, great!

Take care
Mark

fulvio52 (8314) 2009-01-19 9:27

Hi, Kath.
Yes, it's undeniable you seem to feel totally at home, both at Monument Valley AND with its light. One of the strongest, wildest, and unruliest in The West... and just look at this beauty you came up once again with! A masterful display of lighting and colors, a striking perspective, and a view that seems to never end... Which brings me back to what I've always thought about Utah : it's a state of mind. You either get it or you don't, that's what makes the whole difference when photographing it. The Tour? Expensive but worth every cent judging from the results, I'm impressed! Thanks for sharing, I just got home from work so... I'm gonna catch up with y'all in a little while. Have a nice evening, see ya later.
Fulvio.

cherryripe (19187) 2009-01-19 9:53

Hi Kath
These rocks in the foreground are stunning with their intricate patterns and how the sun brings out the rich red/orange tones. The landscape in the background is impressive too.
Regards
Nikki

Graal (58732) 2009-01-19 10:05

Hi Kath,
great serie, fantastic journey You had in US. Here superb quality and composition of photo. Amazing wild nature. I like it a lot.
Gr., Aleksander

marietom (32076) 2009-01-19 10:23

hello Kath,

Magnifique paysage, très bien composé, avec de belles couleurs. J'aime beaucoup les roches de ce premier plan.
Bonne soirée
Marie

sacavem (8523) 2009-01-19 12:03

Olá Kath,

Big deepness and excellent foreground.This is a very amazing image, with great colors and a superb definition. Congratulations dear friend.

Well done. Best wishes.
Filipe

UlfE (9180) 2009-01-19 12:44

Hi Kath,

A marvelous shot. The DOF is very, very impressive and the colours wonderful. The composition is superb. TFS and have a nice evening!

Cheers,

Ulf

Wandering_Dan (3293) 2009-01-19 12:52

Hi, Kath -

My first thought on seeing this was: Cow patties from outer space! Incredible DOF on this, every bit is crisp - and it needs to be. The shrub on the right nicely keeps the scene from being overly balanced. I could have done without the blocky shadow from the left, but one can't have everything.

Best,
Dan

al-Farrob (683) 2009-01-19 13:26

Very interesting and beautiful.
Thanks for sharing

Sistercosmo (2691) 2009-01-19 15:08

Hi Kath,
what a wonderful shot! I like the WS photo just as well. Great choice of pov and excellent colors. This one is more of the classic, but the WS is different and fantastic in its own right. Ah, I want to get back to the West US soon!
Thanks and take good care,
Linda

Gerrit (36287) 2009-01-19 15:36

Hi Kath,
what a surprising foreground to this classic view. The erosiun curves are really amazing.
Excellent photo.
Regards, Gerrit

shevchenko (10072) 2009-01-19 18:40

Hello Kath,
I think is not easy discover on this district without some guides, you are very lucky to meet a tour guide who know the way to this area. Good pov to show different geological feature between foreground, background and plain at the middle, detail to show foreground canyon's eroded surface, good sharpness, well done.
Ally

cbrman (19051) 2009-01-19 21:48

Hello Kath,

L'avant plan est superbe et captivant ! Ces cercles de pierres sont réellement magnifique. Ils créent de très bon centre d'intérêt dans cette image. L'arrière plan est grandiose.
Une très belle image.

A+

Dominique

PixelTerror (86853) 2009-01-19 22:08

HI Kath,
Only detail I miss here is Clint Eastwood on his horse... For the rest the landscape us truely spectacular and this pov with two rising areas separated by the flat terrain allows for a great depth.
Have a nice day jY

pasternak (13650) 2009-01-20 1:07

The WS version has less depth but truly excellent light, so I guess i prefer it again, though both photographs are stunning with such unbelievable shapes and colours of the rocks...

Cheers
A

Royaldevon (5944) 2009-01-20 3:41

Utterly unbelievable, Kath.
This shot is pure magic!
Several frizbies sent from outer space, and detailing the scrape marks as they landed.
This as a f/g with such a magnificent b/g just has me open mouthed!
Perfect dof to capture every tiny detail!
Well done!
This has to go into my favourites store!

Kind regards,
Bev :-)

ktanska (16695) 2009-01-20 3:48

Hi Kath,
You have magnificient series of dry west of USA. Round forms of foreground give a good contrast on more rough edges of those famous 'monuments'. And that red stone is really glowing on afternoon sun.
Kari

delkoo (34792) 2009-01-20 4:06

hi kath,
Interesting image with a very well observed POV.

the picture is really beautiful and nicely shows the atmosphere!! Best regards

didier

coco (28130) 2009-01-20 5:28

Hi Kath.

I like very much how you shot this landscape. The light was your main point and, of course, this great place.

WEll done.

xuaxo (5835) 2009-01-20 6:43

Hi Kath
Outstanding place and amazing photos you did.
The more I see, the less words I have.
I like also the WS, of course.
Greetings
F.

baba_flies (8099) 2009-01-20 6:47

Hello Kath! This one knocks me out, it is one of THE pictures that clearly stand out from a lot I have seen on planet TE. It could be shown in any travel magazine. No kidding :))) The stone in the foreground is just something, magic I would say, and the perfect entrance into the wide open space. What a brilliant composition. I have been to MV in winter (early December), I can only recommend it as another experience as well, it is beyond, like your picture! Wow ... Barbara.

gunbud (28163) 2009-01-20 8:32

Hi Kath,
Another outstanding composition from the American Southwest!
Love the swirling texture of the foreground rocks and the vast empty plain before reaching the magnificent distant bluffs.
Beautiful natural colors and a lovely cloud pattern in the blue sky background.
Regards, Tom

JCG (25753) 2009-01-20 9:12

Hi Kath,

It misses nothing any more but John Wayne on his horse to supplement this superb landscape !!! A beautiful impression of space here. Your series on the United States is extraordinary and I have just seen your personal site to see the other photographs, a true pleasure. I like much the pictures on Snake River and Maroon lake. That beautiful memories, thank you Kath.

With all my friendships and a very good evening,

Jean-Charles

robiuk (10763) 2009-01-20 10:12

Another amazing feature of the valley, Kath. It really
looks strange, this composition - upper half showing us
the valley we know with its buttes, and then here it comes
the bottom part with this amazing formation in extremely
bold & warm colour, reflecting the low sunrays...
... what to say but - spectacular!
Cheers,
Robi

chrisnet (20376) 2009-01-20 11:56

Hello Kath,
Very nice and impressive landscape, I like the frame with these curious orange rocks in the foreground, it's really a beautiful view of the valley.
Best regards
Christian

emka (22357) 2009-01-20 23:23

Hi Kath, splendid photo of the Navajo country. It is a pity we do not see here the horseman or the stagecoach. Some In dians would be also nice here. Unusual rock formation. I regret we didnot went with the guide. Magical picture, tfs.

Regards

Malgorzata

Waylim (11157) 2009-01-20 23:57

Kath,
Wow, another excellent POV here, wonderful colors as usual and the inclusion of the foreground adds much depth and demension to the image. Good DoF, both foreground and distant buttes are sharpe and well defined. Fantastic sky with mostly blue uptop and cloud seem to be moving in. Simply beautiful.
Way

John_F_Kennedy (31994) 2009-01-21 2:22

Breath-taking view of this rocks. I like much the framing withn the red rocks in the FG. A beautiful place. Well done.
Best wishes,
Achim

Atousa (3466) 2009-01-21 2:37

Salam Kath,

Very interesting rock formation n good use of it as a strong FG.. great sense of depth n lighting .. an appealing shot ; both this one n the other in the WS..thanks for sharing.
Best regards, A

saylan-cb (12726) 2009-01-21 4:03

Hi Kath,
A very nice foreground with natural colours and a beautiful capture.I like this rocks...
Excellent work!
TFS/Regards

papagolf21 (56749) 2009-01-21 4:11

Bonjour, chère Kath,
L'on a du mal à croire que pareil paysage existe ! la preuve en est pourtant donnée à travers cette magnifique réalisation. Ah ! quel bonheur de voyager de la sorte à travers tes albums.
Mille mercis !
Amitiés.
Philippe

josepmarin (34107) 2009-01-21 6:53

Hello Kath,
the depth of this image is magnificent!
I like your framing and the way of organizing the composition, in which this impressive landscape contributes its great beauty and an excellent graphism.
The amazing rocks in foreground and the great light they help to obtain a beautiful photo.
Best wishes,
Josep

Bluejeans (33081) 2009-01-21 11:47

Ola Kath ,
Estas tua foto do Monument valey são lindas com umas cores magnificas , um belo contraste entre si, gostei muito da paisagem de fundo , parabéns!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

riclopes (33135) 2009-01-22 2:21

Wow, I was already writing a critic saying how I prefer the WS of your last post, when I decided to check out your previous posts and got stuck with this amazing one. The ws is no less impressive in colors and textures but the view here is fantastic with the 'skyscrappers' in the distance. These 'discs' make a great FG ready to fly over the valley. Gorgeous place.
ric

Didi (36452) 2009-01-22 3:18

Hi wild Kath :)
Very nice and deep foreground and an interesting contrast with this marvellous view.
Cheers

Tobias__Ortmann (2591) 2009-01-22 9:11

Hi kath,
also a very nice picture you brought with you from your america trip
great compostion and clarity
wonderfull colours and contrast
best regards Toba

Emile (20127) 2009-01-22 10:24

Hola Kath.
Superb composition, striking view of the unusual rocks formation in the foreground captured with the beautiful buttes in both sides in the background, I would say the Navajo guide took you there at the right time to have this excellent light. Thank you for showing us these amazing shots of MV.
Best wishes.

jmcl (14149) 2009-01-22 18:30

HI Kath,

Striking image .. the massive background against the vibrant background is a tremendous and unique contrast .. incredible vastness .. again wonderful and unique foreground .. wonderful trip. very nice. take care, John

Kielia (8735) 2009-01-23 7:08

Hi Kath,
your beautiful impressions are really indulging our senses! And here your are presenting us two of the most magical images from your journey. From my point of view the photo in WS is even more interesting than the original. Congratulation!
Warm regards
Harriet

stego (22478) 2009-01-23 17:58

Hi Kath,

Another one that makes me speechless... Isn't it difficult to go crazy with such stunningly photogenic place? By looking at this wide panoramic it's easy to understand the fascination that this place provokes on so much photographers. We can see so many motifs for great photos here... But you achieved a masterful compo putting all of them together!

I guess I don't need to say anything about the WS... :-)

Regards, José.

kiks (6149) 2009-01-24 13:44

Great POV you choose, Kath. I love the light and contrast of colors. Great work.
Best regards
KIKs

Angshu (34119) 2009-01-24 23:07

Hello Kath
From your WS I get a good wider view of the place, especially of the buttes. Pure natural beauty, created by wind erosion & possibly water as well. The more famous outcrops of the monument valley are in the BG, framing the FG buttes well. Fine set of posts!
Best Regards
Angshu

ahmetgedikli (22128) 2009-01-25 3:10

Hi Kath,
Great composition and POV... Very nice colours and sharpness. Excellent light too... Well done.
Have a good sunday.
Ahmet

axiotea (16293) 2009-01-25 8:08

Hello Kath
Difficult to say which version I do like better! both of it are anyway fantastic showing unusual landscape (to me).
Here, the light in FG enhanced well the details of these beautiful rock formation which lead nicely the eye to the mesas in the distance. The clouds are also a nice detail to look!
Marilyn

guillaumejm (30) 2009-01-30 12:57

Hello kath
Great post. Also the WS is beautifull. Here contrast between forground and background is amazing.
Warm regards
JMarc

avene (11140) 2009-03-05 14:53

hi Kath,
this cannot be real, can it? I mean, the saturated orange colour and cookie (or mushroom) shapes are too good to be true :) love the shot, and how the bizarre formations in the background add to the surreal feeling. I MUST go there, I MUST, I MUST, I MUST... :)

regards,
Kristine

Bruno40 (6442) 2009-03-12 5:53

Hi Kath,
A place I must visit before I die, I like the combo of the fg and bg, and of course the colors.
well done
Jorge

toni_al (15476) 2009-09-05 6:57

Salut Kath
Superbe endroit. L'arizona est très belle et cet endroit the Best. Merci pour avoir conseillé a Nikki de prendre une voiture et non un RV c'etait le bon choix.
Best regards
Toni