Royal Sunset

Story

Photographing Arizona’s Grand Canyon is at once incredibly easy and extraordinarily difficult. Royal Sunset proves that point.

The easy part is access. Paved roads lead right to spectacular viewpoints. Drive your car, walk a few yards, and you are at the most unimaginable views. But, it takes far more than a stellar view to create an exceptional photograph. The perfect conditions must come together for that. The moments I seek come around only now and then; of course, I have to be there for them.

Royal Sunset is one of those moments. Everything came together for me, albeit at the very last moment. The skies had been cloudy all day, without any break in the clouds. The slightest hint existed that the sun might peak through, but it didn’t look favorable. Still, I put myself in position at the North Rim’s Cape Royal lookout.

I clambered into place, my feet inches away from a drop that terrified me, and waited in the breeze. The sun tracked across the sky, and my hopes began to fade. Then, at the last possible moment, the sun managed to peak through, lighting up the scene I had imagined. Finally! Royal Sunset is the moment it all came together, and the result exceeded all my expectations.

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You can read more about the North Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park.