Russ Burden is a prominent member of my Denver photography club (Focus Camera Club of Colorado). He takes amazing nature photographs (both landscape and wildlife) and enjoys conducting photographic tours to beautiful parts of the western USA. Russ is a great guy, friendly, approachable and often humorous. He takes pleasure in sharing his infectious enthusiasm and skills with his students. He is a hands-on teacher, whose experience, constructive critiques and thoughtfulness are readily conveyed to his eager pupils. A Russ Burden composition is clean and simple, leaving no doubt in the viewer's mind of his artistic intent.

At the age of 23, Russ traveled out west from New York City, with a friend. He wanted to see the Rockies. He still remembers vividly his first look at the Tetons. They drove out of Jackson, around a bend, and the first view nearly floored him. "Oh my God!" was his reaction, along with other R-rated utterances. The Tetons can do that to people when they first see them. And, this is a visual kind of guy, so you can imagine. Even now, he tells me that when he leaves the valley, to return to Denver, he looks in the rear view mirror and feels a "pang of separation." I get that.

Jackson Hole photography is virtually unlimited in terms of biodiversity and subject matter. Russ usually takes a group of only five (LOTS of individual attention!) twice yearly. In 2009, his springtime trip will be June 6-12 and his autumn trip will be September 23-October 2.

When shooting the Tetons, the light changes with the seasons. In early June, the sun rises farther to the north, at an angle to the plane of the range's face. This creates longer shadows on the peaks, which in turn leads to more texture, highlights, shapes and forms. In Springtime, the new babies have arrived. The group will rise before first light and catch the sunrise on the peaks, then go in search of bison, elk, moose and bear offspring...or any offspring for that matter. At day's end, expect to snag a sunset shot.

In late September, the light is perpendicular to the mountains, which creates an entirely different look. The Tetons look different from every angle. Aspens are golden and maples are fiery red, and sometimes backlit nicely by the sun. In the Autumn, males are rutting...competing for girlfriends. You may be able to capture some of their testosterone-induced dance, if you're lucky. Russ states that he tries to practice patience in his wildlife photography. He will wait, and wait, and even "will" the photo to happen. And, it often does! At either time of year, Russ will take you to explore both Grand Teton National Park as well as Yellowstone, through the lens of your camera.

Speaking of cameras, bring a 35 mm film camera or digital SLR. Bring lots and lots and LOTS of film or digital memory!! A tripod is a necessity. Good to have is a wide-angle lens (this is BIG country), a telephoto lens (up to 400 mm is good), a polarizing filter for glare and a graduated neutral density filter for capturing the exposure differences at sunrise and sunset between the sky and foreground.