Monument Valley provides perhaps the most enduring and definitive images of the American West. The isolated red mesas, red rock buttes and spires rising hundreds of feet into a boundless blue sky surrounded by empty, sandy desert have been filmed and photographed countless times over the years. The landscape appears just as it does in the countless movies, photographs and television commercials. As a result, Monument Valley has become an icon of the Old West.
It's no wonder that the valley is one of the West's most photographed natural wonders. This land of red sandstone can take a visitor's - and moviegoer's - breath away. The towers, with names like the West Mitten, Gray Whiskers, Elephant and Three Sisters, drew the attention of director John Ford, who featured them in the several John Wayne westerns. They also have played a part in the more recent movies, including Forrest Gump.
Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon are small but exquisitely beautiful geological formations in Northern Arizona. The sandstone bedrock has been intricately carved by the infrequent but often violent flow of water. It is sculpted into beautiful undulating curves and hollows that vary from one to three meters wide by up to fifty meters deep. The sunlight filtering down from above produces a myriad of soft colors and shadows. The effect is exquisitely beautiful.
Participants arrive in Page, Arizona in the morning (or previous evening). We will begin after lunch with the first group meeting and workshop orientation, detailing the shooting locations. We then depart to head to our first location, Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River, for a late afternoon/sunset shoot. From the parking lot there is a 1/2 mile hike to the edge of the 1,000 feet cliffs that form Horseshoe Bend.
After an early breakfast we will head off to photograph both Lower and Upper Antelope Canyon. We will spend several hours in each canyon and then spend the night in Page.
On day 3 we head out for the two hour drive to Monument Valley, a Navajo National Park where we will spend the rest of the trip shooting. Throughout our time in Monument Valley we will be using Navajo guides. You can see the guide price reflected in the final cost of the workshop. I do not mark up the guide prices. A visit in the company of a Navajo guide offers great flexibility and allows us to go to restricted areas in the Valley that we could not visit on our own. A guided tour will take us around Thunderbird Mesa, the mesa just south of Rain God Mesa. This will allow us to see various arches and get very close to the Totem and Yei-bi-chei, so we can photograph them with the dunes in the foreground. This is otherwise impossible from the scenic turnoffs of Totem Pole and Sand Springs where the dunes are almost invisible. Our guide can also take us behind Mitten and Merrick Buttes allowing us to vary the angles and lighting effects.
Some of the other potential sites that we will see in the Valley include John Ford's Point, which offers an excellent view of the Three Sisters group. The scenic turnoffs of Totem Pole and Sand Springs lead to two remarkable views of the Totem, Yei-bi-chei and the dunes. Artist's Point has a fantastic panorama of the Valley. Finally, the stop at North Windows offers a superb view of the Mittens that you can frame in the "window" that opens in front of you.
Our final day begins with another sunrise shoot of the Valley, breakfast and then portfolio reviews. The workshop will conclude after a farewell lunch, after which we will head back towards Page to depart for home.
Option: Dependant on availability and weather conditions, we will also have the option of taking part in a hot air balloon flight from the Valley floor. This is truly a spectacular experience. The cost of the flight is $395 per person. We can the fly on Day 4, Saturday and/or day 5 Sunday. Twelve people, the entire workshop, can fit into the balloon at one time. However, if we have a lot of people interested in this option, we will split the group between the two days, so the people not flying can shoot the balloon as it drifts across the Valley floor. Any participants not flying, will be shooting in the Valley, with myself or the Navajo guide, depending on whether I am in the balloon at that time. You can let me know if you are interested in this option when you register for the workshop or when we meet in Page. I will make all the reservations and arrangements, however you will pay the balloon company directly - we never markup additional services like these.
Here is more information on the balloon flights: Balloons fly when the sun first hits the earth in the early morning. That is when the winds are the calmest. We meet before sunrise and travel into the Valley. Your time in the air is approximately one hour and you need to allow about three hours for the entire adventure.
The tour includes:
• Round-trip transportation from the Holiday Inn in Kayenta, Arizona, Gouldings Lodge in Utah, or The View Hotel in Monument Valley
• A Navajo guide who will explain the legends, history, and way of life of the Navajo people
• Several stops while enroute to our launch site to capture some of the most incredible photography during the early morning twilight
• Inflation of the balloon (which is spectacular in itself!)
• Approximate one-hour balloon flight
• Continental post-flight breakfast at the landing site
• Please see The Monument Valley Balloon Company for photos.
• To get the most out of the workshop, you'll need an interchangeable lens camera that has control over exposure, and be familiar with its basic controls and settings. Please see workshop preparation for details on other camera equipment to bring. Lorne can give you a complimentary personal consultation on what equipment to bring, rent or buy before the workshop.
• We do not provide transportation during the workshops as it would add $100-$150 minimum to the workshop fee for each participant. In addition, some national parks require commercial drivers licenses and/or separate permits to function as a tour operator. Each participant is responsible for having or renting their own car. As for local transportation, we usually carpool to the various shooting locations. This makes things very convenient as for the most part we will usually be having all of our meals together as well. Please indicate on the registration form whether you'd like us to help you connect to other participants in the interest of sharing a room and/or carpooling to help reduce costs.
• Each participant is responsible for making their own hotel reservations, although we do (if requested) connect participants so they may share lodging in order to save money.
• Immediately after registration, you will be emailed a receipt and confirmation indicating that a spot has been reserved for you. Shortly after that you will be emailed the location and time of the initial meeting and a comprehensive checklist of what to bring for the trip.
• For more information see the about the workshop, workshop faqs, terms and conditions and workshop preparation.
Traveling by Car: Page Arizona is located on the Utah border of North Central Arizona. It is about two hours from Monument Valley, two hours from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, three hours from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, two hours from Zion National Park and four hours from both Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Airport Information: Page has a small municipal airport and people frequently fly in via a connection in Phoenix.
Page, Arizona (for the Slot Canyons)
• Days Inn and Suites Ph: 928-645-2800 - 961 N Hwy 89, Hwy 89 and Haul Road, Page, AZ 86040 US
• Courtyard by Marriott Ph: 1-928-645-8883
• Rodeway Inn Ph: 928-645-2406 107 - Lake Powell Boulevard, Page, AZ 86040
• Quality Inn Ph: 928-645-8851 - 287 Lake Powell Boulevard, Page, AZ 86040
Monument Valley:
Accommodation in the center of Monument Valley is limited to Gouldings Lodge and the new VIEW Hotel in the Tribal Park.
• Goulding’s Lodge Ph: 435.727.3231
• The View Hotel Ph: 435.727.5555 The next closest lodging is 23 miles south in Kayenta
• Holiday Inn Kayenta Ph: 1-866-240-6312
• Best Western Wetherill Inn Ph: 1-800-780-7234
Shortly after registering for the workshop you will be emailed the name of the hotel Lorne will be staying at. I encourage participants to stay there so as to make it easier for us to all convene and conclude the days activities with a minimum of travel, however you do not have to stay in any specific hotel. Please indicate on the registration form, if you'd like us to help you connect to other participants to share a room to help reduce costs.
Monument Valley sits at an altitude of 5,500 feet and has a four-season climate, with highs in the mid-40s and lows in the mid-20s in the winter and highs in the upper 80s and lows in the upper 60s in the summer. It receives six inches of precipitation a year, two-thirds of it coming as rain and snow in the months of September through January. The summer months are dry.
For many workshops Lorne will have sponsor partners provide products and/or product discounts to give or raffle off to workshop participants. These are always products that Lorne has tested and worked with extensively and highly recommends to his participants.
The list of sponsors will be updated frequently and can be found here.