21st Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Upper Antelope Canyon, Arizona

Thousands of visitors come to Upper Antelope Canyon each year. Visitors can enter the canyon only as part of a tour group led by a local guide. Because the canyon is very narrow and fairly short, it can become quite crowded especially during mid-day when the light is the brightest and in summer when mid-day sunbeams pierce the canyon. The crowds can make capturing images without people in them difficult. So I visited on a winter morning just after sunrise; there were only two groups in the entire canyon. The downside of coming on an early winter morning was that it was very dark in much of the canyon necessitating relatively slow, hand-held exposures (no tripods are allowed in the canyon). The temperature was also slightly above freezing. Each visitor was also given a minute or two at most to photograph in any one location inside the canyon in order to keep tour groups moving. The post-dawn darkness, cold, and limited time made photographing quite challenging.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 12.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2023
Photo Location: Page, Arizona, United States of America
Camera: Canon EOS R5
Copyright: © William Sisson