My bad. If the sun is coming up, the view is to the east. The view does not include the low desert in the distance (to the east), which is also impressive.

Very nice. We have been to the Cholla Cactus garden multiple times, but not in the early morning. I haven't seen look as nice as that.

The view to the east is also impressive.

“A 19-year-old boy reportedly died Saturday after falling off a cliff in Wayne County, Utah, while trying to take a picture.

Very unfortunate. It happens in the Grand Canyon several times a year and other similar places , too. I wish it didn't.

I am uncomfortable near severe drop-offs, mostly because I can I imagine myself falling over the edge.

Agreed.

"The way I understood it, Pickett protested against that "charge", which was more of a suicide walk. He followed orders and never forgave Lee for what happened to his men."

According to Ken Burns, the Union soldiers chanted "Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg" as they shot the Confederates.

Paybacks are hell.

Not everyone would see the problems I did, but may people who have spent a lot of time observing nature would.

The OP used AI to produce a landscape image and then asked what readers thought of it.

Some readers have commented negatively on technical aspects of the picture. My comments went to content. Those comments all directly address the OP's question. The picture is pleasant, but discerning viewers will see that some of what the AI did was problematic.

Some people, including you, like the picture. You and others are certainly entitled to like it. To each his own.

There is another problem: I think the AI put the wrong kind of birds in the water. In my experience Canada geese and herons like slow moving water. Water just down stream from a waterfall would be moving too fast for resting geese. It would also be moving too fast for the heron, which wants to grab motionless or non-moving prey in relatively clear water.

If you purchased a refurbished Canon lens, what has been your experience with it? Are you glad that you purchased refurbished instead of new?

The cog railway to the top of Pike's Peak was suggested above. It is a good suggestion. I took this trip and enjoyed it. It has a lot of good photo opportunities.

However, you need to watch the weather down below and at the top of the mountain. When we took the trip, it was sunny and clear up until the last 100 yards or so of elevation. At that point we entered a cloud, which was so thick that I couldn't get good pictures from ten feet way, let along the ground at the base of the mountain and beyond.

If you are driving north on Hwy 101, consider getting off at the scenic overlook on the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge. There are good photo opportunities at the overlook. Instead of immediately getting back on the highway, go under the highway to Conzelman Drive and head south and west to Vista Golden Gate. You can take pictures of San Francisco through the bridge there, just like so many others have done. Parking might be a problem. Continuing west on Conzelman Drive, take a right at the roundabout and park in the nearby parking lot. With a short hike up the hill there are more photo opportunities. Again, parking may be a problem.

This will probably take an hour or so. If you take McCollough Road to Bunker Road, you can leave the area through the Baker-Barry Tunnel and then proceed to Sausalito, which is a nice, small, bay-side city, before getting back on Hwy 101.

Consult Google maps for directions.

Tastes vary. I find the parts of coastal California north of San Francisco to be more scenic and relaxing than San Francisco, but San Francisco has some pretty fabulous things to see, photograph, and do (and, yes, some pretty nasty places and things to avoid).

There are also plenty of opportunities for rest stops, many of them featuring pleasant locally-made adult beverages.

Muir Woods, Point Reyes, and the Avenue of the Giants are all excellent. Muir Woods is probably two to three hours unless you want to spend more time hiking there. Get your appointment for parking three to four weeks ahead of the trip (there is no parking there without an online reserved parking time). Point Reyes could be a couple of days or three or four hours, depending on how much time you have (whales in April or so, an elk herd, and elephant seals can sometimes be seen). Avenue of the Giants is a slower, relaxing drive. It is the old Hwy 101 so you access it from that highway and it runs parallel to it.

One problem you may encounter near the ocean is misting. It makes long shots less clear than they would otherwise be.

That might be ok for practice, but it won't do much to build credibility and demonstrate professionalism. If you go that route to start, don't put it on your resume. Just saying.

We were there about three years ago. We enjoyed:

1. The Cholla Cactus Garden on the main rode leading to the south entrance/exit from the park
2. The Baker Dam area. The dam and pond were ok, but the trail through the Joshua trees was fun. Also, there was an area along the trail with petroglyphs, which were interesting.
3. Cap Rock and Skull Rock are interesting.

Hidden Valley was ok, but not great.

Keys View presents a nice panoramic view of Palm Springs and the adjoining cities in the valley, but it is a long drive for the short time you will spend there.

If you are driving north from Palm Springs, note the wind farm on the mountain in the distance. From a distance, the wind mills look remarkably similar to one of the Joshua tree forests, except the trees aren't white.

Try to get to the park at opening time to avoid crowds and parking hassles.