Imagine the angst I felt at the start of December planning my first trip to Joshua Tree National Park in California when I came across an arch called Ojo Oro that I could only find a small handful of people talking about online.

I spent some time looking for a location for this mysterious little arch but came up empty-handed. Still, I had to see it. I would see it.

This is the story of my off-trail hunt for Ojo Oro Arch.

It’s no secret that I love natural arches. If we’re going to be honest, though, they can be a challenging subject to shoot. Today I’d like to share 4 of my top tips for shooting natural arches.