Upper Antelope Canyon at noon, Page, AZ

The canyon is accessible only by guided tour, lead by Navajo (the land is owned by the Navajo). The tours require reservations, best made in advance, and it can get crowded. The guides do a marvelous job of keeping the groups separated with only one group per gallery at a time.

The stories the guides tell of the land, the discovery of the place… are as interesting as the place itself.

Flash floods have been known to occur here, so it is best to avoid monsoon season, and stay with your guide at all times.

A tripod, plenty of battery power (backups!), and a wide zoom are a must here.

Speaking of backup batteries, it is a good thing I followed my own advice, because just before I took this shot, my battery died. The 20D was still new to me then, and I wanted to see how many shots I could get from one battery. I still remember the look on the guys face next to me when I said to myself “uh oh, dead battery!”

Canon 20D, 17-40 f/4L, tripod

For reference, this was done at 17mm on a crop sensor.