The rugged beauty of America's Southwest has been framed and accentuated - by nature.

Travel photographer, Douglas Stratton has captured breath-taking shots of the natural peep holes carved into rock formations over hundreds of thousands of years through weathering.

The cave-like windows form the perfect frames for the landscapes of Arizona and Utah, where the images were taken.

These images were taken in the wilderness of Arizona and Utah by photographer Douglas Stratton. Pictured, sunlight streaming through the natural frame of a rock formation

The photographer trekked across the two states over three years to capture the stunning landscapes of the region. Above, the desert landscape in winter

The photographer used the natural cave-like windows in the rock formations to frame his images like this one of a winter sunset