Bryce Canyon with the X-H2s, 70-300 fuji and Tamron 17-70

On the day after Thanksgiving I was lucky enough to make sunrise at Bryce Canyon.  The literal sunrise was just ho-hum, but the images generated shortly after sunrise when the Hoodooos start to receive the early morning light was just amazing.  Bryce is less than two hours from Zion, so well worth a day trip if you are already in the Zion area.

Hoodoo closeup shot with Tamron 17-70 at f/8 1/300th ISO 160

15 image pano shot with Fuji 70-300 at 70 mm, f/10, 1/200

XF70-300 at 181.3mm 1/110 f/7.1 ISO 160

Shot with Tamron 17-70  at 38.8mm 1/320 f/8 ISO 160

Shot with Tamron 17-70 59.6 mm 1/160 f/11 ISO 160

Shot with Tamron 17-70 at 41.8mm, 1/340th f/8 ISO 160

Ooh, Bryce looks great in a sprinkling of snow!  Nice work.

-Bryce

Excellent shots. I like the first one best.

Sweet set with the snow adding to the stunning red rock.  You photos bring back wonderful memories

Morris

RobertBetchel wrote:

On the day after Thanksgiving I was lucky enough to make sunrise at Bryce Canyon. The literal sunrise was just ho-hum, but the images generated shortly after sunrise when the Hoodooos start to receive the early morning light was just amazing. Bryce is less than two hours from Zion, so well worth a day trip if you are already in the Zion area.

Nice set. For those of us the other side of the Pond, what is a/are Hoodoos?

Hoodoo closeup shot with Tamron 17-70 at f/8 1/300th ISO 160

15 image pano shot with Fuji 70-300 at 70 mm, f/10, 1/200

XF70-300 at 181.3mm 1/110 f/7.1 ISO 160

Lovely pano. I would be interested in your technique and whether it was created handle held or on a tripod.

Shot with Tamron 17-70 59.6 mm 1/160 f/11 ISO 160

This is a wonderful image

Thanks.

Thanks for the kind comments. Hoodoos are the distinctive rock formations that dominate Bryce Canyon. They are tall skinny shafts of rock that protrude from the bottom of arid basins.

As for my pano technique I have done them both handheld and on a tripod, but in this case a tripod was used, and is always preferable for the best results. I first confirmed the tripod base was level and then mount the camera via L bracket to shoot the series in portrait orientation using a ball head that supports panning. It was an overlapping set of 15 images, each of them exposure bracketed. Each image overlaps the prior image by at least 1/3rd to ensure successful stitching. I used a 70-300 Fuji lens set to 70mm to shoot the pano and then used Lightroom to create the hdr panorama. This produces a DNG file that can then be post processed to taste.

RobertBetchel wrote:

Thanks for the kind comments. Hoodoos are the distinctive rock formations that dominate Bryce Canyon. They are tall skinny shafts of rock that protrude from the bottom of arid basins.

Hoodoos are created by the erosion of sandstone.  They sometimes look like the drippings made at the beach on a sand castle.

Morris

Beautiful series Robert! Bryce with snow is wonderful.

Very nice, Robert.  Thank's for sharing.  I enjoy Bryce, particularly in winter.  It's more difficult to reach than Zion, usually very very cold and as a result so uncrowded.  Nice with the snow.

dmaclau wrote:

Very nice, Robert. Thank's for sharing. I enjoy Bryce, particularly in winter. It's more difficult to reach than Zion, usually very very cold and as a result so uncrowded. Nice with the snow.

Indeed- it was 19 degrees and windy at the rim. Thankfully I dressed appropriatelty.  This late in the season the shuttles were not running and it was easier to explore in your own car.

Just -  wow.

Thank you for sharing!

Wonderful.

Regards,

Martin

Ha!  I understand that.

A few years ago I got to Bryce before sunrise, noticed an empty bus in a parking lot.  When I went in to Men's room I there were a half dozen photographers inside. A group had been bussed up there for the morning sunrise lineup and were trying to keep from freezing.  I guess the Ladies room was the same.

Wonderful set, love the last image 👍🏻

Hi Robert,

Wonderful place, great set.  Thanks for posting.

Cheers, Rod

Beautiful series. Bryce is a gem to behold. Your Pano caused me to notice all the hoodos  at the far edge are the same height. I did not realize that while I was there. Great work.  I am curious did you use a clear, UV , Haze filter on your lens.  Is the haze more apparent in the photo than you remember seeing it when you were there? During my trips Bryce and Zion were haze free but Canyon Lands was extremely hazy. I suppose sunrise and winter are part of the mix as well. Thanks for sharing.