Thanks guys, I will share the pics although unfortunately its still months away. I just entered a lottery just to get a day permit to enter Coyote Buttes North in order to see "The Wave" Thats how popular it is! Some photos from Bryce National park look absolutely incredible!

Hi Kanuck I think you going to have a fantastic trip, I wish that I was along for the drive. I hope that going back from Arches National Park that are still going down to Monument Valley and then down to hwy 40 and actually you could see Hoover Dam before getting back to Vegas.

Pete

BTW don't forget to share some pictures after the Trip

That sounds like a lot of fun, Kanuck. I don't think you'll regret squeezing Arches in. That's one of my favorite places on earth. I've got family along that 8-hour drive—an uncle that lives in Blanding and runs a trading post in Bluff and then my grandparents and an aunt that live in Monticello.

Sorry, Pete, I'm no help with coyote buttes. Earlier this year I went to Zion for the first time in my life, and we didn't go further than the eastern boundary of the park. I've never been to south-central Utah—just southeast and southwest.

Thanks Jonnyapple and Pete it looks like I'll be starting in Las Vegas then driving 166 miles of 3 hours to Zion National Park. From there I'll head to Bryce Canyon National Park 116 miles 3 hours and spending a few days in these areas. Next up, I'll drive 150 miles again to Coyote Buttes which is 4 1/2 hrs back to Arizona. Lastly I finish up my trip In Utah again going up to Arches National Park is a whopping 8 hours/ 40 minutes or 401 miles. I'll head back to Las Vegas from Arches where I will fly home. Sounds like the killer will be getting to Arches National Park but its going to be fun! :)

I bought some film and got it in the fridge all ready to go and an extra 8GB memory SD card yesterday^^

kanuck said:
Hey Pete one last thing, you mentioned earlier in this post that Zion and Bryce national parks are on the way to Arches national park. I read that Zion is 2 1/2 hours from Las Vegas. Are both parks really on the route to Arches National Park or way off the beaten path? I have also decided to add Coyote Buttes to my list of dream landscapes to see on this trip. I want to see "The Wave" in particular. I read that groups of 20 are allowed to see it.

Anyway, Coyote Buttes is in the same area as Zion park, maybe app an hour apart, I have not seen it. Maybe our local guy Jonny have been there, you know if time allows for it, on the way back from Monument Valley you could stop by for a view of the Grand Canyon even though it is full of people

Pete

Heading up to Zion will probably add about an hour of driving time. You would go through Zion and then past Glen Canyon dam (you'd miss Hoover Dam, though, which is a really impressive place).

Through Zion

Through Zion, Bryce, Monument Valley, and Arches edit: removed dirt road part. ;-)

Past Hoover Dam

Hey Pete one last thing, you mentioned earlier in this post that Zion and Bryce national parks are on the way to Arches national park. I read that Zion is 2 1/2 hours from Las Vegas. Are both parks really on the route to Arches National Park or way off the beaten path? I have also decided to add Coyote Buttes to my list of dream landscapes to see on this trip. I want to see "The Wave" in particular. I read that groups of 20 are allowed to see it.

wow thats gotta be some sort of joke I'm sure....

Give it to me for Christ sake!

lol. People will never cease to amaze me with their stupidity.

ROFL!!!

Hey why don't I have $2000 to spend on "cartridge" cameras...

I really hope this is not serious...

Im pretty sure that is a joke. He must be the stupidist person ever. Everyone out there that isnt in knowledge of digital media or DSLRs still know of film. Film disposiable cameras, or what ever. They grew up with it. Not knowing what film is.. that is just remarkable if hes being completely serious.

I hope that's a joke. '...a cartridge of tape...' Hahaha!

You guys got to see this!! LOL !! I just cant stop laughing !! http://www.amazon.com/review/R28UVQ0O5MLTNL

Yes I also get tired of the "film is todays new technology" but people who shoot it know that its results are still pretty hard to beat. Chris Lange is right black white digital prints really need to be done with an epensive printer/inks to equal those prints of Tmax iso 400 or the amazing ilford pan goods. I love both and will shoot both now in the future with two bodies again. ^^

oh niko, I don't hate on digital, I was shooting my girlfriend's D90 the other day with no qualms whatsoever, had that thing tuned to my preferred bw settings in about 2 minutes.

it's just that black and white inkjet sucks, and

and undoubtedly, cost to performance ratio, a $400 RB67 or Pentax 67 kit will run any digital kit into the ground. Also, it saves me from backing up data, I just have binders of the original negatives that I can rescan at any size necessary for any print.

show me a 35mm (so as to keep the field of view the same) lens that can give depth of field like this and I'll consider DX digital over 6x7:

ilford pan f+ @ 50, 105/2.4, pentax 6x7.

Damn kids! They're ruining it for all of us real photographers! I'm actually very amazed by how these youngsters are hating on digital (grimace at Chris Lange) and make film seem like the "newer" technology. Film is so yesterday! Been there, done that :^)

What about a F80?

Yes you have to be comfortable with it for sure. Especially if you are visiting such a great location and want to get great exposures. My primary camera will still be my D700 and I want to pay under $400 for my film body. It has to be easy to use and light. The F90 and F100 sound like the way to go for me, but recently where I live it has become trendy to own film bodies again as well as rangefinders especially among students. So prices have gone skyhigh! The F100 might be over $600 if you can imagine.

But how comfortable you are shooting with it, IS important..

ChrisLange said:
When it comes to film, the body is far less important than in digital, in all reality, it's just a box with a shutter.

photos from a 1970s vintage nikkormat won't look any different than those from an F6. Just keep this in mind.

what matters is your film and processing, or your lab if you use one. don't shoot seriously and then drop your film at wal-mart or whatever. If you care about your film, do it yourself, or bring/send it to a real lab.

yeah this is such a strange thing to come to terms with when shooting with film bodies. The only limitation I have with my FTN is the 1/1000th shutter speed limit. Past that, it's an absolute pleasure to shoot with and I have no reason to want to upgrade. Actually that's not the only limitation, no hotshoe either, so I had to get a bracket, but I hardly ever use flash, except for class assignments that require it, so not really a big deal.

Pete I'll have to look into that in my local camera district then looks interesting...

Chris once again you are right can you imagine? Shoot a roll of expensive slide film and then drop it off at Walmart! That would be like buying a porsche and then filling it up with crappy gasoline. Fortunately I have a pro who can do my prints in his shop. I have made giant prints with him before and his colors are great.

When it comes to film, the body is far less important than in digital, in all reality, it's just a box with a shutter.

photos from a 1970s vintage nikkormat won't look any different than those from an F6. Just keep this in mind.

what matters is your film and processing, or your lab if you use one. don't shoot seriously and then drop your film at wal-mart or whatever. If you care about your film, do it yourself, or bring/send it to a real lab.

kanuck said:
I have a neutral grad .8 which is almost pure black so I am hoping this will be alright for the desert. I wanted a 10 but I believe only Lee Filters makes them so I'd have to order it online. Yes I heard infrared film would literally cook in my car! It would be cool to use though.

Great deal on that F5! $200! However, I don't want that body because its a brick like a D3, D2H etc. I love the size of the F6 but hey, its almost the same price as a D700. Thats so expensive it better be your primary body. I still want that F100^^.

Hi There I was thinking about a filter to take Infrared pictures with your D700, like in this link

http://www.jpgmag.com/stories/71

Pete

I have a neutral grad .8 which is almost pure black so I am hoping this will be alright for the desert. I wanted a 10 but I believe only Lee Filters makes them so I'd have to order it online. Yes I heard infrared film would literally cook in my car! It would be cool to use though.

Great deal on that F5! $200! However, I don't want that body because its a brick like a D3, D2H etc. I love the size of the F6 but hey, its almost the same price as a D700. Thats so expensive it better be your primary body. I still want that F100^^.

No joke! Cheapest I found so far was $900. Guess that's why I still don't own one. I'm in no rush though, I will win.