White Pockets

White Pocket within Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

Took a quick trip with Fredo and Vishal to White Pocket, just about five hours north of Phoenix. Vermilion Cliffs National Monument is near Page, Arizona. I just want to highlight that we left on time, lol. I guess being a group of three is easier. Anywho...

Once we got there, the “hike” to White Pocket was only about 200 meters from the parking lot. So, we could make multiple trips back and forth to the truck. I didn’t take my camera on the first round over, and my god, it was beautiful. The rock formations, the colors, the textures—the smooth and rough rocks made it easy to walk barefoot. I truly felt grounded. I noticed Fredo’s excitement was high as he hopped and climbed all over the area. That boy was living!

We went back to the truck to actually unload our stuff and set up camp. We rested for a bit, grabbed my camera and tripod, and then headed back to the pockets.

Observing and playing with the little details within nature felt like being on top of giant conchas.

Of course, I had to take some self-portraits. Sometimes I get asked if I’m going to take some nude self-portraits during these hiking adventures. I’m actually not comfortable yet taking self-portraits with people around. It’s something I like doing alone or if I know there isn’t anyone around to see me.

These would have been so beautiful in the nude, but I do have boundaries for myself and others. Maybe a solo trip back?

The sun was starting to set, bringing out the warm colors. The wavy pocket areas were too crowded for me to take many pictures, which is cool. The colors popped out a lot more during the first round when I didn't have my camera. So, I guess I do have to come back!

Fredo was shooting some epic shots with his drone on top of this peak. We decided to watch the sunset from there. Vishal had some difficulty getting up, but he did it! I set up my tripod across the small peak so we could get some shots of us together.

We got out our beers—just some brews and bros enjoying the sunset.

Then the dusk light came through and brought out hints of purples. Like, bruhhhh... AND then it turned to light blue...

There is just so much of Arizona that I haven’t explored yet. I'm so thankful to have these places nearby and friends willing to go on these adventures. Lots of improvising or just going with the flow. I didn’t even set up a tent; I just slept in the back of the truck.

I also took a stab at astrophotography. Not bad for my first attempts, but I still have a lot to learn. I'll leave you with these space photos.

All Photos taken with my Sony A7III, Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II Lens. Edited in Camera Raw / Adobe Bridge