You recognize me as a rocket photographer, but I’m often asked about what I shoot when I’m not photographing a launch. In my blog, I’ll take you with me on some of my personal adventures with my camera, and dive into my life Behind the Lens.
Through writing, I’ll share pieces of life-changing, frightening, and always extraordinarily beautiful places and moments I’ve experienced. I think you’ll see that my passion for photographing rockets isn’t that far removed from my passion of photographing Earth. I’m an adventure photographer when I’m not a rocket photographer.
The greatest journeys I’ve been on, so far, have been in the South Western United States. The terrain is extraterrestrial. It’s not oversaturated with cities, I can drive a reasonable amount of time and get away from light pollution and busy interstates. The mountains have the most dynamic weather and environmental differences. You can be in the hottest part of the earth, Death Valley, and see snow-capped mountains on the horizon. There’ll be a drought in one location and waterfalls from snowmelt in another, all within driving distance. It’s nature at its richest and most intense.
I’m an adventure photographer when I’m not a rocket photographer
Located in Arizona, the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, carved by the sediment-rich water from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, hence, the name ‘Colorado River’ at the bottom. It’s been flowing for at least 5 million years, scraping the layers of earth to expose time before dinosaurs, even time before life. The very bottom of the Grand Canyon is made of exposed rock that is 2-billion years old, a layer of time where no fossils are located. You can really get a sense of the earth as an actual planet down there.
The size of the canyon is unfathomable. If we’re in a simulation, the display is too much data for our minds to process. There’s so much texture, yet no detail. There’s a lot of life, but no movement. You can see the blue haze of the atmosphere as you look across to the North Rim. You feel like it’s not far, but it’s a couple of miles across. So, naturally, I wanted to toss a rock over the edge. I expected it to go pretty far, instead it actually just appeared to drop straight down. My strongest throw is seemingly very weak and it was that moment the earth just put me in my place…for the first time.
I’m not afraid of the edge of cliffs. For better or worse, my heart rate doesn’t change a bit. So I laid down on my stomach with my head hanging over the edge of the South Rim. I blocked out the sounds of people around me, the safety handrails, imagined all of humanity gone for a while to get the sense that it was just me and this planet.
I thought of how the wind swirled through the canyon while watching majestic vultures, called Condors soar around inside. In my mind, I played a video of what the snow must look like melting in the Rockies and water trickling through the rocks while gravity pulls it down to a valley to form the river that’s been flowing for millennia. I wondered about the temperature differences between the geological layers, there’s a 20-degree difference between the top of the canyon and the bottom, the bottom is warmer. I tried picturing the ancient oceans and deserts that had formed here time and time again as earth went through its natural cycles. Then, I sat down on the edge with my feet hanging over, I could only capture the wow factor of this feeling by using a fisheye lens on my camera.
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- Photo: TomCross
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- Photo: TomCross
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- Photo: TomCross
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- Photo: Tom Cross
I believe humans are meant to explore. We’re supposed to migrate to other locations when seasons change. To me, it feels as natural as our circadian rhythm but we’ve interrupted that natural cycle by planting ourselves into jobs which often have no greater purpose than a comfortable paycheck. I spent a lot of time reading books by physicists like Steven Hawking, Brian Cox, Carl Sagan, among others who have explored our location in the cosmos and what we know about our position within it. Having a fulfilling career that serves a greater purpose to humanity and being able to explore our vehicle in the cosmos is not a dream.
Back to the adventures; I’ll take you on a soul searching hike through the Grand Canyon. I hiked 21 miles in 2 days, down to the Colorado River on one trail and out of the Canyon on another trail. It was a personal challenge I set for myself and the first time I’d been in a situation like it. I had all of the supplies I thought I’d need for such a hike. I was solo on this hike, all situations had to be handled on my own with only the items I had with me. How does photography fit into this? There are unexpected moments of beauty where the earth just floors me. It reminds me of how small and insignificant we are as an animal. How dangerous it can be and how precious. It gives us life and it takes it away. It’s to be appreciated. I try to capture those moments.
They weren’t conducting a rescue, it was a recovery
Humans, ugh… We are raised to believe we’re the top of the food chain. But we’re a virus to this cellular organism called Earth. These days, there are talented teams of people who are actively doing anything about reversing and preventing more damage to our home & species. Tesla and SpaceX are the pioneers of this movement. For the first time, we have the tools to help fix it in the form of products that we can purchase to leave less of an impact during our time here. Remember, you will die one day, but your impact remains…
In order to remove this inherited feeling of superiority our species is raised with, I had to feel exposed to danger, I had to make sure earth had its way with me. Whatever happens, I’d work my way through it. The danger is accessible in the Grand Canyon, signs on pathways remind people that they will die if they’re not mindful of what they’re doing.
Just before my hike down, I got a dose of reality. A rescue helicopter dropped off a rescue team to a nearby spot of the canyon then it flew away. I wasn’t able to get a clear view of the team in the canyon because National Park Rangers had the trails leading to the location closed. They weren’t conducting a rescue, it was a recovery. The rumor I heard in a restaurant, is that a family was standing near the edge for a photograph with the canyon in the background and someone had slipped off the edge. When the helicopter returned, it took only a few moments for the team to connect to the line and airlift the body from the canyon.
The next day, I’d be doing my solo hike…
Don’t miss Tom Cross | Behind the Lens
Next week, I’ll take you down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, through the South Kaibab trail and out of the Bright Angel Trail. If you enjoyed this adventure and want to go Behind the Lens with me each week on my adventures, please consider signing up to receive future issues via email.
‘Til then, have a good one,
– Tom Cross
Lifestyle
Tesla Semi hauls fresh Cybercab batch as Robotaxi era takes hold
A Tesla Semi was filmed hauling Cybercab units out of Giga Texas for the first time.
A Tesla Semi loaded with Cybercab units was recently filmed leaving Gigafactory Texas, marking what appears to be the first documented delivery run of Tesla’s autonomous two-seater. The footage shows multiple Cybercabs secured on a flatbed trailer being hauled by a production Tesla Semi, a truck rated for a gross combination weight of 82,000 lbs. The location is consistent with Giga Texas in Austin, where Cybercab production has been ramping since February 2026.
The sighting follows a wave of Cybercab activity at the Austin facility. In late April, drone operator Joe Tegtmeyer spotted approximately 60 Cybercabs parked in two organized groups in the factory’s outbound lot, the largest concentration observed to date. Units being staged in an outbound lot is a standard pre-delivery step, and the Semi footage is the logical next frame in that sequence.
En route with @tesla_semi pic.twitter.com/ZfuOjaeLH1
— Tesla Robotaxi (@robotaxi) May 7, 2026
This is not the first time Tesla has used its own Semi to move Tesla products. When the Semi was unveiled in 2017, Musk noted it would be used for Tesla’s own operations, and over the years Semi prototypes were spotted carrying cargo ranging from concrete weights to Tesla vehicles being delivered to consumers. In 2023, a Semi was photographed transporting a Cybertruck on a trailer ahead of that vehicle’s delivery launch.
The Cybercab itself was first revealed publicly at Tesla’s “We, Robot” event on October 10, 2024, at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, where 20 pre-production units gave attendees rides around the studio lot. Musk stated at the event that Tesla intends to produce the Cybercab before 2027. The first production unit rolled off the Giga Texas line on February 17, 2026, with Musk posting on X: “Congratulations to the Tesla team on making the first production Cybercab.”
Tesla’s annual production goal is 2 million Cybercabs per year once multiple factories reach full design capacity, with the company targeting a price under $30,000 per unit. Tesla has confirmed plans to expand its robotaxi service to seven cities in the first half of 2026, including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas, building on the unsupervised service already running in Austin. Musk has said he expects robotaxis to cover between a quarter and half of the United States by end of year.
Tesla has taken home the “Overall Loyalty to Make” award from S&P Global Mobility for the fourth consecutive year, reinforcing Tesla owners’ willingness to come back. The 2025 awards are based on S&P Global Mobility’s analysis of 13.6 million new retail vehicle registrations in the U.S. from October 2024 through September 2025. The complete list of 2025 winners includes General Motors for Overall Loyalty to Manufacturer, Tesla for Overall Loyalty to Make, Chevrolet Equinox for Overall Loyalty to Model, Mini for Most Improved Make Loyalty, Subaru for Overall Loyalty to Dealer, and Tesla again for both Ethnic Market Loyalty to Make and Highest Conquest Percentage.
Tesla’s streak in this category started in 2022, and the brand has now won the Highest Conquest Percentage award for six straight years, meaning it keeps pulling buyers away from other brands at a rate no competitor has matched. Tesla’s retention among Asian households reached 63.6% and among Hispanic households 61.9%, rates that significantly outpace national averages for those groups. That breadth of appeal across demographics adds a layer of significance to a win that some might dismiss as routine.
The timing matters too. After several consecutive quarters of decline, Tesla’s share of U.S. EV sales jumped to 59% in Q4 2025. That rebound, arriving just as competitors were flooding the market with new models and incentives, suggests Tesla’s loyalty numbers are not simply the result of limited alternatives. Buyers are still choosing it when they have plenty of other options.
What keeps Tesla owners coming back has a lot to do with the and convenience of charging. The Supercharger network is the most straightforward example. With over 65,000 Superchargers globally, it remains the largest and most reliable fast-charging network in the world, and owners who have built their routines around it face a real practical cost when considering a switch. Competitors have made progress, but the consistency, speed, and availability of Tesla’s network is still the benchmark the rest of the industry is chasing. Then there is the software side. Tesla has built a model where the car you own today is functionally different from the car you bought two years ago, through over-the-air updates that add continuous game-changing improvements such as Full Self-Driving that has moved from a driver-assist feature to an increasingly capable autonomous system. For many Tesla owners, leaving the brand means starting over with a car that will not get meaningfully better over time, and that is a trade-off fewer and fewer are willing to make.
Cybertruck
Tesla Cybercab just rolled through Miami inside a glass box
Tesla paraded a Cybercab in a glass display at Miami’s F1 Grand Prix event this week.
Tesla set up an “Autonomy Pop-Up” at Lummus Park in Miami Beach from April 29 through May 3, 2026, embedded within the official F1 Miami Grand Prix Fan Fest. The centerpiece was a Cybertruck towing the Cybercab inside a glass display case marked “Future is Autonomous,” rolling through the beachfront crowd.
Miami is on Tesla’s confirmed list of cities for robotaxi expansion in the first half of 2026, making the promotion a strategic promotion that lays groundwork in a target market.
This was not Tesla’s first time using Miami as a showcase city. In December 2025, Tesla hosted “The Future of Autonomy Visualized” at its Miami Design District showroom, coinciding with Art Basel Miami Beach. That event featured the Cybercab prototype and Optimus robots interacting with attendees. The F1 pop-up this week marks Tesla’s return to Miami and follows a pattern Tesla has been running since early 2026. Just two weeks before Miami, Tesla stationed Optimus at the Tesla Boston Boylston Street showroom on April 19 and 20, directly on the final stretch of the Boston Marathon, letting tens of thousands of runners and spectators meet the robot for free, generating massive earned media at zero advertising cost.
Tesla is sending its humanoid Optimus robot to the Boston Marathon
Tesla has confirmed plans to expand its robotaxi service to seven cities in the first half of 2026, including Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas, building on the unsupervised service already running in Austin. Musk has said he expects robotaxis to cover between a quarter and half of the United States by end of year. On the production side, Musk told shareholders that the Cybercab manufacturing process could eventually produce up to 5 million vehicles per year, targeting a cycle time of one unit every ten seconds. Scaling robotaxis to 10 million operational units over the next ten years is a key condition of his compensation package, alongside selling 20 million passenger vehicles.
As for the Cybercab’s price, Musk has said buyers will be able to purchase one for under $30,000, with an average operating cost around $0.20 per mile. Whether those numbers hold through full production remains to be seen.
Cybercab at F1 Fan Fest in Miami
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teslamotors
Tesla Optimus is already benefiting investors, top Wall Street firm says
Tesla Giga Texas buzzing as new Cybertruck appears to enter production
