Dropping off the steep decline of Cedar Mesa, which itself is an amazing piece of geological handiwork, you come upon the narrow valley of Comb Wash appearing as an oasis. However, rising up as the east flank of the wash, the spectacle of Comb Ridge, an 80-mile-long monocline, the surface expression of a very deep fault line, seems like an impenetrable barrier of awesomely beautiful rock topped by a mass of extensively-spread Navajo Sandstone. The wash itself is just the erosional debris from the mesa to the west and the ridge to the east: beauty spread before the almost disbelieving eye. I wanted to emphasize the lines and the colors, highlighted by the approaching storm, so I placed myself on the lower edge of the mesa at a shallow angle to the wash and the ridge, leaving the bottom of the mesa as an anchor on the lower right corner. The sun broke through the cloudmass in the west, lighting the face of the near portion of the ridge, emphasizing the contrast even more. A focal length of 52mm gave me the angle of view I wanted, which allowed me to really showcase the massiveness of the ridge and the expansiveness of the wash. An aperture of f/20 provided depth-of-field; and a shutter speed of 1/10th second at ISO 100 gave me an overall medium exposure.
I’m sad we are not with you for this trip. :~(
Beautiful. I love this.
I’m recovering from a knee replacement, so I was looking around for a book to help pass the time. By chance I picked up Zane Gray’s “Riders of the Purple Sage”, which is set in just this region of southern Utah. Gray’s wonderful, evocative descriptions of the landscape fit well with your photograph. I hope you’ll post more from the region, especially more “intimate landscapes”
It is amazing that you can still find the massive scenes that seem to be untouched by bulldozers, dynamite or the internet. There are no cell towers, or contrails in site. This is just how mother nature and father time planned. The incoming storm is creating great lighting and contrast to show it off. Thanks for seeing it, capturing it and sharing.
Good evening Everyone. Thank you all for joining me for this Image. Judy Cummings, we have surely missed having you and Bill with us. It has been a wonderful journey thus far and seems like it will continue to be so. You would love all of the new places we have found. Thank you, Jessyca, it’s good to hear from you and to know that this image has resonated with you. Comb Ridge is, in my mind, one of the under appreciated beautiful places in the Southwest. Joel, it’s good to hear from you. I trust that your recovery is going well. I will see what I can do about using some intimate landscapes from this adventure. You would love it here and Zane Gray’s would ring in your ears. Be well and continue your good healing. Hi Nancy T., it’s always good to have you with me. You’re right, there are so many of the beautiful places here already scarred by power lines and mining/drilling activities that large landscapes can indeed be a challenge. There is actually a campground hidden among the cottonwoods in this image. Thankfully the foliage obscured its presence. The light, as you mention, was truly exquisite. I was very excited when we dropped off the mesa and encountered it. Thanks for your thoughtful observations. I hope you all will join me as the adventure continues.