America the Beautiful: Landscape and Nature Photography in the American West

My STEP Signature Project began with a three-day photography workshop in Los Angeles, led by noted photographer Stephen Wilkes and titled “The Art of Seeing”. A week-long road trip followed the workshop, taking me from California across Nevada, Arizona, and Utah, and affording me the opportunity to visit and photograph some of the most scenic locations of the American West. Additionally, I reunited with family members living in those states whom I had not seen for several years.

In choosing this Signature Project I’d hoped to develop both my skills and interest in photography as a hobby. Not only was this goal accomplished, but I additionally developed a new way of seeing the world. Originally, I’d thought it necessary to visit national parks and other natural landmarks to capture worthwhile photographs; but after attending the workshop led by Mr. Wilkes, I discovered that there is always beauty to be found in everyday places, people, and objects. You’re just as likely to find something beautiful to photograph in 50 square feet as you are in 50 square miles.

The three-day workshop led by Mr. Wilkes, which was hosted by the Los Angeles Center of Photography, began with a presentation regarding Mr. Wilkes’ life, career, and philosophies. It was truly fascinating learning about Mr. Wilkes’ work for National Geographic, his documentation of pre-restoration Ellis Island, and his famed “Day to Night” series. He also shared with us some of his more recent projects, which involve layering two images in a process not dissimilar to double exposure. Over the next two days, Mr. Wilkes walked us through his methods of capturing and editing images. After a class fieldtrip to UCLA’s Hammer Museum – where we were encouraged to photograph the exhibits, the visitors, and each other – Mr. Wilkes helped us analyze and edit our own images. This approach to learning was both exciting and effective, although I suspect it would be difficult to apply to any subject other than photography.

The workshop featured only seven other students in addition to myself, and essentially was run as a college seminar. I appreciated this format, which allowed for inspired discussions between myself, my peers, and Mr. Wilkes.  For the entire duration of the workshop I felt very fortunate to be able to speak and work directly with such a distinguished photographer. I was also surprised to find myself becoming friends with my classmates, as we came from different backgrounds; I was the youngest among the workshop’s attendees, and my seven peers were almost exclusively middle-aged or retired. However, we bonded over our shared love of photography, which we universally agreed to be “the art of capturing beauty.”

Before departing Los Angeles I visited and photographed several notable locations, including the Hollywood sign at Mt. Lee, the nearby Griffith Observatory, as well as the beach and pier of Santa Monica. From Los Angeles I drove to the nearby town of Moreno Valley to photograph Lake Perris. After leaving California, I briefly visited Las Vegas before heading to the beauteous Valley of Fire State Park. Crossing from Nevada into Utah meant passing through a small portion of Arizona, where I stopped to photograph the scenic Virgin River Gorge.  As most of my family members who live out West are situated in Salt Lake City, I was able to visit Utah’s famous Great Salt Lake along with the nearby Bonneville Salt Flats.

I am grateful that this photography workshop and subsequent road-trip allowed me to reunite with family members I hadn’t seen for years. My experience led to a great deal of self-reflection, along with ruminations on the nature of the world we live in. The primary value of this project, I think, came with the realization that there’s no need to travel in search of beautiful subjects to photograph. Opportunities for worthwhile moments to capture are ever-present no matter where you are. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder – or, in this case, the photographer’s lens. That is not to say that travel is an unrewarding pursuit; personally, visiting and exploring new places is one of my favorite hobbies. But we should all break free of the fallacy that we must travel far and wide – “anywhere but home” – in order to find true beauty or meaning.