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On a Mission with Mish:  Photography Adventures

3/4/2025

4 Comments

 
 Capturing beautiful images in southern Utah and Great Basin National Park with friend and photographer Mike Shedlock.
Picture
Mike Shedlock (Mish) photographing in Pine Creek, Zion National Park.
Related
MishMoments - Joy of Photography

Angels Landing - Zion
Southern Utah Hikes
The Subway - Zion
Great Basin NP
Quote
"Ancora imparo."  (translates to "I'm still learning").
         - Michelangelo

One day a photographer who read my Golden Cathedral via Beeline Trail hike post contacted me through Explorumentary.  Mike Shedlock, AKA Mish, wanted to know if Fred and I would join him on another trip to this awesome sky-lit cathedral at the end of Neon Canyon in April, just in time for the spring leafing of the cottonwood trees.

Since then, we have gone on several photo adventures in southern Utah, including Water Canyon in Canaan Mountain Wilderness, Zion National Park, and a few petroglyph sites.  On our second trip to Stella Lake in Great Basin National Park, we caught the perfect dusk sky, arriving just in time after hurrying up the trail from the famous thousands-years-old bristlecone pines.
​
​You've got to be on your toes when photographing with Mish.  He sets up fast, knows his camera really well, and has a schedule - especially if we are to get to a place in time for the perfect light.  He is a combined artist and superlative technician.

Getting out with Mish has been good for me and Fred, who patiently waits and takes in the beautiful scenery while Mish and I create.  It's motivated me to get out with my Sony DSLR camera more often and learn how to use it.  I was a Canon girl before.

We are talking about a trip to Cosmic Ashtray in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument this spring.

Check out MishMoments - Joy of Photography for some spectacular images of southern Utah, Iceland, night skies, "everything water" and more.  Here are a few images I have gotten so far, some with Mish's help.
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Picture
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Fred squeezing through the "secret passage" to the waterfall and pool along Zion's Pine Creek (image below).
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Pine Creek in Zion National Park.
The walk into this steep-walled canyon is through white sands and huge boulders.
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A second trip to Pine Creek.
Temperatures in Zion NP dip into the 20's at night in December.

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Autumn in Zion National Park.
Mish knows the best places to photograph.

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We had to climb a short, slippery, ice-filled slope to get closer to these icicles in Pine Creek.
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Water Canyon in Canaan Mountain Wilderness, south of Zion National Park.
There's no trail markers in this gorgeous wilderness that is known well by "locals."

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This woman in the blue dress scrambled up these slippery falls like she's done it many times before.
Photographed at 0.5 seconds making woman out of focus, ISO = 250, f 16

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Golden Cathedral at the end of Neon Canyon.
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Reflections of Wheeler Peak (right) and Doso Doyabi (left) in Stella Lake - Great Basin National Park.
Wheeler Peak's summit is 13,065' - the second-tallest in Nevada.  There's a great trail to its summit.
Nevada's only glacier lies at the base of Wheeler Peak.

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We found big and beautiful Joshua trees in the Beaver Dam Mountains near Ivins, Utah.
Nevada's Mormon Mountain range is in the background.
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Mish and Sue at the Rattlesnake petroglyph.
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Metate Arch in Devils Garden - Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument - Utah.
Grand Staircase is my favorite place to explore because it has few paved roads.  Most adventures require a rugged vehicle, lots of patience and navigation ability, and a lot of wanderlust.
I added "sky replacement" in Photoshop.

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Ancient Bristlecone Pine grove in Great Basin National Park's quartzite.
These thousands-years old trees are fascinating and tough, withstanding freezing temperatures and ferocious winds that twist them into almost human gestures.
They are the largest non-clonal species on the planet, and extremely rare.
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Doso Doyabi (Shoshone language for "white peak") and its reflection in Stella Lake.
This peak was formerly named Jeff Davis Peak.  
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Someday (soon?)
Mojave Desert near Nipton, California in the Ivanpah Valley.
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Virgin River Gorge petroglyphs.
This huge boulder is near the da Vinci panel petroglyphs.
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Blooming yuccas on the Skyline Trail in the San Jacinto Mountains above Palm Springs, California.
I included this shot with my iPhone because it's one of my favorites.
4 Comments
Larry Blake link
3/4/2025 05:15:05 pm

Beautiful pictures! Great that your blog brought you such a talented friend.

Reply
Sue link
3/4/2025 07:56:18 pm

Thanks Larry!
And it was great to meet you and Marcy because you contacted me from my blog. I haven't been able to make it to Tucson - yet!
Mish is really talented and it's fun and a huge challenge to photograph with him. It shows me how hard it is to take great images - the work and talent that goes into it. I hope you looked at Mish's photography site! Looking forward to reading your next post!!

Reply
Linda Paul
3/28/2025 07:28:25 am

How wonderful to be in the aura of another fine photographer with passion for the craft. I can see from your images, how much he has inspired you.

Reply
Sue link
3/29/2025 06:56:03 am

Thanks Linda - passion is the perfect word - especially describing Mish's attitude toward creating beautiful images with his camera. And I have the passion too - have to keep practicing!

Reply



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    About this blog

    Exploration documentaries          –  "explorumentaries"  list trip stats and highlights of each hike or bike ride, often with some interesting history or geology.  Years ago, I wrote these for friends and family to let them know what my husband, Fred and I were up to on weekends, and also to showcase the incredible land of the west.  
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    About the Author
    Sue Birnbaum

    A  trip to Jumbo Rocks Campground in Joshua Tree National Monument 40 years ago sparked my passion for hiking, exploring, and learning about desert ecosystems.  I met my husband Fred on Mt. San Jacinto.  We've explored the American West together; we love this land and I hope to inspire you to get out and explore through my photographs and trip descriptions.
    In 1992, Ray Wilson and I conceived the first Cactus to Clouds hike which climbs over 10,000 feet in one day to the summit of Mt. San Jacinto near Palm Springs, California.
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    Some of my favorite websites:
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    ​Awkward Botany
    ​amateur botany for the phytocurious

    Bird and Hike

    ​"Intended to encourage people to visit, learn about, and fall in love with the desert."
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    Draw and Shoot
    Beautiful Photography

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    "Interesting places you can visit with a daypack."  Terrific Tucson and other desert hikes and East Coast, too.


    Earthline: The American West
    Debra "writes to extol our beloved Earth." Detailed hike info, excellently written.
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    Geologypics.com
    Geology and Geologic Time through Photographs

    Glenn Suokko
    Vermont artist's paintings "inspired by a place based on the land .... drawn to painting the representation and abstraction of nature."

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    MishMoments:  Joy of Photography
    this website is "
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    Nature's Depths
    Walking through nature with John Palka, a neuroscientist who loves plants and ponders big questions.


    Rangewriter - What Comes Next?
    ​Linda's excellent writing brings to life her interesting adventures, "curiosities and thoughts", post-retirement.

    SeekingLost - Hiking and Backpacking Adventures.

    Stav Is Lost- Unconventional, out-of-the way hikes in the American West.


    Uprooted Magnolia
    ​Leah Yetter's beautiful "photo journal on life, love, and the spirit of Wyoming."

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© 2017 - 2025 by Sue Birnbaum.  Photos on this website are the sole property of Sue Birnbaum unless otherwise indicated.  Please receive permission before publishing my trip reports and photos.
I try my best to be accurate with my hike descriptions; please research your adventures, always bring a map and compass and know how to read them, be prepared!  All of these hikes can be dangerous; hike at your own risk.  ALWAYS carry the Ten Essentials with you on hikes. 
​Please feel free to contact me with comments or questions, or if you see any errors that need attention.
Thank-you for stopping by!


EXPLORUMENTARY.com
  • Home
    • Cactus to Clouds Hike
    • Grand Canyon Rim to Rim - Hikes and Training
    • More Quotes
    • Ann Zwinger Quotes
    • Mary Oliver Poems
  • Hikes by State
    • Southern Utah
    • Idaho
    • Arizona
    • California Desert
    • Nevada
    • Wyoming and New Hampshire
  • Petroglyphs and Pictographs
  • BLOG
    • Adventure Blog
  • GALLERY
    • DESERT PLANTS >
      • Beavertail cactus
      • Brittlebush
      • Christmas Cactus
      • Arizona Barrel Cactus
      • Parry's penstemon
      • Agave
      • Arizona Rainbow Hedgehog
      • Claret Cup Hedgehog
      • Desert Agave
      • Palmer's Penstemon
      • Silver Cholla
      • Cristate Saguaro
      • Indian Paintbrush
      • Ocotillo
      • Santa Rita Prickly Pear
      • Spiny Cliffbrake
      • California Barrel Cactus
      • Engelmann Prickly Pear
      • Velvet Mesquite
      • Joshua Tree
      • Buckhorn Cholla
      • Hedgehog Cactus
      • Fishhook cactus
      • Thompson's Woolly Locoweed
    • NATURE
    • BOISE
    • EARTH + SKY
    • URBAN
    • WATER
    • PATRIOT
    • ORCHIDS
  • Fit After 50
    • Brian Holgate
    • Fred Birnbaum
    • Dave Brasuell
    • Bus' Little Black Book
    • Mike Carlson
    • Ray Wilson
    • Bryan Krouse
    • Vickie Kearney
    • Maria Keezer
    • DOUG TRAUBEL
    • Boise Cross Fit Masters Ladies
    • Tim Clemens
    • Marcia Bondy
    • Becky Borczon Blake >
      • Becky B Downtown
    • Jennifer Cera and Sue Birnbaum
    • Dave Brasuell
    • Vance Powell
  • Contact