The most hidden and inaccessible places of the world often contain its most astonishing landscapes. Close to the Grand Canyon, but much more rarely seen, Arizona’s Vermilion Cliffs are one such area. This parched desert of swirling, stratified rock is still relatively unknown, thanks to its hazardous terrain, inhospitable climate, dangerous wildlife and the restrictions imposed on visitors by the National Park authorities.
Low Earth Orbit #04: Vermilion Cliffs from Tristan Greszko on Vimeo.
Avoiding the dangers of exploring in person, filmmaker Tristan Greszko took advantage of aerial drone technology (shortly before it was banned in America’s National Parks) to film the Cliffs from above. The use of helicopter drones allowed him to view the land from an entirely new perspective and Gresko’s footage of the 85-million-year-old Navajo rock formations, vast crevasses and soaring peaks reveals an otherworldly landscape of bulbous curves and undulating layers, cracked, puckered and peculiarly reminiscent of elephant skin…