Outdoor Photographer June/July 2021

Photographer: QT Luong Location: Zion National Park, Utah Equipment: Sony a7R II, Sony Vario-Tessar T* FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS Situation: Zion National Park is famous for its sheer cliffs and narrow canyons, but it’s also a remarkable oasis in the desert. One of my favorite places to photograph water and lush vegetation is the popular Emerald Pools Trail, where waterfalls flow over walls and alcoves. Lower Pool is a flat, half-mile, one-way hike from Zion lodge; each of Middle and Upper Pools adds another quarter mile and 200-foot elevation gain. In previous autumn visits, I had found colorful foliage, as red maples are abundant. However, the waterfalls were a trickle. I was hoping for spring runoff in mid-May. Although better than in the autumn, the waterfalls turned out not to be raging—one would…

This year, our annual issue dedicated to the national parks is a special double issue, packed with landscape and wildlife photo opportunities across the country. No matter where you live, you’ll find a national park just a road trip away, and we’ve included a selection of parks across the country to inspire your next adventure. QT Luong photographed all of our national parks for his award-winning book, Treasured Lands: A Photographic Odyssey Through America’s National Parks. In last year’s national parks issue, Luong took us on a visual journey to several of the country’s most unique parks. (If you missed it, see the article on our website.) This year, Luong gives us a more personal tour of 10 of his favorite parks from coast to coast, including a variety of geographies,…

QT Luong’s photographs are extensively published and have been the subject of large-format books, including Treasured Lands (winner of six national book awards), many newspaper and magazine feature articles, and solo gallery and museum exhibits across the U.S. See more of his work at terragalleria.com. West Virginia-based professional landscape photographer, author and workshop instructor Randall Sanger has been exploring his home state and beyond for over 20 years in search of grand vistas, majestic waterfalls and intimate forest scenes. His images have appeared in numerous publications. See more of his work at randallsanger.com. Charles Glatzer is a Canon Explorer of Light specializing in wildlife photography. His dynamic and inspirational teaching has also made him one of the most sought-after educators and keynote speakers in his field. Glatzer’s images and articles appear in…

White Sands National Park By Stephen Leonardi “White Sands National Park has to be one of the most beautiful places to watch a sunset. This was taken during my first visit there. I got a camping permit from the visitor center and then spent the whole day in the heat taking photos and time-lapses. “I had my tent set up and was ready for some night photography as the sun went down when I noticed a storm in the distance. I only had about three minutes to shoot before it began pouring. I started running around, packing my bags in the dark. I didn’t even have time to break down my tent, so I just grabbed it. I was climbing over sand dunes, not even sure what direction the parking lot was in…

An ideal option for long hikes when you don’t want to carry your full camera system, “superzoom” compact cameras are easy to stow in a day pack along with water, snacks, sunscreen and other trail essentials. Though their image sensors are smaller than those found in interchangeable-lens cameras, they make up for it with massive zoom ranges that can cover just about any scene. They’re also great as versatile backup cameras, to hand off to family and friends for point-and-shoot photo opportunities, or for sports and wildlife photographers looking for an affordable way to get extreme telephoto perspectives. Here are our top three superzoom options, each with its own unique advantages. INCREDIBLE CLOSE-UPS: CANON POWERSHOT SX70 HS The most budget-friendly of our top superzoom picks, the Canon PowerShot SX70 HS packs a generous 65x…

CANON DEVELOPING NEW PRO EOS R3 Canon has announced the development of a pro-grade camera in its full-frame mirrorless EOS R line that we expect will be a top choice for serious wildlife and sports photographers. The Canon EOS R3 is positioned between the Canon EOS R5 and the company’s flagship DSLR, the EOS-1D X Mark III, and will be its most advanced full-frame mirrorless camera yet, with design and performance features targeted at professionals. The Canon EOS R3 will feature an all-new stacked CMOS sensor with back-illumination that Canon states greatly improves readout speeds and reduces “rolling shutter” effects when shooting stills with the camera’s electronic shutter, which can shoot continuously at up to 30 fps—the fastest continuous shooting rate yet for an EOS R camera. Canon has not yet disclosed…