The pure joy of having a fixed compact capable of close focusing and wide open apertures to blur the background. Sometimes it just works.
Sometimes not.
Fujifilm X100 at ISO 200, f4, 1/850 second. Some contrast and sharpening adjustments in Apple Aperture.
Posted by Rey
2 Guys Photo 
Very impressive dof. I am going on a trip to Bryce, Zion and North Rim of Grand Canyon. I am very tempted to only take the X100 (so easy to hike with) but afraid I will miss something without my Nikon D90 28-300mm/10-24mm. I remember that you have shot those locations. Any thoughts on recommended equipment to carry?
Duane –
You have great gear for a great trip. Glad you have the ultra-wide zoom as that was definitely my most used lens when I hit those locations. Will you have a light weight tripod? Recommended. Since you’re shooting Nikon and there’s a built in intervalometer, you might want to experiment with some time lapse. There are some great instructional vids on the ‘net. Sunrise and sunset shots using time lapse out int hat locale would be fantastic. Another recommendation might be to have a cotton carrier or blackrapid or spider holster style strap. Eases the burden of carrying the DSLR, especially if you’re doing some hiking. Finally, and I’m sure you know this… get up early. The sunrise shots will make it worthwhile. Focus on close subjects (interesting desert growth for example… and rock formations) during the middle of the day. Then, as the sun begins to drop and you progress toward golden hour and sunset, go for the big vista shots again. Taking only the X100 would be quite the challenge… but it’s possible. The in camera pano stitch feature would make the expansive landscape shots possible. Last idea – if you’ve not experimented with HDR yet, the D90 is a GREAT HDR camera because you can burst 3 shots at -2, 0, +2 all together. You’re going to big sky country which cry out for subtle (please) HDR treatment. Have a great trip. Let us know how it goes.
Rey