It has been a little warm lately where I am in Santa Fe, NM so I thought I would cool things down a bit with some snow and the nice warm sandstone of Southern Utah.

"Winter Sunset at Delicate Arch" - Utah
Click on above photo for larger view and for info on purchasing a print.
 

This was photographed on a particularly cold January day in 2009, with the snow-capped La Sal Mountains in the background.

I hiked out there with my friend and fellow photographer Paul Blackmore from Massachusetts. It was our first time photographing here.

The hike to reach the arch was quite dangerous - a narrow sheet of ice with huge drop-offs in some places. We saw a few people slip and lose their balance, but fortunately no one got hurt. Knowing we would be staying and photographing until far after the sun set, we had already agreed we were finding a safer way to hike out and avoid that ice, which we did.

A HD High Definition panoramic video view of photographing at Delicate Arch at sunset.
(If video above doesn't auto load, click here to watch).
 

We certainly were not alone for this sunset. As the day progressed, more and more photographers showed up as seen in the above video. So we found our spots and sat and waited for the light in the company of fellow photographers from around the world.

Most people left following the sunset. Paul and I - as well as some other photographers - knew a full moon was going to rise shortly after the sunset and felt it would yield to some great photos.

"Delicate Arch Night Light" - Utah
Click on above photo for larger view and for info on purchasing a print.
 

The above photo is a 6-minute exposure. The light on the arch is from 3 different light sources: a full moon off camera on the horizon, hand-held flashes, and flash lights were all used to illuminate the scene and give a different perspective on a popular place to photograph.

So you are interested in purchasing one of my fine art photographs? That is wonderful news and I have posted a page on my website that explains just how easy it is to purchase one or more of my photographs.

"Sunrise at Dead Horse Point" - Utah
Only one collector in Pennsylvania owns this stunning Suess Original

Purchasing a photograph from me is a great investment that will provide you with a lifetime of enjoyment. Did you know that I offer these incredible Guarantees?

• A 30-Day Money Back Guarantee
• A Lifetime No-Fade Guarantee 
• Free Shipping Worldwide

I also only use the finest materials and professional labs to produce my photographs, guaranteeing you museum-grade quality and an image printed exactly the way I intended it to be.

I offer 3 different presentations and most photos are available in a variety of sizes, from 8"x12" prints to pieces that measure 10 feet in width. 

I also offer 3 different ways to order: via phone, ordering direct online, or at one of my exhibitions.

Photographs are available signed and numbered. Some photographs are extremely rare and available only in editions of just one print, while others are available in open and limited editions.

And lastly my popular Photo of the Month is a great opportunity to save. Each month I feature a different photo available at a fantastic price in any available size.

You can read more about my policies and find information on how to place your order here.

Happy Shopping :)

"Smiling Billy" - Arizona
Click on photo for a larger view and for info on purchasing a print.

It was photographed mid-day and my intention from the start was to create a gritty HDR image.

HDR photography involves taking multiple exposures and then blending them on the computer using special software. “Smiling Billy” was created using 6 different exposures, allowing me to retain detail in dark shadows as well as bright highlights. I used Nik Software’s HDR Efex Pro software (for a discount on all of Nik’s software titles use software code: mattsuess ) to blend all 6 photos together after I exported the RAW files from Lightroom.

Here is what one of the photos looked like with a normal mid-range exposure.
Six different exposures were eventually combined for the HDR image.

Once I was done blending the exposures and making many adjustments in Nik’s HDR Efex Pro software, I then took the exported file and opened it up in Nik’s Color Efex Pro software for some additional creative modifications.
 

A few more tweaks in Photoshop got me to where I was very satisfied with the truck, garage, foreground and background, with the exception of the sky. The blue sky just wasn’t working for me, acting more like a big distraction than anything.

The photo is just about complete at this point, however I just am not satisfied with the blue sky.

Using a photo texture from FlyPaper Textures, I blended the texture into the sky, adjusting the color, contrast, and the feeling until I was satisfied with the results. Looking at the final results on the top of this page, you can notice that I chose a texture that complimented the shrubs on the hill. This allowed the textured sky to blend in with the hill in the background and complete the feel I was looking for in this photo.

Want to learn how to do this type of creative work to your own photos?
Consider taking one of my photography workshops.