Lisa and I recently got home from 1 week out west which was a terrific trip.  We flew non-stop from Newark airport into Phoenix and I was able to secure tickets at $300 after some diligent research.  Our first accommodations  were Forest Houses Resort in Oak Creek Canyon (just outside of Sedona).  For the 2nd leg of our trip we stayed at the Yavapai Lodge within Grand Canyon National Park.  We found the rates at both to be reasonable and the rooms were more than adequate.  I also booked a rental car from Phoenix at $16/day thanks to hotwire.

Sedona, Arizona. This photo was taken from Red Rock Crossing. Image by Dave Blinder, please contact me for licensing or prints.

For photography equipment I brought along my Canon 5DsR dslr as well as my Canon SL2.  I brought three lenses with me, the Tamron SP 24-70mm VC G1, Tamron SP 150-600mm VC G2, and the Tamron SP 90mm VC G1 macro lens.  I did not use my macro lens much as I was often on the go, and did not want to swap lenses in dusty environments.

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Image by Dave Blinder, please contact me for licensing or prints.

For the sake of brevity I am not posting pictures from each and every park we visited, however I am happy to answer any travel questions that I can help with.  Some of the many attractions we enjoyed include: Slide Rock State Park, Dead Horse Ranch State Park, Red Rock State Park, Cathedral Rock, Devil’s Bridge, Palatki Heritage Site, Tuzigoot National Monument, Walnut Canyon National Monument, Little Colorado River Gorge, and of course Grand Canyon National Park.

Early morning view of Grand Canyon National Park Arizona. Image by Dave Blinder, please contact me for licensing or prints.

I found the lighting conditions around Sedona to be challenging during my trip, yet I really enjoyed my time spent in the area.  Photographic momentum picked up for me when we made it to the Grand Canyon.  It would be difficult to take a bad sunrise or sunset picture when standing in front one of the natural wonders of the world.  I also found the Navajo tribal land (just beyond desert view) to be very peaceful and a very immersive nature study area.  Do yourself and check out the Little Colorado River Gorge when in the area.

Rock Squirrel at Little Colorado River Gorge. Image by Dave Blinder, please contact me for licensing or prints.

Now that it is finally springtime here in New Jersey, I look forward to photographing the regularly scheduled birds and bees.  Let me know if you have any questions about my Arizona pictures or any of my travel accommodations.

Lesser Goldfinch Female with Fledgling at the Verde River in Cottonwood Arizona. Image by Dave Blinder, please contact me for licensing or prints.