Deserts offer few clues about the scale of the landscape. Unlike forest scenes, where trees often provide a frame of reference, plants play a lesser role. Even when there are plants it can be unclear from a distance whether they are large trees or small shrubs. Here the inclusion of the human figure clarifies the scale of the grand Utah red rock landscape.
The photograph comes from a trip I made there a few years back with my friends Karl Kroeber and Charles Cramer. We made a long one-day drive from the San Francisco Bay Area to St. George, Utah, and then embarked on a circuit that took use to Zion and Capitol Reef National Parks and to the remarkable Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Karl is the photographer in the photo.
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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email
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