Pro offers tips for good Grand Canyon shots

If you’ve ever tried taking photographs of the Grand Canyon, you know it’s not as easy as you might have thought.

The January issue of National Geographic magazine features dramatic pictures of the canyon taken by photographer Michael Nichols, along with some recommendations for where in the park you can get the best shots.

“It doesn’t take technical expertise to shoot the Grand Canyon,” Nichols says. “It takes patience to get the right atmospherics and light.”

Nichols says Bright Angel Trailhead, a popular spot for visitors to the South Rim, is a good place to get images of the canyon after a fresh snow. There was snow when Nichols visited last May; roads are plowed to keep the South Rim accessible during winter.

Desert View – on the East Rim drive, about 25 miles east of the South Rim’s Grand Canyon Village – is a good spot to shoot sunsets and classic canyon rock formations, while Cape Royal – on the North Rim, about 23 miles southeast of Grand Canyon Lodge – is “the place to be at sunset,” Nichols says.

He recommends Toroweap Overlook – located on the northwest rim of the Grand Canyon in the Arizona Strip – for sunrises, for a view straight into the canyon and for pictures of the Colorado River’s Lava Falls.

Granite Rapids – located along the Tonto Trail between the Hermit and Bright Angel trails – is recommended for a shot of the canyon floor. Point Sublime – at the end of a 17-mile dirt road that starts near the North Rim, best reached on a four-wheel drive vehicle – is a good place to shoot incoming storms.