I took this photo in Saguaro National Park (West), west of Tucson.  

To increase the amount of the things in focus, I used a small aperture.  (Tip:  Smaller apertures are bigger numbers.  The way I remember it....the higher the f-stop/aperture [f10], the more things in focus in the photo.) 

I'm relatively happy with how I framed the image, though I might have liked to have more of the foreground cactus' base.  But if I recall correctly, I was standing precariously close to a Jumping Cholla cactus.  My options were limited.  

I don't recall, but I'm pretty sure I used a lens shade because my lens (the 17-40L) is notoriously prone to lens flare when shooting in this relation to the sun.  I might have used my hand.

The image was pretty close to what you see here.  The photo was taken with a Circular Polarizer filter on the lens, which intensified the blue in the sky.  The filter also helped to soften the harshness of the light that fell on the cactus and landscape.  In Photoshop I made a modest curves adjustment to improve the photo's contrast.  This darkened the shadows and strengthened the highlights, emphasizing the stark desert sun.