Out Of Africa

Out of Africa is an amazing safari and wild animal preserve, most of species in danger(my focus), 30 min from Sedona- I highly recommend it...click here for slideshow of my favorite .

WEEK- Scenic Compilation Slideshow

This is a compilation of my favorite shots of the week...all excursions included, except Out Of Africa, that will be a separate slideshow.   This is all  my landscape and nature photography.  You can go quickly thru it with your right arrow key on the keyboard, or click on the link and let it play for you. ENJOY!  Comments welcomed. SedonaGrandCanyonAntelopeCanyonSlideshow

FRIDAY: Lower Antelope Canyon

So the final excursion of our vacation. After the rainbow we continued our drive to the Navajo Nation Tribal Park. I was scheduled to take a guided photography tour of Lower Antelope Canyon, one of the greatest slot canyons in the world. We left at 6am  and arrived at 9:15 to pick up my photography permit. Then a wait in line, surrounded by the sound of foreign languages- French, German, Chinese, Indian and Navajo and others.  Clouds in the sky and rain sprinkling. Was not looking good, but my permit was for 2 hrs...so i entered at 10am...and was assigned a wonderful photo guide from the Navajo tribe, Jason, he was awesome.  I took nearly 200 shots and the weather above cleared for a period. The lighting kept changing and yielding different shades. It was worth every moment that led up to this incredible spiritual experience. Below are just a few shots: entrance, depth perspective (we went down 5 flights of stairs in total), and a few favorite shots. The slideshow will share a lot more.Coming soon.

FRIDAY: Gift of a Rainbow

...so as we headed out of Sedona at 5:45am , on our 3 hr. trek to the slot canyon named Lower Antelope in Page, Az to we drove north thru Flagstaff where it was raining and then the gift in the sky...

THURSDAY: lightning

Thursday night brought a wicked thunderstorm with a lightning show.  I videoed and am learning how to take snapshots from the video captured on my new camera...here is the bolt captured:

THURSDAY: Jerome

Thursday afternoon we visited Jerome Az, a popular tourist spot, known for it's historical important as a cooper mining town, then a ghost town, and now an artist town, of under 500 in population.  It is built in the mountain, with huge dropoffs( a little scary) but great views. Lots of history can be read here. Not too many photos taken...a few below

THURSDAY: Bell Rock of Sedona

We finally visited Bell Rock, one of the 4 vortex sites in Sedona...no time to do a full hike but stood in the space and looked at the trees that grow oddly, affected by the energy force. And a plethora of prickly peared cactus. Pretty cool. remembered meditating there 3 years ago.

WEDNESDAY: Coconino National (Ponderosa Pine) Forest

On the ride back to Sedona from the Grand Canyon i pondered my view:  for a very very long time was tree after tree after tree...for miles....in fact, 1.846 acres of trees, glorious trees in the Coconino National Forest. Made me smile for a long time to know that they are there, untouched, and protected....

WEDNESDAY: Hiking South Kaibab Trail to Ooh Aah Point

So today I hiked over 2 miles round trip beyond Ooh Aah Point of the South Kaibab Trail of the Grand Canyon, here are a few views that you can't see from the rim...

WEDNESDAY: Sunrise & Elk at Grand Canyon

I awoke at 5:20am to catch the sun rise over the canyon. Right outside our lodge was a 6 point elk bull grazing. Good Morning. Wow, an honor. Birds were chirping to greet the sun. Lots of wildlife awake, and some other humans too :)

TUESDAY: Grand Canyon Sunset and Moonrise

Once checked in and after dinner, i chased down the sun to Hopi Point. Unfortunately once the sun is setting it makes for dull sunset head on, in my opinion, because the canyon gets silhouetted and you can not really tell that is what you are looking at, but after, at dusk the sun casts pastel hues across the canyon.  I tried to capture both.  And bonus,  the moon was rising, amidst the pink sky.

TUESDAY: Grand Canyon Arrival

After a 2+ hr drive to the Grand Canyon, we arrived at the east entrance to the south rim- Desert View -first view of the Canyon and the Colorado river... then once at Mather Point got my "best shot"  and then at Thunderbird lodge (on the rim) greeted by a baby mule deer as we checked in. Awesome.

TUESDAY: Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

Tuesday morning - we set out for the Grand Canyon with a stop along the way- Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. A few shots below, showing life after lava...

MONDAY: Sedona Trolley at Sunset

Tonight we took the trolley tour of the canyons to the west. wow. very cool. One of the highlights was seeing one of the four vortex sites of Sedona in Boynton Canyon. Far and close up shots below. Also a storm in the distance.

MONDAY: Slide Rock State Park

This afternoon we ventured to Slide Rock to cool off in waters of Oak Creek Canyon. The views were beautiful. My favorite 2 are below.

MONDAY: Sedona's Cathedral Rock

Today we visited arguably the most photographed site of all of Sedona- Cathedral Rock- but i could not get "the shot" of the formation from the Oak Creek (water on foreground) vantage point. Cathedral Rock is known to be one of the four sites in Sedona to have a vortex with healing energy, so we stood in the water.  Urg. will try again later in week to get the shot from the water..

MONDAY: Sedona so far

Approaching Sedona is a mesmerizing awe inspiring experience as you come around the bend...never gets old...here are a few best shots so far. sunrise. sunset. scenery. slideshow to be posted by end of week.

SUNDAY: Out of Africa (in Camp Verde, Az) -safari and preserve

Out of Africa is an amazing wildlife preserve in Camp Verde, about 1/2 south of Sedona. It is a special place. attached is a collage of my highlight shots of the animals.I really enjoyed photographing them. I will be posting a slideshow later in the week. Amazing opportunity to see such majestic creatures up close. i am grateful.

SUNDAY: Chapel in The Rocks & St John Vianney

Sedona has beautiful landscape, it also has buildings that blend into their environment and complement their surroundings with respect. The houses of worship particularly practice this love of the land. We attended mass at St John's Vianney then went to the world famous Chapel In the Rock (Holy Cross). some favorite pix below.

SATURDAY: Dust Storm welcomes us

we arrived at Phoenix safely on Saturday night and the national weather service sent alerts to our smartphones that a dust storm was passing thru, very dangerous road conditions. so as we got into our rental car we did not know what to expect. i captured a few pix of the sky as the storm approached. wicked.

Getting Excited

so my camera is packed. i am really getting psyched. weather forecast is rain/thunderstorms in Sedona and Grand Canyon, as it is monsoon season. what was i thinking?  well it actually may make for dramatic photography. i am looking forward. we leave Saturday morning...

prep for trip...

In anticipation of our fabulous upcoming trip to Sedona, Grand Canyon and Antelope Canyon, i am delving into the world of BLOGGING so that i have a journal of our journey. we have several excursions planned, so it is exciting to have it all recorded. Once my photography is complete, it will then be posted to my website at www.marianneleone.com .