Grand Canyon Rainstorm

This could also just as easily have been titled “The Photograph That Almost Wasn’t.” A couple of years ago, my best friend and I decided to go on a trip to Arizona together. We started out in Scottsdale and then shifted up to Sedona for a few days. As it happens, you can drive to the Grand Canyon and back in a day from Sedona, but it makes for a long day. We decided that if we got motivated to get on the road really early one morning we’d go; but if not, we’d skip it since we’d both been there before. Needless to say, the urge to get up at the crack of dawn never struck. On our last morning in Sedona, we talked it over and decided it was too late for a Grand Canyon run but that we’d head up Oak Creek Canyon and then figure out what we wanted to do after that.

Eventually, we made our way up to the top of the canyon. By that time we were hungry, so we decided to drive on to Flagstaff for lunch. Once we’d eaten, we weren’t really ready to head back, so we said we’d drive up Highway 180, a scenic route that takes you past Humphreys Peak, until we felt like turning around. I made note that if we got to the end of Highway 180, we could always loop back down Highway 64 to the interstate.

Here’s the thing – if you get to the end of Highway 180, you’re only about 30 miles south of the Grand Canyon. We both knew that, just like we’d both secretly known for several hours that we were going to the Grand Canyon. I don’t remember which of us finally stated what was by now quite obvious. It really doesn’t matter. Around 3:00 pm, we arrived at the one place we had said we were not going that day.

Photographing the Grand Canyon in the middle of the day is very tricky. The sun really washes out the beautiful colors, and any scattered clouds floating overhead cast shadows that detract from the scenery. In an incredible stroke of luck for me, though, a rainstorm passed over the canyon just as we were arriving. The overcast skies made a stark contrast to the red of the canyon walls, and the rain falling in the distance added drama to the setting. It was a photographer’s paradise.

When I got back home, everybody who saw the photographs I took that day urged me to offer them for sale. In fact, a 16 X 20 of this very picture was the first one someone ordered. Thus was born Nature’s Drama Photography!

If you are interested in purchasing this photograph, click here.