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Photography In The National Parks: Looking Back On 2014

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Whether you were looking to improve your technical expertise with a camera, or curious about the thought processes that professional photographers went through in framing their photos, Contributing Photographers Deby Dixon and Rebecca Latson covered the bases for you through the past 12 months.

Here for your review, and just a click away, are the columns they wrote in 2014.

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The flowing movement of traditional hula performed by Kalamanamana Harman and accompanied by Pelehonuamea Harman, Hawai'™i Volcanoes National Park /Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: It's Not Just About Landscape Or Wildlife Shots

Photography in a national park is not always about the landscape or wildlife shot.  Sometimes, it can be about the people and culture, as photographer Rebecca Latson discovered while spending time within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

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Hauling out a kill/Bernie Scates

Photography In The National Parks: Time To End Elk Culling At Grand Teton National Park?

The annual elk culling in Grand Teton National Park this fall was raw and ugly. Visitors coming to enjoy one of the jewels of the National Park System were greeted by a blood sport.

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Got milk! A sow and her spring cubs nursing in Lake Clark National Park/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: Katmai Or Lake Clark National Parks, Which Is Best For Bear Photography?

So you can't decide between Katmai National Park or Lake Clark National Park for your bear viewing photography?  Rebecca Latson weighs in on comparisons between the two.

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Even rainy days can turn into a pot of gold/Deby Dixon

Photography In The National Parks: Don't Let The Weather Get You Down

In Yellowstone National Park today the wind was blowing cold air, snow and rain into my face as I stood in Lamar Valley and watched as the 'œnew' Lamar Canyon pack, two adults and six pups, made their first public appearance in their valley. The pack visited an old carcass, ran, played and hunted a 7-point bull elk.

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Watching me/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: Digitally Capturing The Bears In Lake Clark National Park And Preserve

Having focused on the bears during her 2014 photo tour of Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska, Rebecca Latson returns to give us some tips on how she captured those shots and how you can use these insights to get amazing bear images of your own.

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A morning view of Denali at Nugget Pond/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: Oh, Denali!

Never been to Denali National Park but have it on your bucket list? Rebecca Latson gives you photos and a story as to why you should make that bucket list item come true sooner rather than later.

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Bighorn Canyon NRA, an overlooked jewel of the National Park System/Deby Dixon

Photography In The Parks: Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Dreams Of Wild Horses Realized

It is late August, and most families will soon be returning home, just in time to send their children back to school, but not before one last trip to see the wondrous sights in one of our nation'™s major national parks

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Sun and Clouds at Wild Goose Island Viewpoint, St. Mary Lake, Glacier National Park/Rebecca Latson photo

Photography In The National Parks: Same Park, Same Scene, Different Seasons, Different Times

Rebecca Latson shows how the change of seasons, time of day, and/or weather conditions can make the same scene in a national park look totally different.

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Approach bison jams carefully, with an eye both on the bison and on traffic/Deby Dixon

Photography In The National Parks: Avoid Those Bison (And Other Wildlife) Jams

Bison madness is in full swing in Yellowstone National Park with snorting, groaning, spitting, bison bulls chasing the girls (cows) down the roads, much to the delight of many park visitors who gladly park their vehicles in the road and film the action. No family vacation is complete without getting caught in a Yellowstone bison jam.

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The View Along Lost Mine Trail, Big Bend National Park/Rebecca Latson photo

Photography in the National Parks: DOF, Foreground Objects and Framing

How and where you choose to focus on your image can make a huge difference in how a viewer perceives your national park photo.  Rebecca Latson provides some tips for helping you do just that.

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Bear cubs don't always look both ways for oncoming traffic. Sometimes humans should provide that service/Deby Dixon

Photography In The National Parks: A Wildlife Advocate's View Of Wildlife Photography

Nearly every day someone tells me that I have the dream job as a full-time wildlife photographer in Yellowstone National Park, but if they knew that a Dutch photographer nearly punched me out yesterday, when I was trying to assist a black bear in crossing the road on a blind curb, they might think again.

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A photo journal created using one of the many photo book-creation sites on the internet. Photo by Rebecca Latson

Photography In the National Parks:  Neat Things To Create With Your Images

All sorts of fun, useful items can be created using your national park photos and Rebecca Latson has a few suggestions for you.

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Fox kits bring out their best when they can't sense humans about./Deby Dixon

Photography In The National Parks: Blending In To Capture The Best In Wildlife

At this moment I am sitting in the forests fringing Yellowstone National Park in a blind, which is a camouflaged colored tent with windows that the camera lens fits through, hoping and praying that nine or ten little fox kits will come out and play. Or that their mother will return to the den with a fat juicy vole and teats filled with milk, because there is nothing like watching 10 babies running to greet mom.

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Color abounds in the parks in springtime, when these Claret cactus blooms were captured in Canyonlands National Park/Kurt Repanshek

Photography In The National Parks: Capturing Spring

Springtime is a great time to take photos in the national parks, but are you prepared for that task? Rebecca Latson has some suggestions for what you need to consider before heading off into the parks.

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Bluebirds and bison. It must be spring in Yellowstone/Deby Dixon

Photography In The National Parks: Stand Back And Shoot

The first bright spot of spring in Yellowstone is the mountain bluebird when it returns to Lamar Valley where they come to feast upon the newly hatched caddisfly that is hopping around on top of the snow near the Lamar River.

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A Maine forest floor next to Acadia National Park, taken with a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lens/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: Make It A Macro Kind Of Day

When capturing those landscapes and wildlife images in a national park, don't forget to throw in a few macro-type shots for good measure. Contributing photographer Rebecca Latson demonstrates different ways to achieve these "super" close-ups.

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In an unusually poignant display, a bison seems to mourn an elk cow/Deby Dixon photo

Photography In The National Parks: The Story Of Bison Mourning A Cow Elk

It is March madness in Yellowstone. The weather is warming, the snow is melting, the rivers rising. The bluebirds have come back to town, and every once in awhile one might see a splash of intense blue flitting across the otherwise drab landscape.

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The Rio Grande and Santa Elena Canyon, Big Bend National Park/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: Telling A Story With Your Photos

The photographs you take while visiting a national park tell a story to your viewers, with or without accompanying words, as explained in this Big Bend tale by Rebecca Latson.

 

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Add perspective and tell stories by inserting people into your shots/Deby Dixon photo

Photography In The National Parks: Put People In Your Shots For Perspective And Interest

I am a natural born writer but did not realize my passion for story-telling until finding photography with which to illustrate my words. Personally, I don't see the point in telling a story if it can't be punctuated by images.

 

Alternate TextA favorite image captured in Big Bend National Park/Rebecca Latson

Photography In The National Parks: My Five Favorite Images Of 2013

Of all the photos you've taken during your 2013 national park visits, do you have any particular favorites? Contributing photographer Rebecca Latson has chosen five of her own favorites and explains why they are favorites.

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The elegance of winter in Yellowstone/Deby Dixon photo

Photography In The National Parks: Going Inside

In early November of every year the gates are closed and the rest of Yellowstone National Park seems to cease its existence for six whole months.

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Three brown bears at Brooks Falls, Katmai National Park and Preserve/Rebecca Latson photo

Photography In The National Parks: Choosing An Organized Photo Tour

How do you go about lining up a photo safari with a guide? Rebecca Latson shares some tips and insights to help you navigate what might seem like a cumbersome task.

To purchase a print of one of the above shots, or one of many others these women have framed, you can explore Deby Dixon's portfolio here, and Rebecca Latson's here.

 

Comments

Thanks for the reminder of the very nice work - and good information - shared by these contributors to the Traveler during the past year.


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