Acrophobia

Photographer:  Paul Lynch

Location: Grand Canyon  

Description:  As I was walking along the trail on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, I saw this scene… the problem was it was about 100 yards away and STRAIGHT DOWN. I’m honestly a little afraid of heights (Acrophobia) and I wasn’t sure I could climb down to where I needed to be to capture this moment. I decided to go slowly and get a little closer with each step. I finally got to a decision point where I had to climb down a rock wall to a rocky area right on the edge of the abyss. After a few quick calculations, I decided it was worth it and climbed down the wall. At the bottom, I saw one of the most beautiful pictures I’ve ever seen. I had rock walls on either side of me, the Grand Canyon as my main subject and the sun setting behind. For those interested in technical aspects of photography, this photo is a vertical panorama employing multiple techniques including HDR and focus stacking. For my Mom…Even though I was standing 6 inches from the EDGE to get this shot… the rock was super stable.