The U.S. National Park Service (NPS) turned 100 on Thursday, August 25, 2016. The National Parks, and other lands managed by the NPS, truly are some of the jewels of the United States. The NPS works to preserve some of the most beautiful locations in the country, while still keeping them open and accessible to the public. I have benefited greatly from this system of parks and monuments, and I hope they continue to be preserved far into the future.
I have not visited nearly as many of the parks or monuments as I would like, but included in this post are photographs from a number of the locations I have had the privilege of visiting, sometimes multiple times. The National Park Foundation can help you find a park near you.
National Park lands are known for their iconic scenic views, beautiful mountain ranges, flowing streams and waterfalls, and fields of flowers. But they are also home to wildlife of all sorts: mammals, reptiles, birds, spiders, etc. And the Park lands also include many monuments and memorials showcasing fantastic statues and amazing architecture. If you haven't been to a National Park, Monument, or Memorial lately, get out there! Go visit one today. And take along your camera, create a few images. It's worth the trip.
Locations Around the National Mall, Washington, D.C.
Lincoln Memorial at night
Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool at dawn
Washington Monument & Cherry Blossoms Reflected in the Tidal Basin
National World War II Memorial Water Fountains
Storm over the Washington Monument and Tidal Basin in Black & White
Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial in Infrared
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial and Washington Monument in Black & White
Closeup of Jefferson Memorial in Black & White
Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens, Washington, D.C.
Lotus Flower and Bumble Bee against green background
White Water Lily in dark pond
Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens Bridge in Infrared
Dragonfly on unopened Lotus Flower
Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
Rocky Mountain National Park in Black & White
Pika in Rocky Mountain National Park
Uinta Chipmunk in Rocky Mountain National Park
Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park
Clark's Nutcracker in Rocky Mountain National Park
Yellow-bellied Marmot in Rocky Mountain National Park
Facing the Storm in Rocky Mountain National Park (Black & White)
Acadia National Park, Maine
Long exposure of a rocky shoreline in Acadia National Park, Maine (warmer tones)
Long exposure of a rocky shoreline in Acadia National Park, Maine (cooler tones)
Panorama of inlet and rocky beach in Acadia National Park, Maine
Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, Maryland
Falls Along Canal in Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Great Blue Heron Above Falls in Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Double-crested Cormorant in Potomac River at Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Great Falls Park, Virginia
Prelude to Rafting at Great Falls Park in Virginia
Kayakers in Potomac River at Great Falls Park
To the Falls, Great Falls Park
Facing The Fingers on the Potomac River at Great Falls Park
Turkey Run Park, George Washington Memorial Parkway, Virginia
Blue Phlox at Turkey Run Park
Yellow Trout Lily at Turkey Run Park
Prince William Forest Park, Virginia
Stream in Prince William Forest Park
Quaker Ladies Flowers in Prince William Forest Park
Daisy Fleabane Flower in Prince William Forest Park
Arrowhead Orbweaver Spider in Prince William Forest Park
Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
Skyline Drive Sunset in Shenandoah National Park
Flowers along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park
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Resources from my library
Ian Shive, recipient of the Ansel Adams Award for Conservation Photography, is well known for photographing America's National Parks. His work is showcased in a book titled, The National Parks: Our American Landscape. I own a paperback edition of this book, and it contains some fantastic imagery, along with a number of essays by different writers. The book is in landscape format, approximately 8" x 10.5" and is 228 pages in length.
Ian's photos in this book present a far better sampling of our National Parks than I've done above. He has visited and photographed a great many of the parks over the years, capturing all aspects of them, from the iconic to the smaller, more subtle details. I believe Ian is a true master of his craft.
Photographing America's National Parks with Ian Shive. Image credit: CreativeLive
In addition to the book mentioned above, Ian Shive has taught a 3-day class at CreativeLive titled, Photographing America's National Parks. This class includes over 15 1/2 hours of video, along with several PDF documents with extra info, such as the keynote slides and some amazing examples of Ian's work. I own this class and really enjoyed watching it. This was the first CreativeLive class to take the studio out to a National Park, allowing Ian to demonstrate, in the field, how he goes about creating his images. Most of the topics he discusses are relevant to any form of outdoor nature photography, whether in a local park, National Park, or just in your own backyard. In fact, he advocates starting in your backyard. Most of us have something near us worth photographing, and having it close by gives us the opportunity to easily return over and over again at different times of the day and during different seasons. We can really learn the place. And this helps later when we travel to other locations because we've already spent the time locally learning our lessons, getting to know our gear, learning about light and composition, knowing what's possible.
The class includes many videos on location. The locations include several parks along the Olympic Peninsula, such as Olympic National Park and Mount Rainier National Park. In some videos Ian takes us through a photo shoot, describing what he sees and what he's thinking as he works the scene. In others he takes us on a scouting trip, looking for scenes that might prove promising at a different time in different light.
Back in the studio he talks about how to select and edit your images and takes us through his process. As with many of the CreativeLive photography classes, this one includes critique sessions where they discuss student photographs. These are great learning sessions. Later he talks about the business side of nature photography, describing different markets for selling your work, including a stock agency he founded, Tandem Stills + Motion.
Photographing America's National Parks is available seperately or as part of the Travel Photography Toolkit, which also includes: Post-Processing for Outdoor and Travel Photographers with Ben Willmore and Travel Photography: The Complete Guide with Ben Wilmore. I purchased the first two and received a free copy of Travel Photography: The Complete Guide.
