Antelope Canyon suggestions, please: Going in late October, need suggestions on which tour is worth the money for photos/sightseeing. Thank you in advance for any and all replies.

John Hollis Loc: Kaufman, Texas

Going in late October, need suggestions on which tour is worth the money for photos/sightseeing. Thank you in advance for any and all replies.

gwilliams6

First of all you have two choices, Upper Antelope Canyon and Lower Antelope Canyon, both in Page, Arizona. Both are part of the the Navajo Nation Tribal Parks and they both are only accessible by Navajo-Guided tours for a tour fee.

They were both closed for awhile during the worst of the pandemic as covid hit the Navajo tribes hard. Both are open again for reserved tours run by various Navajo tour outfits.

If you choose Lower Antelope Canyon, IMHO the best tour group to use and the original Navajo tour group is Ken's tours . They offer the standard tours, which last 60 minutes and can have up to 10-12 people in a group. Or you can pay a higher fee and get the Deluxe Tour, which is a max of six people and last 90 minutes. Ken's tour guides know all the tips to get the best photos .
https://www.lowerantelope.com/

There are no longer any dedicated photo tours anymore at either Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon. These dedicated photo tours took a lot of time as each photog with their tripod would set up for staged shots in the canyons as the guides would throw up sand into the beams of light coming down. It just wasn't cost effective anymore to do for the tribes, as it was clogging up the canyons and reducing the number of tours possible each day.

No worry as you can still take your camera, but no tripods allowed. You can easily make great shots handheld in either canyon. I have done both and they are each bucket-list worthy, with or without the crowds.

For Lower Antelope Canyon you will need to be able to descend down some steps into Lower Antelope Canyon and then you will slowly navigate with your guide through and back up out of the canyon. For Upper Antelope canyon you will enter at ground level and walk through with your guide. If any in your group have physical issues, then Upper could be easier to do. I did Lower with no problem at age 69.

I will post shots from Lower first, then from Upper.

(Download)

gwilliams6

Some shots from Upper Antelope Canyon. And we had time, so after touring Upper Antelope our Navajo guide took us to another smaller slot canyon nearby and we made some other great shots, including this first shot, a shot with Environmental Scientist Brooke H. that was chosen as a Worldwide Photo of the Week by Sony Alpha Photographers in 2020.

Cheers

(Download)

gwilliams6

Good news, since you are going in October, you will miss the huge summer crowds.

You will want to take one camera (no backpacks or big camera bags allowed) with a wide angle or wide angle zoom lens. It is very dusty there so you dont want to be changing lenses in either Upper or Lower Antelope Canyon. No flash. You could take a compact camera also with your bigger camera.

For most of my shots I took a Sony fullframe mirrorless body, A9, or A7RIV and my Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 lens, and Sony 10mm-18mm f4 lens. . Wider is better, as you can always crop later. Try to go at a time of day when the sunlight is overhead so it filters down into the canyons. Make your tour reservations accordingly, in advance.

The lighting and your exposures will change as you go through the canyons and the amount and direction of light changes. Using an averaged exposure, most modern cameras have enough dynamic range to handle both the light and darker walls. You will shooting at ISO 400, 800 or even 1600 at times depending on your aperture. No worries about using slow shutter speeds, as the walls aren't moving at all.

Dont be afraid to shoot straight up if you have a blue sky, it can make some nice shots. Just keep the exposure averaged and you should be able to hold both highlights and shadows.

Cheers

gwilliams6

If you do decide on Lower Antelope, and this may be your only time you tour there forever, then IMHO yes Ken's Deluxe Tour offering with a max of six people is worth the extra costs. With the deluxe tour you will get 90 minutes to tour instead of the 60 minutes of the standard tour that could have 10-12 people in it.

Much less chance of getting other folks in your shots and that is important. All my Lower Antelope shots I posted were taken on a Deluxe Tour and the four folks in my group were all happy we paid the extra for it.

Hey I make no money for promoting any tour group here, just giving you my advice from my experience there over the past few years.

One note: if there is rain, they wont let you tour, as either canyon can have flash floods, not a risk anyone will take.

Cheers and enjoy it.

John Hollis Loc: Kaufman, Texas

Ok I found them and reading now. Thank you so much, looks like what I needed.
Thanks again

gwilliams6

John Hollis wrote:

Ok I found them and reading now. Thank you so much, looks like what I needed.
Thanks again

You are welcome, Cheers,

Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

gwilliams6 wrote:

Some shots from Upper Antelope Canyon. And we had time, so after touring Upper Antelope our Navajo guide took us to another smaller slot canyon nearby and we made some other great shots, including this first shot, a shot with Environmental Scientist Brooke H. that was chosen as a Worldwide Photo of the Week by Sony Alpha Photographers in 2020.

Cheers

Thank you for sharing such beautiful captures and first-hand great logistical info.
Smile,
JimmyT Sends
Bravo Zulu

GG50

Great shots. Appreciate the share!

gwilliams6

Jimmy T wrote:

Thank you for sharing such beautiful captures and ... (show quote)

You are welcome, Cheers

gwilliams6

GG50 wrote:

Great shots. Appreciate the share!

You are welcome, Cheers

mackolb

Your shared images are all FABULOUS! I went in 2015 and took the wrong tour. I did get a load of wonderful images but never got around to perfecting them. Time to open in Luminar Neo to see what I can do.
Again, thank you for sharing these wonderful images. I just put this trip back on my bucket list.

gwilliams6

mackolb wrote:

Your shared images are all FABULOUS! I went in 2015 and took the wrong tour. I did get a load of wonderful images but never got around to perfecting them. Time to open in Luminar Neo to see what I can do.
Again, thank you for sharing these wonderful images. I just put this trip back on my bucket list.

You are welcome, Cheers, enjoy your next trip

Hip Coyote

gwilliams6 wrote:

First of all you have two choices, Upper Antelope ... (show quote)

Very nice shots excellent advice.

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

John Hollis wrote:

Going in late October, need suggestions on which tour is worth the money for photos/sightseeing. Thank you in advance for any and all replies.

Both canyons are geourgouse. Goon on the smaller group tours. They are also other canyons in the area not as well known that are just as good of you can get on a tour of one.

Also the river tour is a great trip. It leaves from the bottom of the dam.