Straddling the border of northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah, and northwestern New Mexico lies the largest Native American Territory in North America, namely Navajo Nation. It's size (over 27,000 square miles) makes it larger than ten US states. The landscape that can be found there consists of desert, sand dunes, plateaus, mesas, buttes and mountains. The land is the color of sandstone (a beautiful orange) that contrasts wonderfully with blue skies, making it a great photographic destination. Perhaps the most desired location to photograph in Navajo Nation is the famed Monument Valley, with its unusual rock formations that have been given unique names by both Native Americans and settlers to the region.
Monument Valley was put on the map outside of Navajo Nation by movie director, John Ford, who filmed the first and one most famous western there in 1939, namely Stagecoach. It's start was a relatively known actor named John Wayne. Since then, many movies, commercials, television shows and music videos have been filmed there. Monument Valley is one of my favorite places and whenever I see it on film, I want to hop on a plane and visit it.