Zion Narrows

This photograph was taken on a vacation to Zion National Park with my wife, daughter, and some of my wife’s family. It was on this vacation that I realized that a photographer’s priorities are generally not the same as a “normal person.”

Indeed, ordinary people might occasionally pause to admire a view, maybe pull out their cell phone to snap a photo or two. And then they continue down the trail and onto the next site.

Me, on the other hand, I want to scout an area ahead of time, then go back to the same location in the right lighting. I want to stop, set up a tripod, and take many exposures of the same scene, moving around to get just the right angle. Perhaps I want to wait in the same location for an hour or more to see if the sun paints the scene differently.

I guess I’m different.

And on this hike up the Narrows, those two sets of competing priorities were on full display. I had my camera with me, and I wanted to shoot. I had six others, gently encouraging me to move along. Somehow, I made it through the day.

When I saw this spot in the Narrows, I just had to stop. Fortunately, my companions understood and decided it was time for lunch. The dramatic bend, the rock overhang, the striations seeming to radiate from the trees: if I was going to capture one scene, this seemed like a good one. And I’m pleased with the results.

Sometimes, balancing competing priorities can be a trick. But I’m blessed that my family enjoys getting out and seeing the scenery just as much as I do.