The Booby Hatcher: May 2015

Neon Canyon. Grand Staircase - Escalante.

(Click images to view larger--best viewed large)

There’s an appeal in the relentless march of entropy—objects in nature decay and fall into patterns that are random and beautiful. To me, this is especially apparent in arid places, because with more water comes a tangle of plants that is too complicated for me to sort into compositions after 30+ years of squinting through a viewfinder at the arid West.

Eliot Porter, who masterfully photographed desert landscapes and wetter places, said:

“Much is missed if we have eyes only for the bright colors. Nature should be viewed without distinction… She makes no choice herself; everything that happens has equal significance. Nothing can be dispensed with. This is a common mistake that many people make: They think that half of nature can be destroyed — the uncomfortable half — while still retaining the acceptable and the pleasing side.” (Eliot Porter)

I think that part of what he is saying is that patterns in nature are perfect because they are both random and inevitable (and stop screwing them up!).

Over the years I've tried, and often failed, to capture the perfect random patterns in sandstone walls while wandering in Utah canyons. My mind is on the desert this week as I prepare to head to the Grand Canyon on Friday for my spring canyoneering trip, so I’m resurrecting my woefully inactive blog with images of canyon walls.