Author Archives: willwhuff
New Orleans
Viejo San Juan, Puerto Rico
The architecture of San Juan’s old town is appropriately vibrant and colorful for the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. I spent a few days wandering nearly every street in the downtown area, sampling delicious mofongos and mojitos.
Valley of Fire
I had the chance to spend a couple days in the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada last month. I was disappointed in the weather forecast since there would be no clouds for nice sunsets and sunrises, but it was an opportunity to look differently at finding subjects to photograph. The sweeping overlook views weren’t going to work, so I spent time exploring the shady washes to discover some incredibly beautiful and unique sandstone colors and textures. It’s been great to visit the deserts and Utah, Nevada, and Arizona and see that each area has its own unique “style” of sandstone. Seeing a herd of bighorn sheep up close was an unexpected bonus.
Salt Lake Sunsets
After a long streak of cloudless days last fall, a beautiful glowing sunset graced the Salt Lake Valley. Since I had been watching the weather for weeks, waiting for clouds to come, I was in position on the Bonneville Shoreline trail to capture it.
The Wave!
I didn’t have a whole lot going on in 2020, but in July I was lucky enough to get a permit to go to Coyote Buttes on the Utah and Arizona border. I had been before, but it’s always been a dream of mine to go back and get a shot with water in the bowl area. In an unlucky year, luck came through again for this trip and I got the shot I had waited 8 years for since I first found out about this special area. While I waited for the sun to get in the right spot, I searched for interesting compositions in the delicate and beautiful sandstone.
Climbing through the fog
After an incredibly dry winter, it was so refreshing to finally get some snow in mid January. This storm brought in some fog, which is pretty rare for Salt Lake City. I hiked the Bonneville Shoreline Trail to capture some portraits of these stark trees in the conditions that I had been waiting nearly 2 years for. I don’t know what species they are, but they remind me of bristlecone pines: growing roots in the harshest conditions on the steepest slopes, and thriving to grow into beautiful shapes.