Throughout my travels, I am constantly striving to come up with unique ways to capture the natural world around me. One of my goals as a photographer is to communicate my own unique point of view on the natural world. In turn I hope to invoke an emotional reaction, a sense of wonder, in those who view my imagery. I’ve recently released a large collection of work from this past Spring/Summer. Most of my new work is concentrated on western Montana, including Glacier National Park.

Within this new collection there is a variety of subjects. Everything from big, bold scenics, to wildlife, and my personal favorite, owls! Below I’ll share a few of my favorites from the new collection and talk a little bit about the back story of each.

I believe the best way to enjoy my photographs is not by viewing them on a computer screen, or worse yet, a mobile phone(!), but rather by having a physical print to hang in your home. The level of detail in a large print is truly striking.

“Curiosity”

One of my most memorable wildlife encounters of this past spring was a fox den that I came across in western Montana’s Seeley-Swan Valley. After locating the den, I constructed a small photo blind a safe distance away, and returned several times over a period of two weeks to photograph the kits.

During this time I placed several trail cameras in proximity of the den site, which was underneath a fallen tree. The cameras allowed me to gather valuable insight as to the movements of the foxes, which were most active after nightfall. After reviewing all of the trail cam footage, I started noticing patterns in their behavior. The information gleaned from the trail cam footage was invaluable, and is what allowed me to precisely place my professional trail camera. This camera, which I constructed myself, is much different than the mass produced trail cameras found in many sporting goods stores. It uses a DSLR camera housed in a waterproof Pelican case. The camera is triggered by a passive infrared sensor, and uses several off camera speedlites that supply fill light in tricky exposure situations. I set up the camera beside a log that the kits would use to get back to the den. When I returned about a week later to check the camera, I was pleasantly surprised when this image appeared on the back of the LCD display!

“Crown Jewel”

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to hike up to the famed Grinnell Glacier in Glacier National Park. I’ve hiked this trail many times, but this time I had a specific photograph in mind; a sunset image overlooking Grinnell Lake. This beautiful glacial lake, with its sparkling turquoise-colored water, is nestled in a gorgeous valley beneath the aptly named “Angel Wing”, the rounded peak directly in front of Mount Gould.

Along the way I passed numerous hikers, all headed back to civilization. A few of them made note of my late start, little did they know that I had planned it this way! I really wasn’t looking forward to the hike out in the dark, especially since this is prime grizzly country, but I continued on. I arrived here with plenty of time to scout around for a composition before the day would fade into night. This particular spot is notoriously lacking in strong foreground compositions, so I spent the next several hours searching up and down for a balanced composition.

Hours passed by quickly, and the last hikers passed by me about an hour before sunset. After that I was all alone up there. As the sun was beginning to set I had still not found a composition I was really pleased with. I was beginning to lose hope when I came across this colorful purplish-red rock with some nice diagonal lines. I set up my tripod and carefully framed up the shot, just as the last bit of sunlight painted the clouds above the mountains. The waterfall you see here is Grinnell Falls, tumbling nearly 960ft from the valley’s headwall, draining from the famous Grinnell Glacier. Another waning glacier, The Salamander, can be seen clinging to the Garden Wall directly above the falls.

The hike out was uneventful, and I made sure to make lots of noise to warn any potential bears of my presence. When I arrived back at the Many Glacier hotel, a storm was brewing to the west. For the next half hour or so I watched as the storm raged on over Swiftcurrent Lake, and eventually over the area where I had just come from. I was grateful to be back at the lodge, and not still up there!

“Still”

It was an early summer evening, and I was scouting out new areas to place trail cameras. Following game trails through the forest, I came to a small meadow that looked like an ideal spot to place a camera. As I moved across the meadow, searching for a suitable tree to install a camera, I nearly stepped on this little whitetail fawn resting out in the open. I happened to have my camera in hand, and attached to it was a wide angle lens. I leaned over and took a few photos before quietly backing out of the area.

Each year wildlife officials receive calls from well-intentioned individuals who come across what they perceive to be “orphaned” fawns, when in fact it is a perfectly natural occurrence to find a fawn that appears to be all alone in the woods. The fawn’s primary defense against predators is to stay as quiet and motionless as possible in these situations. The best thing you can do if you find a fawn seemingly alone in the wild is to quietly leave the area. The mother is likely nearby and is fully aware of where she left her young while she is off foraging.

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post. To view my entire collection of new work, please visit my New Release gallery HERE

Mar 27, 2023

Revealing the Secret Lives of Wild Animals through Remote Camera Trap Photography

Whenever I am photographing wild animals, I am always trying to capture them in a unique and inspiring way. Traditionally, most wildlife photography is done using long telephoto lenses, whereas DSLR camera trap photography uses wide-angle lenses capable of depicting more of the environment where these creatures thrive. Besides telling a story, these images are great at…