Pointers for Painted Desert and Petrified Forest Feb. 2007?

[rcoda]

Hi everyone:

I am fairly new to Arizona (< 2 yrs.) and have been out of LF for over a dozen years. My daughter has a school science project and she has selected to do it on the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. We are planning for President's Day weekend. I plan on bring the 4x5 and 8x10. Any photo tips? Restaurant tips? Thanks in advance.

Rich

 

[copake_ham]

Rich,

Do yourself a huge favor:

1) Subscribe to "Arizona Highways" magazine so you get the hard copy of what is one of the finest photog mags on the planet. It's been around 75+ years and literally supported Ansel Adams during his "lean years" in the 1940's and 1950's.

2) Meanwhile, visit their website to check out back articles on shooting all over AZ and espescially the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.

Finally, keep in mind that both venues are in northern AZ and will likely be quite cold in February (with the added possibility of winter snow or rain). March or April would be better - but I do understand your daughter's "imperative" so go anyway!

But really, check out AZ Hwys - it is a great resource for the info you are seeking.

Have a ton of fun - you make me want to be retired real soon!

EDIT: If you can persuade your daughter to come down to Tucson on Prez Day weekend - I'll be there and we could shoot together. It will be a bit early for the "desert bloom" but Suguaro East National Park will definitely be "greening up" as well as Sabino Canyon etc.

EDIT II: Just for the record "Arizona Highways" is NOT a photog mag. It just has some of the most spectacular photography about one of the most photogenic places on the planet!

 

[mark]

Hmmmmm......You will either eat in Flagstaff or Winslow Holbrook is just a nasty place, seriously. Pestos is good in flag, Crown Railroad in Flag, The Place in flag is great for breakfast. Winslow....hmmm....The fancy hotel there is supposed to be good, but I usually just drive right on through. They are doing work on I40 in Winslow and it makes getting around really freaking annoying, but it is part of route 66 so look around.

Painted desert and Petrified forest will be REALLY cold but most likely empty. If it has rained or snowed and the ground is wet you are in for amazing colors. Look for morning or afternoon light. As you drive east out of flagstaff look for an old route 66 tourist trap and turn off at Two Guns. Interesting modern ruins. The whole area around there is flat and arid but strangely pretty. Have a red, orange, and yellow green filter ready to go for BW. For color have an 81a and a polarizor in your arsenal.

North of Winslow is Homolovi State Park, an ancestral Hopi collection of ruins. Most of them are not reconstructed but the views of the hopi buttes are fantastic. It is a nice park (I excavated there one summer). Continue north of Homolovi and you have a small pull off for the little painted desert. A great undiscovered part of Arizona. It is a popular party place for folks heading back onto the Navajo Reservation so, think safety, and since it will be winter there will most likely not be anyone there. I have been ther three times this winter and I had the place all to myself. I live in N. AZ so any other questions just ask.

 

[David Henderson]

I've been there once, and though it was six years ago you might just find this useful. You can access the Petrified Forest park at the north via the I40 or at the south via the 180. I found the northern areas much more interesting and photogenic. This area has a "painted desert" landscape with bright colours in the right light and a number of overlooks. Clearly its best not to photograph here under a blazing midday sun otherwise the colours tend to wash out. Heading south of the I40, notable formations include the Tepees and Blue Mesa.

Further south the landscape becomes monotonous except for the logs of Petrified wood. I don't know how interested you'll be in that but after a half a day driving and walking round in quite hot conditions (this was April) with a lot of glare, I formed a view that once you'd seen a few of these logs then you'd seen them all. For an alternative take on that look at Bill Atkinson's macro photographs on www.billatkinson.com . If you're interested in this sort of photography take an umbrella to shade areas of log you're working.

Though Holbrook is clearly the place to stay and has all the usual suspects by way of chain hotels etc I didn't find anywhere spectacular to eat and a walk round Holbrook won't detain you long. I did find an OK Italian place out on the strip and there was a kind of funky place called Joe 'n Aggies in town that did OK breakfasts without any pretensions (at all). Can't tell you I think Winslow's much better unless you're an Eagles fan or actually relish the idea of a 35 mile longer drive to get into the park.

Its possibly a seasonal thing but I recall not being able to drive into the park as early in the day as I'd have hoped; or stay till sunset. I'd advise checking the opening hours and getting in there as close to sunrise/sunset as you can if there's some light.

 

[mark]

I can't edit my post so I need to do it here. It is not The name of the restaraunt in Flagstaff is not Pestos it is Oreganoz (I think that is how they spell it on their sign) Sorry about that.

 

[eclarke]

At the Painted Desert, have your prize composition set and expose right as the sun goes down..the light is amazing but the exposure can move a whole stop between sheets!!..Beautiful...EC