Because I am professional photographer, my husband and I always plan our vacations around beautiful places. For us, this generally means visiting national parks, monuments, preserves or state parks. I have always looked at the landscape for its visual aesthetic; what compels and draws my eye. My husband, the naturalist, turns over rocks, identifies insects, and generally educates me about the ecology of the place. I found myself seeing, but not necessarily understanding, what was in front of my camera.  I relied on my husband to guide me through the landscape.

I considered this slightly ironic as a student in an environmental science program. And it led me to Larry Silverman’s class at JHU called Public Lands and Private Interests. It was through this class that I learned to see beyond the camera and into many of the issues plaguing our public lands. The class mostly focuses on lands in the west and draws attention to water resources, energy development, forestry concerns, climate change, and wilderness ideals among many other topics. Taking the time to study about our public lands has given me a greater attention to detail and curiosity when traveling. It is much easier to identify inconsistencies in the landscape that highlight environmental problems even in the most beautiful of landscapes. As a photographer, it is important to gain a deeper understanding of what is in front of the camera to more effectively tell the story of a place.

My favorite assignment for this class was developing an environmental field guide for a piece of public land. This assignment was timely; my husband and I made two car trips cross country and used the guides created by classmates. The class challenged us to look behind the curtain at the history of our public lands, what environmental and social stresses they are under, and how they are currently being managed.

If you are interested in understanding the bigger picture, here are a few tips to guide your exploration:

*Start with the park or wilderness area’s history section on their website. Do a search on the legislation that created a park to understand why and how it was created.

*Research the ecology of the place and take a look at the plant and animal species that call the land home.

*When visiting, speak with the volunteers, docents, and staff about what you are seeing. A great starter question is to ask if climate change is affecting the land. From there, you can explore different environmental concerns.

*As you explore the park, look for inconsistencies in the landscape such as prohibited activities (off-road vehicle tracks), man-made features such as berms or irrigation ditches, and read the signs that identify invasive species which threaten native inhabitants.

The answer to these questions will inform your photography and quite possibly your desire to help conserve and preserve our public lands. After all, we do own them!

The Bosque National Wildlife Refuge located near Sorocco, New Mexico and within in the Rio Grande River floodplain is home to thousands of wintering birds such as sandhill cranes, arctic geese, and ducks. It is a mecca for photographers with its easy and close access to the birds. The annual sandhill crane festival boasts sold out photography workshops and birding seminars. © Jessica Riehl 2012

Water availability in the arid west is a problem these days and the refuge depends on an allocation from the Rio Grande River to provide the needed habitat for wintering birds. In times of drought, the refuge is unable to draw its full allotment, requiring adjustments in the amount of habitat provide. An irrigation system provides water to fields which are flooded creating the required marsh ecosystem. © Jessica Riehl 2012

Sandhill cranes and snow geese forage and rest in one of the refuge’s fields before flying to one of the marshes where they will spend the night safe from predators. © Jessica Riehl

The refuge is a highly managed ecosystem which includes farming, prescribed burning, exotic plant control, moist soil management, and water level manipulation. Active farming within the refuge and by local farmers provides food (grains) for the wintering birds. The partnership with local farmers is unique because the cranes have previously been a nuisance by destroying crops. © Jessica Riehl 2012