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Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks
Reflection from Jackson Lake, Grand Teton NP,
Wyoming
If you are looking for both a large
dose of western landscape and an equally impressive portion of wildlife,
then this is the place that will take your breath away. Both
parks are fairly close to each other, so, you shouldn't do one without
the other, sort of like peanut butter and jelly, they really go well
together.
Nikon D200 and Nikon 18-200 VR
Bull Moose
Jackson Lake Junction
Grand Teton NP
If there are two places where I would
feel comfortable guarantying plenty of wildlife viewing, it would have to be
both the Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Elk, buffalo
and moose are a given, coyotes and pronghorns
are not to hard to find either. Wolf and bear are seen often enough to
send a chill of excitement through your body.
Nikon D200 and Nikon 80-400 VR and 1.4 Tele-converter
 Rainbow
near Mammoth Hot Springs
Yellowstone NP
In a place like Yellowstone you never
know what you'll run in to (hopefully not an animal!). Pam and I were
heading north from the Norris Geyser Basin and were almost at Mammoth when
we saw this rainbow.
Yellowstone Coyote
Near Norris Geyser Basin
It was nice to see a good number of Coyote in both
Yellowstone and Grand Teton. The re-introduction of wolves in the
Lamar Valley several years ago could have had an affect on the Coyote
population. They do seem to be a bit too comfortable around humans,
telling me that they have probably been fed by people.
Nikon D200 and Nikon 80-400 VR
 Pam's
Coyote shot gives the viewer a very different perspective of this
beautiful animal compared to the image above. We were coming out of the Old Faithful area and
circling down onto the main road to head south toward Grand Teton NP when
Pam spotted this guy busy looking for mice in the open field.
Nikon D200 Nikkor 500mm f/4P
Bugling Bull Elk
Yellowstone NP
One very interesting thing about
wildlife photography in Yellowstone is that after a short while you begin
to get picky. I'll pass up shots of smaller elk for ones with
much bigger racks. I'll wait for a good pose, or wait for him to
bugle. It is sure nice to be able to be that picky!
Nikon D200 and Nikon 80-400 VR
I love Pam's shot of this beautiful Bull Elk. Not
only is this a nice elk, but I especially like the backdrop of the
mountains and Yellowstone Lake. We had commented to each other
about missing a shot of another bull in this very same location on a
previous trip. Getting another opportunity to shot here was very
exciting.
When I first met Pam I realized right away that her
love of photography was centered around wildlife. That, and the
fact that she has a bigger lens than me! Over the years she's also
become an accomplished landscape photographer, but I know her first love
will always be wildlife photography.
Nikon D200 and the Nikkor 300mm f/4
 View
from Mt. Washburn
Yellowstone NP
This image was taken after a clearing rainstorm.
Since we were well over 10,000 feet It was a bit chilly and windy, but
we were still able to get a few interesting images.
Yellowstone is one big park! And the landscape
is amazing. The geysers and thermal activity are everywhere. I
feel like I'm in the land of the lost. I think it really gives you an
appreciation of just how our earth came to be. Being able to
photograph it is an added plus. I'll frequently take advantage of the
steam created by the thermals to do my fog-like landscape photography.
Very
cool!
Black Sand Basin and Cliff Geyser
Yellowstone NP
Pam captures the great color that is
everywhere in Yellowstone. She catches the small Geyser as it goes
up. The color along this small creek are simply outrageous. You could spend hours at any one location, and not run
out of photographic opportunities.
Nikon D200 and 18-200VR
Oxbow Bend
Grand Teton NP
After Yellowstone, we topped off our magical trip by
spending several days in Grand Teton NP. You could close your eyes and just point the camera
in any direction, and come away with a great shot. However, I
recommend opening your eyes, because you won't want to miss a thing!
Nikon D200 and Nikon 18-200 VR
This is truly a great photo destination. We
enjoy coming back year after year.
Thank you!
Gary W. Stanley
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