Arches and Canyonlands Trip Report - Tom Bol Photo Workshops

November in the Utah Desert

Our Arches and Canyonlands Workshop was planned for November to photograph when the park is less crowded. An added advantage of our timing was that we had interesting atmospherics for our landscape photography.

The day before we arrived, the LaSal Mountains were dusted with new snow. This added a beautiful backdrop with pink alpenglow to our photo session at the Garden of Eden.

Mike in golden light at dusk in Arches NP
Dave enjoying our afternoon shoot
Ellie getting a low perspective at Balanced Rock

Night Photography

We photographed Balanced Rock in warm afternoon light and then returned after dinner for a star shoot. With early sunset in November, it made it very easy to return to the park and set up with the galaxy right above the formation.

Jerry and Deb enjoying the afternoon light
Photographing Balanced rock after dark

Long Exposure Landscapes

We had consistent winds and cloudy skies for the next few days. This was the perfect condition to use ND filters with long shutter speeds. Several people tried them for the first time on this workshop with dramatic results at Landscape Arch.

ND filters to stretch the clouds
Getting creative at South Window

Let it Snow

On day 3 the snow returned and provided another dusting of snow for our background. We headed to Castle Valley to take advantage of bright yellow Cottonwoods in front of towering sandstone buttes.

Photographing Double Arch in snowfall
Randall enjoying some cooler weather
Lisa dressed for the weather

Canyonlands National Park

A dusting of snow in Canyonlands created more interesting foregrounds as we worked on landscapes with forced perspectives. We ended the workshop with a perfectly sunny morning at Mesa Arch.

Mesa Arch at sunrise

A big thank you to all 10 photographers who joined us on our 2024 Arches and Canyonlands Workshop. Want to join us on a workshop in 2025? A few spaces have just opened:

Bosque and White Sands National Park December 4-8, 2024 Read more

Costa Rica Rainforest March 22-29, 2025 Read more

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