The first time I slept under the stars in Blacktail Canyon — a slot canyon at Mile 120 of the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon — was in 1998, when I was on an artists’ river trip. Dave Edwards, who was running the trip, invited me along as an assistant, and I spent my days doing camp chores, tying up boats and enjoying being in this beautiful place. That night in Blacktail, I looked up, and what I saw struck a chord deep inside me.
I was inspired by the canyon walls and the night sky coming through the narrow opening, which looked like the outline of a raven.
The sight stuck with me for years, and I found myself wanting to return to the Canyon, and Blacktail, as often as possible to sleep under those stars. I did whatever I could to get down into the “Big Ditch,” whether it was rowing boats on U.S. Geological Survey expeditions from 2002 to 2010 or rowing for private trips after that. I also worked as an assistant on a commercial trip and spent some time as a Grand Canyon National Park photographer.
But every time I tried to get back to Blacktail to make the photo that was in my head, something stood in my way. The stars had to align — literally. I was at the mercy of the Canyon’s unpredictable weather, and we often encountered rain or clouds while camping there. The photo also required my party to camp there for the night, but most of the time, we spent our nights at other locations. And the remoteness of this particular spot made for an additional challenge.
Finally, in 2017, I got my chance. I was rowing on a private trip with my friend Danny Giovale, and we spent the night in Blacktail under clear skies. I’m not the most adept at combining images, so this is a single exposure, and I used a flashlight to “paint” the canyon walls. Getting the focus right was a challenge, and I made several exposures to ensure everything was sharp. The resulting photo, which I call The Blacktail Night Raven, is one of my favorites, and I’m glad I was finally able to turn the photo I had in my mind into reality.