Antelope Canyon photography

[elizabeth_omski]

I am going to Antelope Canyon on August 1, 2002 and my photography

experience is beginner/intermediate.

 

Has anyone been there recently, have any good tips of photography,

how to meter without a spot meter? What do I meter off of? Can I

trust my Nikon F100's spot meter? Do I need to take a tour or can I

visit the canyons without a guide?

 

thank you for your help.

[louie]

Spot metering is the way to go in Antelope Canyon. My Elan 7E doesn't have a spot meter, but I used its partial meter and just zoomed in to fill the frame with whatever I was metering. I would meter the highlights in my composition and then open up a 1 1/2 stops. I'd bracket from there. Don't forget to take into account reciprocity failure. Expect really long exposures.

 

You don't need a tour. In general, most of the "tours" simply consists of somebody driving you out, walking you through the canyon once, and then leaving you for a couple of hours. You can just drive up to the canyon, and pay the Navajo directly. They'll drive you out and pick you up at a designated time. Nobody guides Lower Antelope. You just pay your fees and go.<div></div>

[ShunCheung]

This topic has been discussed several times already. I just searched the "Locations" category and there are quite a few threads on the Antelope Canyons. I was there in late December last year (2001). See this thread for additional information from my trip: http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=001p6c

 

The "standard" stay in the canyon was one hour, but we paid for a second hour. If the light is good (sun shine outside) and you are serious about photography, I would stay for two hours.

 

I used both 35mm and 645 as well as Fuji Velvia and Provia. It turns out that the more colorful Velvia is better in this case. The better shots happen to be from my Contax 645, which doesn't have matrix type metering. But even its center weighted meter and spot meter gave me pretty good exposures. One advantage of that camera is that it imprints the exposure record on each frame, and the record shows I was using like 22 seconds at f8 w/ Velvia (ISO 50). Obviously the exposure varies quite a bit depending on how dark the area happens to be. I would bracket in 1-stop increments. Matrix metering on your F100 should give you pretty good starting points.

 

The should be more visitors there in the summer. One problem is that people may walk in and out of your long exposure. I had one 30-second exposure when 3 people walked by. They happened to be Asian Indians with darker skin tone and they were inside my exposure for about 3, 4 seconds. Looking at my slides, I cannot see any trace of them. However, when there are people walking by, you may still want to suspend your exposure (cover up your lens), let them pass through, and then resume.

[philippe]

<p>I would fully second the previous answers about people walking by. It can be anoying, and during summer you will not be alone. But the others have the similar right to visit the place.<br>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/770099">In this image</a> I spot-metered on the wall on the right side, about 2/3 up in the frame, using the internal spot-meter of my EOS 1V. I strongly advise to bracket exposure in something like 2/3rd steps. This worked fine for me in most cases.

<p>As discussed previously, the lower antelope canyon is less crowded. There, light is better during the morning or afternoon, whereas in the upper noon is ideal. I was there last September and it was quite busy in the upper.

<p>Also, I had to pay the fee twice for the upper and the lower, even though this was not the case a few years ago according to older threads here on photo.net. The locals told me last fall that they are owned by different families.

[ShunCheung]

Very nice shot Philippe. The record shows your image was shot in September. What time of the day was it? I was there in December and it was from like 2-4pm, and I sure didn't see anything like that.

[cowan stark]

The classic sunbeam shots are a summer phenomenon when the sun is higher in the sky and usually around midday. I've been there in early November and late October and the light shafts don't hit the ground then either. I talked to a guide about it and he said June/July are best for that, but it's also busier and you have a lot more people to contend with.

[philippe]

Shun, It was around noon. The sun shines down in the canyon (upper antelope) around that time. It is longer during peak-summer and maybe even absent in winter. Actually, I knew this and timed my visit to that daytime. It fits actually quite well, because all the other spots in the area you want to visit either during early morning or late afternoon.

 

But the funny story was that there is a time change when you come from Monument Valley to Page and I haven't realized this, so I had to take another second hour, as you did. It was worth it;-)

 

The lower antelope canyon is not as narrow in most parts as the upper. Therefore, the light shines down much more intense and ubiquitously around noon and you loose much of the indirect light that creates the intense red tones at this daytime in the lower antelope.

[ShunCheung]

Thanks Cowan and Philippe. I had read that the "sunbeam" phenominon only happens in the summer; just wanted to confirm the season and time of day. My trip was part of a post-Christmas visit to the Grand Canyon. I'll try summer next time.

 

As I mentioned before, Velvia slide film works out quite well for me. On my 645, I used a 45mm lens, which is like 28mm in 35mm format. On my Nikon, I used a zoom mainly around 24mm or so. I also saw some guy with large format there. He was making like 3-minute time exposures at f22 or so to maximize depth of field. Part of the Upper Entelope is very narrow. If there are a lot of people walking around in the summer, long exposure like that will be problematic.

 

There is plenty of info here. Good luck with your trip Elizabeth.

[elizabeth_omski]

Thank you for the great advice from all of you, and Great shot, Philippe! I appreciate the advise about putting the cap back on, and the picture which gives me an example to learn from.

 

Can anyone recommend a good place to stay in the area, and maybe another high point to visit in the area or maybe an hour away?

[elizabeth_omski]

I have another basic question so please bear with me:

 

I have not shot long exposures before. How can I figure out what the exposure will be if it's as long as 30 sec or 3 minutes, etc. Will my camera actually tell me this?

[ShunCheung]

At least for the Upper Antelope, the best time to photograph there is around noon to get more sunlight inside the canyon. So most likely you won't be staying in the Page area unless you want to photograph other places near by. In any case, there should be plenty of motels.

 

If you shoot 35mm with a wide angle lens, f8 or f11 should give you sufficient depth of field, thus shortening your problematic long exposure. Since the Nikon F100 goes to 30 seconds, perhaps that is sufficient. Otherwise, you'll need a remote cord such as the MC-20 for time exposure. Unfortunately, like many of the new electronic camreas, the F100 doesn't take the traditional mechanical cable release, and those electronic ones are quite expensive.

 

It may be pretty drak inside the canyon for critical focusing. I would bring a falshlight. Some people use flashes to "paint" the canyon wall during long exposures, but I didn't try that. You may annoy fellow photographers too.

 

Since I don't have an Antelope image that is better than Philippe's :-), I'll show you the image of the power plant that is literally across Route 98 from the entrance to the Upper Antelope. That is a landmark you "can't miss." I know, it is hard to believe that the Antelope Canyon is so close to a power plant.

[benjaminparkerphotography]

Elizabeth,

 

I visited the canyon during late march and there were sun beams around noon. I shot Velvia at f22 for roughly 30 seconds. The place was crowded, but mostly by photographers who respected an open shutter. I was quite please with the results at that aperture. Also, I used my n80's 3d matrix instead of spot metering.

 

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/678981">Antelope Canyon Picture</a>

[steve_thompson]

I have not yet been to Antelope Canyon but want to bring this up. Isn't that the place several photographers drown a few years ago after a Thunderstorm flooded the Canyon? Might be worth it to go with a group or guide that has a look out on the surface with a radio? Safety first.

[cowan stark]

Upper Antelope Canyon is on a controlled flood plain and you don't have to worry. Lower Antelope is where the flash flood deaths ocurred a few years ago. Remember, this is one of the phenomena that formed the canyon in the first place. The guide I was with last year told me they now have watch stations upstream and an alarm system that'll sound if there's a flash flood warning.

 

Elizabeth, just another tip. If you use Velvia which seems to be a favorite, familiarize yourself with the reciprocity failure characteristics with long exposures. It tends to get purple in the shadows. Some use a Magenta filter, or Tiffen 812 (I think that's what David Muench uses for this). For your first trip, a tour isn't a bad idea, you can often get extended time in the canyon. I can recommend <a href="http://www.antelopecanyon.com/index.html">Roger Ekis Tours</a>.

[elizabeth_omski]

Ha anyone tried the kodak 100SW? Do I need any warming filters?

[ShunCheung]

Elizabeth, film preference is highly subjective. I used both Velvia and Provia 100F inside Upper Antelope, and as far as I am concerned, Velvia looks far better because it gives more exaggerated and brilliant color. That is the effect I want. I have pretty much stopped using all Ektachrome films (and Kodachrome as well). If you use Velvia, the rocks look pretty warm already, and IMO no filters are necessary. Provia is a somewhat cooler film and doesn't work very well inside Antelope.

 

Your mileage may vary.

[elizabeth_omski]

Thanks Shun,I was just worried about the reciprocity. I do very much want those briliant colors so i'm not sure what to do about the possibility of reciprocity. I'm not even to sure what it is.

[ShunCheung]

Reciprocity failure is that during long exposure, usually 1 second or much longer, most film will require even longer exposure to compensate.

 

For example, if "correct" exposure is f2.8 at 1/2 sec. Theoretically, f2 at 1/4 sec or f4 at 1 sec should give you the same exposure and so should f5.6 at 2 sec. However, most film will fail to maintain that during long exposures and you may need 3 sec at f5.6 and perhaps 7, 8 seconds at f8, etc. It varies from film type to film type.

 

In the case of Antelope, most likely you want to bracket your exposure anyway. I would just bracket some more on the long duration side to make sure that you get some good shots. I bracket quite a bit when I was there and now it is hard to say which one has the "best" exposure anyway. If you are going to spend 2 hours there, with all sorts of exposure bracketing, be prepared to shoot a couple of rolls of 36. Instant feedback of digital photography would have been nice in this case.

[louie]

If you're there for more than one day, you might want to check

your exposures by getting a roll developed. There's a good lab

next to the Safeway in Page that does E-6. They're kinda pricey,

but if you're only doing one roll, it's worth it.

 

One photographers I ran into while out there said that the local

shooters have kinda settled on shooting everything at f11 for 15

seconds. (That's for 100 speed film. Adjust for Velvia.) I don't

know how accurate that is, but it seemed to jibe with my

exposures.

 

One thing I wish I had was a right-angle viewfinder. Most of the

compositions in Upper Antelope are pointing up and I got a sore

neck trying to compose my shots.

[karl_lehmann]

E100SW would be an excellent choice. It doesn't suffer from reciprocity failure like Velvia does and you won't need a warming filter. My usual film is Provia 100F but as Shun Cheung has said, it's not that good in red rock country. I don't like Velvia for landscapes at all, but that's mostly because of the way it mangles tropical greens... it makes rainforests and rice paddies look like toxic waste sites. It's probably fine for red slot canyons, as long as you correct for the reciprocity failure. Karl Lehmann <a href="http://www.lostworldarts.com/new_page_3.htm">Lost World Arts</a>

[elizabeth_omski]

One more question: I don't have enough time to purchase a magenta fileter required for reciprocity compensation. Do I still use the same overexposure settings as recommended or do I just do what my camera recommends. This is a little confusing to me. Is the exposure adjustment for the filter or something else?

[karl_lehmann]

Yes, you still need to increase your exposure by the recommended amount. At long exposures the film is slower. The color shift is a secondary effect, because each of the three (sometimes four) color sensitive layers has a different rate of reciprocity failure. Another secondary effect is an increase in contrast.

 

The filter factor is in addition to the recommended increase, but you can ignore it if you use your camera's built-in meter.<p>

 

If you only correct the exposure time you'll get properly exposed slides with a strange color shift - sometimes this is pleasing, sometimes it's hideous. You might be able to partially correct it in Photoshop or when printing. If you only filter but don't increase exposure time you'll usually get unusable, underexposed slides (but with good color balance).<p>Really, the easiest thing to do is avoid using films like Kodachrome and Velvia for multi-second exposures.<p>Karl Lehmann <a href="http://www.lostworldarts.com/new_page_3.htm">Lost World Arts</a>

[ShunCheung]

Elizabeth, magenta (and other color correction) filters are for modifying the color of the image; they do not compensate for reciprocity failure. In fact, since those color filters block some of the light going into your camera, you'll need additional compensation.

 

As I pointed out before, I used Veliva inside Antelope and got excellent results, much better than the Provia 100F images shot in the same occasion. Since I needed to bracket my exposure anyway, reciprocity failure wasn't even an issue at all. Personally, I don't like Kodak E100VS as it has given me really extreme and inconsistent results (if Velvia isn't extreme enough). If you really want to try Ektachrome, use E100S or E100SW. Of course, film preference is highly subjective and your mileage may vary.