Tony Maples Featured on Good Morning America

Behind the Scenes with Good Morning America

I’ve spent more than a decade teaching and photographing the Big Bend region of Texas. Through workshops, fine art, and timelapse work under its pristine night skies, the area has become a major part of my life and work. I even lived there full-time for a year while managing the Summit at Big Bend. These days, I still find myself down there for weeks or months at a time, whether I'm leading photography workshops, shooting new content for the Summit (where I’m still the creative director), or simply chasing the kind of light and sky that never seem to exist anywhere else.

Big Bend is where I truly fell in love with photographing the night sky. And this past week, I had the opportunity to share that love on national television with Good Morning America.

One of my favorite locations in the area 

GMA is doing a special series for America’s 250th birthday, featuring all 50 states in the order they were admitted to the Union. When it came time to showcase Texas, they somehow came across the Summit at Big Bend and my work. They reached out to the Summit to help organize a stay and a live segment with Michael Strahan. The crew would be staying on-site, and the segment would air live at sunrise on Friday, January 23.

They brought me in as their night sky guide, someone to help tell the story of Big Bend's incredible skies and landscape. It was an honor.

Ian (one of the owners of The Summit) Michael Strahan, myself - Tony Maples. Yes they are both crazy tall especially next to me 😂

Filming started on Tuesday the 20th and ran nonstop until the segment aired Friday morning. It was fast, packed, and incredibly rewarding. Our first shoot location was what we call the “Big Hill” off FM 170 River Road, a favorite view in Big Bend. It’s got everything I think of when I imagine this place. Volcanic canyon walls, the Rio Grande running below, and lush vegetation along the river. Most importantly, it is also easy enough to get the crew and gear to, which helped a lot.

That first night, we shot some hero shots and interview segments. I walked through how I capture timelapses, what gear I use, and why I love shooting in Big Bend. But the sky never cleared. The clouds rolled in and neither the timelapses I shot nor the ones the crew worked on turned out.

So the next night, I went back out on my own. I stayed out late and reshot what we needed.

About a 3 hour timelapse from Big Hill on night 2

On Thursday, Michael Strahan arrived. I met him outside one of the Summit’s cave rooms with an 8-inch Dobsonian telescope. We looked at Jupiter and its moons, Saturn, Betelgeuse, and Rigel. Then we talked about the night sky, conservation, the importance of red lights to preserve night vision, and how far away those stars really are.

For me, it was a moment of reflection. This area, the land has been so good to me. My first journey to Big Bend was my first trip outside my hometown to capture photos, pushing me to my limits and igniting my drive to improve. I returned to teach, and again to run The Summit. This land really has shaped my life's journey for the last decade. At this moment, I was standing in a place that’s deeply personal to me, sharing it with someone who had never seen it before. That kind of moment never gets old. Michael was so kind and genuine - signed a hat for my father and asked for my contact info to pick up some art which was just too cool. Even if there's no follow-through it's the attitude and gesture that made my experience.  

Us chatting about the Big Bend night skies

Another segment focused on the beauty of the night sky and the importance of protecting it. I talked a bit about how to capture night photos using a camera or even a phone, but in the final cut, most of that became part of the bigger picture — just how powerful it is to experience true darkness and a sky filled with stars.

That felt right to me. Big Bend doesn’t need a lot of words. When you stand under that sky, it speaks for itself.

A crazy single frame from the Night 1 timelapse that got clouded out. Love seeing the moon, stars, and lingering sunset colors in the same frame.

The whole experience was humbling. I’ve had some great features over the years with manufacturers and brands I admire, but this was the first time my work was recognized on a national level. It meant a lot.

Big Bend and Terlingua are home for me. These are the places that shaped my work, my process, and the way I see the world. The skies out there have done more than inspire me. They've grounded me, challenged me, and reminded me to look up.

To be chosen to share that with the world was an incredible honor.

Friday morning during the live broadcast

Between the filming, editing, and coordinating with the crew, I probably slept about 11 hours in three days. I was also finalizing the relaunch of my website behind the scenes, trying to get everything ready in time for the segment going live. It was a lot. But it all came together!

If you’d like to see some of the limited edition work I’ve created from this region, you can take a look here. A few of the pieces are available as one-of-one prints. Others are part of carefully curated collections with small, exclusive print runs.

And if you’d like to watch the full segment, I’ve included the link below:

Thanks for reading, and for following my journey! If you’d like to see more of my work or behind-the-scenes updates, you can follow along on social media. I post regularly with new photos, process videos, and everything I’m working on out in the field.