[aslyfox]

I didn't read all the posts but so far haven't seen a warning about the canyon itself. Don't try to be the guy that wants to get the perfect Grand Canyon shot. It's a long way to the bottom. Last time I was at the canyon there was not fencing along the whole path. Tis is not a welcome to get closer to the edge.

I don't think this will happen at the GC but it does make me wonder how stable a cliff face may be

You Tube

You Tube

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Last edited by aslyfox; 07-12-2021 at 03:17 PM.

[JimS_256]

my D FA * 70-200 meets the requirementsDiam x Length 91.5 x 203 mm (3.6 x 8 in.)

It does, but it's right on the line and I really think you're pushing your luck. I wouldn't chance it and stick with 55-300. Maybe the guy at the gate is a nice guy and will let you through or maybe he just got chewed out by the boss for being too nice and isn't going to chance it. What's your plan B if you have to take it back to the car?


Regardless this looks like an awesome trip. I hope you have a great time and look forward to hearing about it and seeing some images.

[aslyfox]

It does, but it's right on the line and I really think you're pushing your luck. I wouldn't chance it and stick with 55-300. Maybe the guy at the gate is a nice guy and will let you through or maybe he just got chewed out by the boss for being too nice and isn't going to chance it. What's your plan B if you have to take it back to the car?


Regardless this looks like an awesome trip. I hope you have a great time and look forward to hearing about it and seeing some images.

thanks

one never can tell, of course

but I've never been barred from taking it into a base ball field which had an 8 inch limit on allowable lenses

what car, won't have one

[aslyfox]

just contacted the folks who are taking us up to the GC on Thursday

Arizona Guided Van Tours by Across Arizona Tours

they say they want any camera equipment stored under a seat

I think that since I will have a backpack I may get away with not doing that

right now, 9 passengers, 10 is maximum, going in a 15 passenger van

[PDL]

Does the Guided Van Tours consider phones to be cameras?

Just tell Grandma that he has to put her phone under the seat for the duration. Seems a bit extreme to me.

[aslyfox]

Does the Guided Van Tours consider phones to be cameras?

Just tell Grandma that he has to put her phone under the seat for the duration. Seems a bit extreme to me.

I wasn't a happy camper as a result of the phone call but I kept it quiet

IMHO -

the time to complain about a guided tour is when you have arrived back at your hotel

not when they can forget to pick you up for the tour or leave you miles away from your hotel



it is just like you should not complain about how bad the referring is in a game when the refs can still affect the game

do it after the game is over

[aslyfox]

https://www.ultimatelenshood.com/[/url]

based on that comment, I placed an order for one on Saturday with Amazon

Amazon promised delivery on Monday

then changed to today by 10 PM local

then at about 6 PM today, they said delivery later in the week

contacted Amazon and cancelled order - got full refund

and talked to Supervisor

I just explained that I had ordered it for the trip, was promised delivery on 7/12 and now it wouldn't

arrived until after I leave

and the late notice left me no options to obtain it eslewhere

I also threw in the years we have used Amazon and said I wasn't a happy camper

and I obtained $25.00 credit

it doesn't pay to try to fool with aslyfox

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Last edited by aslyfox; 07-13-2021 at 07:46 PM.

[UncleVanya]

based on that comment, I placed an order for one on Saturday with Amazon

Amazon promised delivery on Monday

then changed to today by 10 PM local

then at about 6 PM today, they said delivery later in the week

contacted Amazon and cancelled order - got full refund

and talked to Supervisor

I just explained that I had ordered it for the trip, was promised delivery on 7/12 and now it wouldn't

arrived until after I leave

and the late notice left me no options to obtain it eslewhere

I also threw in the years we have used Amazon and said I wasn't a happy camper

and I obtained $25.00 credit

it doesn't pay to try to fool with aslyfox

I'm sorry that didn't work out. If you have any rubber lens hoods that fit your most likely lenses for inside the van you could take one. Another idea I have seen is a black or dark towel that you can drape over an existing hood and press up to the glass but that's harder. Usually rolled up and held on with big rubber bands works best if you try the towel trick. I personally have several rubber lens hoods and find they help a lot in glass situations.

[aslyfox]

just returned from long trip to the GC

haven't had time to check photos

did see with the Mark 1 eyeballs and store in the original memory bank a rare sight - not one but two California Condors soaring above the South rim

Stand on any South Rim overlook and turn your eyes to the sky. If you’re lucky, you might spot a huge black shape riding the thermals over the canyon. Look closer: bald red head, wide wingspan, triangular white patches under the wings – it’s a California condor. And that makes you very lucky indeed, because the condor is one of the rarest birds in the world.

About 70 condors inhabit the skies of northern Arizona and Utah. That might sound small, but the number represents a smashing success. Not so long ago, there weren’t any condors at the Grand Canyon. In fact, in 1982, only 22 condors remained in the world. Thanks to quick action from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and several partner zoos, a captive breeding and reintroduction program pulled the magnificent birds back from the edge of extinction. Today, the world population stands at 437 condors – 231 of them living wild in California, Utah, Arizona and Baja California. . . .

Endangered California Condors in the Grand Canyon

unfortunately I had the wrong equipment on the K 10d and the K 1 II to get useable photos so I hope that others will give credit without photos

I was expecting landscapes not one of the rarest birds around

more tomorrow about the long trip and what happened on it

[AstroDave]

How much rain did you get at/going to/from GC? Upper Flagstaff nearly got washed away Tuesday and Wednesday both, thanks to several inches of rain each day on a forest fire burn scar.

We got REALLY rained on Wednesday here at home, and have had 2.35 inches total in the backyard rain gauge since Monday.

Hope you had a good trip (did you wave as you went by?!)

[aslyfox]

How much rain did you get at/going to/from GC? Upper Flagstaff nearly got washed away Tuesday and Wednesday both, thanks to several inches of rain each day on a forest fire burn scar.

We got REALLY rained on Wednesday here at home, and have had 2.35 inches total in the backyard rain gauge since Monday.

Hope you had a good trip (did you wave as you went by?!)

we did have a good trip all things considered

waved both times, up and back

we got sprinkles as we drove back from GC

At Flagstaff we turned onto a two lane highway and went to Sedona

here is " Snoopy " from the patio of the restaurant - Canyon Breeze - where we ate dinner while enjoying their prickly pear margaritas

crop and pp

[ more photos later ]

________________________________

we left our hotel around 6:15 AM and did not return until after 9:30 PM. we were the first on, last off and stopped twice in Scottsdale to pick up two groups -

( 2 ) and (5) I rode shotgun, Judy had a row by herself and the other ladies rode in the back

not a trip I would recommend unless one has no other way to see the GC like us then I would recommend the trip especially if you could get Frank as the guide

why not to do it - as predicted long ride, relatively short time at GC and at Sedona

why do it ( especially with Frank who does it twice a week )

comfortable ride and plenty of bathroom breaks

Van max 10

no food provided but plenty of bottled water

reasonable priced food stops including one at G C near the Bright Angle trail


learned a lot about Arizona and its different climates based on the change in altitude from 1000 feet in Phoenix to 7,000 feet of the Colorado Plateau and the GC and how that affects the climate and Flora of the State

saw elk and wild horses as we went to and from

______________________________________________________________

PRACTICE HINT

as you enter the main gate at GC south rim, the crowd goes to the first parking area where you can look into the canyon

DON'T

wait until the second, always plenty of parking according to Frank and a better view point

[VSTAR]

Suggestion…are u bringing a steamship trunk and a donkey?
If no, then a medium camera bag like the vanguard VEO42 should work. Bring the K1 and put it around your neck, the k3 in the bag, and 3 lenses max. Filters, air blower in case of cleaning, batteries, lightweight tripod strapped to the bag. That’s all IMHO.

[aslyfox]

Suggestion…are u bringing a steamship trunk and a donkey?
If no, then a medium camera bag like the vanguard VEO42 should work. Bring the K1 and put it around your neck, the k3 in the bag, and 3 lenses max. Filters, air blower in case of cleaning, batteries, lightweight tripod strapped to the bag. That’s all IMHO.

thanks for the comment

we left on the trip on the 14th

took this to GC

Lowepro Fastpack 100 reviews - Pentax Camera Accessory Review Database

with the K 1 II and K 10d

plus the 16-85, 10- 20 and 50 1.2 and 100mm 2.8

those plus the K3 III and the 70-200 was carried on plane in a carry on and this

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1376626-REG/lowepro_lp37129_flipside_...&fromDisList=y

left big backpack at home

IMGP0780a1a.jpg - Pentax Camera Accessory Review Database

______________

photo from the GC South Rim

crop and pp

note the nice people who posed on the left for purposes of scale

no SMU available

[JimS_256]

photo from the GC South Rim

That's a great shot! Thanks for update.

[aslyfox]

That's a great shot! Thanks for update.

thank you

I am not a landscape photographer so it's beginner's luck

[ and my wife lets me get good equipment ]

_____________________________

more " Red Rocks " from Sedona

While many people enjoy the red rock formations, not many people know how it got here. The story of the red rock is almost as beautiful as the formations themselves.

Before the red rock was turned into rock, it was all soft mud and sand. Over a 320 million year period changes in nature helped transform the sand and mud into something more beautiful than we could have imagined. Sea levels rose and fell during this time and with each rise and fall mud was added. During the sea level rise the mud would be washed in and then when it receded the wind brought in layers of sand. After years of this happening over and over again, the sediment was lithified (transformed) into hard rock.

The hard rock had a thin layer of iron oxide that was caused by chemical weathering of natural minerals. The process of the iron oxide weathering turned the rock its signature red color. At one point there was 1,900 feet of red rock covering Sedona. While we know how the red rock got there, how it was formed into beautiful natural sculptures is another story.

Oak Creek began to form and over time the other rivers in the area began to erode and break up the rock. The rivers would carry parts of the rock out to the ocean and leave behind red rock formations that we love today. When we look at the red rock formations we are actually looking at natural erosion taking place right before our eyes. Oak Creek, for example washes sand over the rock, smoothing it out like with a natural polishing type process. The sand also cuts a smooth groove through the rock that visitors float in during the hotter months of the year!

https://enjoyorchardcanyon.com/the-story-of-the-red-rock-in-sedona/

crop and pp