Ancient Wisdom

This photograph’s title is from a poem by my friend Nancy Schimmel: The buffalo amble along/Their heads heavy with wisdom/And big with winter fur/They look like they know things/We don’t know/They look like they wouldn’t tell us/If they could/And if we learned their speech/And eavesdropped on their discourse/Their thoughts would be too ancient/And alien for us to grasp.

The Chase: Wolves in Yellowstone

My photograph, “The Chase: Wolves in Yellowstone,” captures one of the most thrilling moments of my life. Winter in Yellowstone National Park is exhilarating, with its snowy landscapes, steaming geyser basins, and unparalleled opportunities to witness the drama of wildlife surviving the frigid cold and ice. Last year, I observed and photographed a pack of wolves hunting in the Lamar Valley; over the course of two hours, I watched the wolves attempt to kill three different bison. Two scouts led the way each time, slipping stealthily past an isolated bison and approaching from the opposite side in order to drive the frightened bison toward the rest of the wolf pack, which was closing in at a full gallop. At one point, the wolves incited a stampede of some twenty to thirty bison, clouds of snow flying into the air as the bison herd raced through the valley. At another point, I saw ten wolves leaping on and lunging at one bison, and still the bison managed to break free. Several times I observed bison and wolves challenging one another face-to-face as the wolves attempted to cull a single bison from the herd. Although I didn’t witness a successful bison kill, I am in awe of the sophisticated communication and cooperation employed by the wolves, as well as the tenacity and endurance it takes for them to bring down a 2,000 pound bison. Watching the beauty, grace and strength of the wolves, along with the stamina and immense power of the bison, was a thrilling and unforgettable experience. I used a high-key post-production process on this photograph. I overexposed the highlights in the photograph, removing the snow and allowing the texture of the watercolor paper to show through instead. (I did leave a bit of shadow underneath the trees and the wolves). I hadn't been thinking of doing this when I was in the field photographing the wolves, but when I was home, I thought the snowy detail of shadowy blues and grays distracted from the two primary graphic elements of the picture: the stand of trees and the wolves. I love the resulting minimalist look of the photograph.

Dream Back the Bison

I photographed this bison herd in January, in the Madison River Valley of Yellowstone National Park. Have you visited Yellowstone in the winter? It was an incredible experience. We rarely saw any people (in Yellowstone!), and it was very easy to see wildlife, because the animals stood out clearly against the snow. Of course, the snow blanketing every tree and mountain, the steam forming ice crystals on the tree branches, and the silence and solitude all added to the beauty. I overexposed the snow to create a minimalist composition of graphic simplicity. I especially loved watching the power of the bison as they moved through snow that went up to their shoulders. They used their huge heads as snow plows, clearing aside snow so that they could get to the grass underneath. There's not much nutrition in the grass they eat in the winter; bison lose up to half of their body weight in the winter months. What a testament to their ability to survive. My dear friend Harmony's song was the inspiration for the title of my photograph. Follow this link to hear Harmony sing "Dream Back the Bison": https://harmonygrisman.bandcamp.com/track/dream-back-the-bison-2

Madison River Bobcat I

It was pure joy trying to keep up with a bobcat who was hunting gracefully on the opposite bank of the Madison River, while I was clumsily slipping and sliding in the deep snow!

Winter's Portal

I love trees, plain and simple. Photographing trees in a forest or woodland can be difficult, though. Most forests look a bit chaotic no matter where you point your camera! With "Winter's Portal," though, I knew I had found a coherent composition. The placement of the trees created a door that opened into the landscape beyond. After I took one photograph, I was so pleased that I picked up my tripod and camera and trotted off to find my friend to show him the composition. After I did, I realized that it was pretty silly not to have taken several photographs of the scene when I had the chance. (So much can go wrong - a slight shake of the tripod because of wind, using the wrong aperture to capture the depth of field you want, etc.). No problem, though - I just returned to the location to take a couple more photographs. But...I couldn't find the composition again. I could see where my boot tracks were in the snow, so I knew exactly where I stood; I could look at the image I had already made on the back of my camera, so I knew exactly which trees I had included; but for the life of me, I couldn't find my original composition! No matter how hard I tried, the spacing between the trees was just wrong. The inviting opening I had seen before was now invisible to me. Photographically speaking, it was an interesting lesson in seeing - as a photographer, moving just a slight few inches in any direction can result in a completely different composition. I like to remind myself of this when I am out doing photography, feeling stuck because I just don't see anything. Just because I can't see something coherent and meaningful, doesn't mean it's not there right in front of me. And that, of course, is one of the many life lessons I learn from practicing photography.

Bobcat Tracks in the Snow

I spent a wonderful half-hour enjoying this bobcat as it rested quietly by a stream before it trotted away in pursuit of its next meal.

Winter's Peace

Yellowstone National Park in the winter is well known for its unparalleled opportunities to witness the drama of wildlife surviving the frigid ice and cold. Watching the beauty, grace and strength of wolves, or observing the stamina and immense power of bison, is a thrilling and unforgettable experience. But I also treasure the solitude and serenity I find in the gorgeous landscapes throughout the park. The snow blanketing the mountains and hills, the geothermal steam forming ice crystals on the tree branches, and the mist rising from rivers and streams are seemingly timeless expressions of winter’s peace.

Bison at Indian Pond

Madison River Bobcat II