How much can I squeeze into a 2-1/4 x 2 inch box? Quite a bit, it seems.
I’m working on a huge and rather costly marketing plan for Flying M Air. My goal is to push the multi-day excursions Flying M Air offers in Arizona, as well as the new Lake Powell houseboat/helicopter photography excursions we’re planning for next spring.
The entire marketing strategy will include a DVD video which has already been accepted for broadcast on at least one California television station. We’ll be “filming” that in mid to late October.
Right now, I’m working on print advertising. Today, I created a 2-1/4 inch wide by 2 inch tall advertisement for the Travel Directory of a relatively popular magazine. The challenge was to have a catch headline, say as much as I could about the excursions, show a photo, and provide contact information — all using my company’s “branded” color scheme and design. You’re looking at the result.
I created the ad in InDesign CS3 using design elements from my original brochure, which was designed by David Van Ness. The font is Optima, which is the “official” Flying M Air font. The photo is of Gregory Butte on Lake Powell, taken by my husband, Mike, a few years ago. I placed it at a 3° angle with a white frame and drop shadow to mimic the design on the brochures and Web site. Although it might not seem that way, the ad is legible — even by me! — when printed. It should look great on the page beside ads for the Amazon and Galapagos.
My next task is to freshen up the Flying M Air Web site with some new images and up-to-date pricing. I hope to get to that sometime this week.
I figure that I probably save at least $10,000/year by being able to do my own layout work. Once David created the basic design for my brochure, I was able to modify it as necessary for the Web site, business cards, rack cards, print and online ads, and other brochures. Best of all, since I have complete control over all documents, I can make changes whenever it’s time to reprint.
Anyone else out there handing all their business marketing needs? Want to share any ideas with the rest of us?
The first point isn’t even on the lake. Horseshoe Bend (A) is a horseshoe-shaped curve in the river a few miles downstream from the dam. It’s often photographed from the viewpoint at the outside “top” of the bend, which you can walk to from a parking area right off Route 89. Here’s a photo I took today from the overlook.
The Glen Canyon Dam (B) is the dam that keeps all the water in the lake. It’s accompanied by a bridge a few hundred feet downstream that crosses Glen Canyon. From the air, you can get good views of both.
Gregory Butte (G) stands out in my mind primarily because of its photogenic qualities. If you’re flying uplake early in the day and take a photo up Last Chance Canyon with Gregory Butte in the foreground…well, you get the photo you see here. It’s one of my favorite views of the lake. This shot was taken by my husband on one of our first helicopter trips to the lake together. The water level is a bit higher right now. If it rises some more, Gregory will become an island.
Everyone wants to see Rainbow Bridge (J) from the air. Everyone, that is, except those who know better.
If you don’t know what Antelope Canyon is, you’ve probably never read Arizona Highways or seen any of the “typical” Arizona photos out there on the Web. As 
Lower Antelope Canyon is downstream from upper. It has far fewer visitors. I think it’s more spectacular — with corkscrew-like carvings and at least two arches — but I also think it’s harder to photograph. It’s also far more difficult to traverse, requiring climbing up and down iron stairs erected at various places inside the canyon, clambering over rocks, and squeezing through narrow passages. For this reason, the Navajo caretakers don’t really limit your time in Lower Antelope Canyon. You slip through a crack in the ground — and I do mean that literally (see photo left) — and are on your own until you emerge from where you descended or from the long, steep staircase (shown later) that climbs out before the canyon becomes impossible to pass.
I went to Lower Antelope Canyon with my next door neighbor and fellow pilot, Robert, today. It had been a whole year since 
We arrived at about 11:20 AM and the place was unusually crowded. But Lower Antelope Canyon is large and everyone spread out. Most folks only made the walk one way, taking the stairs up and hiking back on the surface. We would have done the same, but we ran out of time. We were in there until 2:30 PM; Robert had to be at work by 4 PM.
We made our way through the canyon slowly, stopping to take photos along the way. Positioning the tripods was extremely difficult sometimes, as the canyon floor was often only wide enough for a single foot to stand in it. My tripod really hindered me, but I made it work. I think Robert (shown here) had an easier time with his. We were two of dozens of photographers, most of which were very polite and stayed clear of other photographer’s frames. This is the biggest challenge at Upper Antelope Canyon. I find it stressful up there, as I told a trio of photographers from Utah. Lower Antelope Canyon is much more relaxing.
Near the end of the canyon walk, I was worn out. It wasn’t the hike as much as the struggle to find the right shots and get the tripod into position. I felt as if I’d had enough. So when we reached the last chamber before the canyon got very narrow (and muddy) and I laid eyes on those stairs, I realized it would definitely be better to take the easier route back. I took this shot with my fisheye lens, which was the only way to get the entire staircase in the shot. If you look closely, you can see Robert’s head poking out near the top.
I took about 95 photos while in the canyon. Some of the better ones — along with some to illustrate the story — are here. There’s a better collection in my Photo Gallery’s new