Scenery and Wildlife from Jackon Hole 2012 Part 1

    Jackson Hole is a very special place.  Not many people from back East talk about it so I never really knew where it was or what it had in store.  Katrina on the other hand, had spent a few summers in Jackson as a river guide on the Snake river.  She loved it there and the endless outdoor activities that could be found there.
  
    When we first arrived it was the end of May and it was 28-34 degrees out and we were living and sleeping outside in canvas tents!  Not a very good start for me since I was new to all this and it was freakin' cold!  Well, it did warm up...eventually.

    Once the summer got going, I really enjoyed photographing out there.  Though I had a job taking pictures of paragliders and mountain bikers, it was the few chances I got to take pictures of the scenery and nature that really got me hooked on Jackson Hole.  

    Below are some examples of pictures that I am proud to have been able to take and hope the rest of you enjoy these as well.

The Landscape shots

Normally you end with the best, but I decided to start with my favorite landscape shot

The amazing Teton mountain range!



A view from Teton Whitewater's Scenic Float Trip

Another shot taken on the river.

This was taken at Jenny Lake in the Teton National Park

For those of you that like flowers, here are 4 pictures...

 

Love the center details on this flower



Sammi Lewis who worked with us at Teton Whitewater took this shot on our photo walk



Loved the details in this flower and the fly on the upper right corner of the flower



The famous town square arches of Jackson Hole, WY

 

Now we move onto the Wildlife of Jackson Hole!

Bald Eagles

 

The famous and always majestic, Bald Eagles!

 



2 baby eagles at a large eagle's nest



Such contrast makes them easy to spot

 

Katrina and I went on a VERY risky adventure to get this close to an eagle and get this shot!

 

Now onto more wildlife on the river



The well-known Osprey



Osprey flying above

The river pelicans were so cool to see

Group gathering



Afternoon exercise

 

Absolutely LOVE this shot!



Now for some land animals... 

 

Starting off with the cutest :)

Elk are seen quite often in Jackson



This was a treat to see

 

Don't worry, I was at a safe spot but SOOO glad to be this close to a Bull Moose

Don't you just hate those hard to reach places

  

Caught this guy having a late afternoon snack





 

Saving the BIGGEST for last, the following 3 pictures of Buffalo were taken when I went on a personal mission to drive around and find Buffalo....mission successful!!!

This guys was staring me down, but I held my ground :)

As long as I kept a safe distance, these Buffalo were pretty calm

This guy had a killer fro!  I mean, you can tell that he knows how to party!

  

 I leave you with a gorgeous view of the Snake River in the heart of the Teton range!

 

Hope you enjoyed seeing these as much as I enjoyed taking these pictures that will be long lasting memories of an amazing place and our many amazing adventures there!  Let me know what you thought in the comments below.

  

5 weeks to go!

Holy crap! Just 5 weeks left until Katrina and I head out on our adventure! We are getting excited and can't wait for December 3rd to come around.

I have a few more posts that I need to put up during the next 5 weeks. I took pictures for my best friend's wedding and the following day I took family pictures for an old friend. Those are my recent projects and I have about 2 more. I actually also took some pictures of Katrina that we have to finish editing and put up as well as I was testing out my flash and umbrella combination at night outside our house. The experience was awesome and some great pictures came out of it.

I am getting more and more comfortable shooting pictures for people and hope that this comfort level and shooting experience keep helping me to become a better photographer. I, along with others, can already tell that my pictures are getting better due to my increasing knowledge and understanding of my camera and accessories and my experience. For instance, at my best friend's wedding, I was able to change settings on the fly and began to recognize when I needed more light, when to adjust the aperature or tilt my flash head. All of these things were hard for me a few months ago as I did not know when to do it during a shoot and I would literally have to stop and think about it, whereas during the last 2 shoots, I would just snap a picutre, see the results and if needed, I would know exactly what I needed to change and would just do it, without thinking about it too much or stopping.

I must also say that having Lightroom 3 has made a big difference too! I can take a shot that may be too bright or the settings were a little off and I know that as long as my composition is good and my subjects were good, then I don't have to re-take the shot, I can simply edit the picture later and get my desired effect. This has helped me be faster, take less pictures of the same shot, and be more confident. All of these things are what people want in a photograher so it's all working out nicely.

A thank you needs to be said for all those who have helped and supported me thus far. I hope to keep making you all proud with my upcoming pictures :)

Ok, back to work.