Montana/Wyoming

Inspired Images: Photographing the Wonders of Yellowstone

Program No. 17947RJ
Capture stunning images of Yellowstone National Park as you improve your photography with expert instruction, learning about compositing, light and the secrets of a great shot.

Enroll with Confidence

We want your Road Scholar learning adventure to be something to look forward to—not worry about. Learn more

Protecting the Environment

We offset a portion of the emissions created by your travel. Learn more

At a Glance

On this photography adventure, capture Old Faithful’s powerful skyward spray, a bison feeding in a meadow or the tremendous scope of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. As you record impressions of Yellowstone’s landscape, wildlife, geothermal features and historic structures, an instructor discusses composition, the use of light, proper exposure and more. Cap your week with a participant slide show and supportive critique.
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to two miles total throughout each day on varied terrain; Getting on and off SUVS or Vans with photo equipment. Weather changes quickly. Elevations of 5,200-9,000 feet. For the experienced and more advanced photographer. Some dates available for beginner-intermediate photographer.
Micro Group
Micro Group
These adventures feature our smallest group size, with 12 participants or fewer.

What You'll Learn

  • Find your own vision of the iconic Yellowstone images as we visit the Old Faithful, Fishing Bridge and Canyon areas.
  • Explore the Lamar Valley and Hayden Valley, each a wide-open wildlife haven where you can expect to see bison, elk, waterfowl, coyotes and more.
  • Acquire new skills in exposure and composition.

General Notes

Extra-small group size; maximum of 12. For beginner to advanced photographers. Due to the nature of this program, listening devices are not available.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Profile Image
Meg Sommers
Meg Sommers has been an outdoor enthusiast from early childhood. A resident of Cody, she has been photographing seriously in Yellowstone National Park since 1990. Meg’s photography covers the full spectrum from landscapes and wildlife to flowers. She has traveled worldwide to seek out new and interesting opportunities in wildlife photography. In 2006 after 20 years in practice, she decided to retire as an attorney and judge to photograph full-time. Meg is a prize-winning photographer who has taught for Road Scholars since 2012.

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Profile Image of Meg Sommers
Meg Sommers View biography
Meg Sommers has been an outdoor enthusiast from early childhood. A resident of Cody, she has been photographing seriously in Yellowstone National Park since 1990. Meg’s photography covers the full spectrum from landscapes and wildlife to flowers. She has traveled worldwide to seek out new and interesting opportunities in wildlife photography. In 2006 after 20 years in practice, she decided to retire as an attorney and judge to photograph full-time. Meg is a prize-winning photographer who has taught for Road Scholars since 2012.
Profile Image of Zack Baker
Zack Baker View biography
Zack Baker attended high school in Livingston, Montana, 52 miles north of Yellowstone. His love for the park started while snowshoeing and observing wildlife. At Montana State University in Bozeman, he earned a B.S. in plant science, but it was Yellowstone’s mammals that grabbed his interest. He led private wildlife watching, hiking, and photography trips, and drove snowcoaches in the winter. He joined up with Road Scholar in 2017 and is now the Program Director for Road Scholar at the University of Montana Western.
Profile Image of Zack Baker
Zack Baker View biography
Zack Baker attended high school in Livingston, Montana, 52 miles north of Yellowstone. His love for the park started while snowshoeing and observing wildlife. At Montana State University in Bozeman, he earned a B.S. in plant science, but it was Yellowstone’s mammals that grabbed his interest. He led private wildlife watching, hiking, and photography trips, and drove snowcoaches in the winter. He joined up with Road Scholar in 2017 and is now the Program Director for Road Scholar at the University of Montana Western.
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Print All
Map details are not available for this location.
7 days
6 nights
17 meals
6 B 5 L 6 D
DAY
1
Check-in, Registration, Welcome Dinner, Orientation
Gardiner, MT
D
Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone

Activity note: Hotel check-in from 3:00 p.m.

Afternoon: Program Registration, 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. After you have your room assignment, come to the Road Scholar table in the hotel conference room to register with the program staff and get your welcome packet containing your name-tag, up-to-date schedule that reflects any last-minute changes, other important information, and to confirm when and where the Orientation session will take place. If you arrive late, please ask for your packet when you check in.

Dinner: At a local restaurant.

Evening: Orientation. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. This program will be led by both the Group Leader and an Instructor, who is a professional photographer and naturalist and will lead the educational portion of the program. With our professional photographer and naturalist providing ongoing photography discussion and guidance, we will experience hands on aspects of field photography, all while learning about the park's natural history. All transportation will be on SUVs or small sprinter vans unless specified otherwise to provide better and easier access to areas for photographing amidst the large crowds. Be sure to bring your own water bottle. Water will be available on the bus during all field trips so you can refill your bottles; disposable cups will not be provided. Be aware that elevations in Gardiner and Yellowstone National Park range from 6,500 feet to over 8,000 feet. Staying hydrated reduces symptoms of altitude sickness. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. Our instructor, a professional photographer, will conclude the evening by providing a introduction to Yellowstone through a presentation reflecting the rhythm of Yellowstone's changing seasons.

DAY
2
Mammoth Hot Springs, Finer Points of Photography
Gardiner, MT
B,L,D
Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone

Activity note: Expect long days to take advantage of photo ops in different lighting situations. Getting on/ off SUVs or sprinter vans several times with photo equipment. Periods of up to 1 hour standing and waiting for photo ops. Walking up to 1 mile on lose gravel roads, some asphalt trails, boardwalks and stairs.

Breakfast: In our classroom, we’ll enjoy a hot catered breakfast.

Morning: Before breakfast, we will enjoy an early morning photo shoot in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. After breakfast, we will continue our morning in our classroom. We will all be given a photography manual to keep and use during the week. Our instructor, a professional landscape and wildlife photographer, will use the manual as a guide to instruct us in the finer points of nature photography. We will receive hands-on direction to help us sharpen our photography skills as we travel through Yellowstone's magnificent landscape.

Lunch: At a local restaurant.

Afternoon: After lunch, we will board the SUVs with our photo gear and continue our photographic journey into Yellowstone National Park. We’ll return to Mammoth Hot Springs area, which is a large complex of hot springs on a hill of travertine thousands of years old. The huge amount of geothermal vents and travertine flourishes, plus possible grazing wildlife, offer spectacular photo opportunities.

Dinner: At a local restaurant.

Evening: At leisure. This could be time for self-study using the prime evening light for taking stunning photos

DAY
3
Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park
Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park, WY
B,L,D
Old Faithful Snow Lodge

Activity note: Expect long days to take advantage of photo ops in different lighting situations. Several walks, up to 2 miles total on asphalt and dirt trails, boardwalks with some stairs; approximately 1 hour of walking. Getting on/off the SUVs or sprinter vans several times for picture taking opportunities and wildlife observation. Driving time will be about 3 hours total; approximately 50 miles one-way with slower speed limits and several stops.

Breakfast: At a local restaurant.

Morning: We will check out of our motel and board the SUVs for the first of four full day field trips in Yellowstone depart early for the Old Faithful area within the Upper Geyser Basin, which contains over a quarter of the world's geysers. We will travel via Gibbon River, Gibbon Falls, Firehole River, and Fountain Paint Pot as we see, smell, hear, enjoy, and photograph geysers, hot springs, mudpots and fumaroles in the heart of Yellowstone.

Lunch: Sack lunches in the field.

Afternoon: We will continue to find opportunities to photograph Yellowstone’s grand landscape and magnificent ecosystem with its unique features, colors, and wildlife intersecting together to create a tapestry of life not to be found anywhere else in the nation. We will check into our accommodations for the night.

Dinner: At the Old Faithful Cafeteria.

Evening: At leisure. Take advantage of prime lighting for photo opportunities!

DAY
4
Yellowstone Lake & the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
Old Faithful, Yellowstone National Park, WY
B,L,D
Old Faithful Snow Lodge

Activity note: Expect long days to take advantage of photo ops in different lighting situations. Several walks, up to 2 miles total on asphalt, dirt trails with uneven terrain, and boardwalks with some stairs. Getting on/ off the SUV or sprinter vans several times for picture taking opportunities and wildlife observation. Driving distance approximately 35 miles one way in slower speed limits, about 2.5 hours.

Breakfast: In the dining room at the hotel.

Morning: Before breakfast, you will have the option of a self guided early morning photo shoot in the Old Faithful area. After breakfast we will depart for the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone via Yellowstone Lake, where we will have many opportunities for prime photographs. Our first stop will be Yellowstone Lake, which is the largest body of water in Yellowstone National Park and the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet in North America.

Lunch: Sack lunches in the field.

Afternoon: We will move on to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, where we will have many opportunities for prime photographs of the beautifully tinted canyon walls, caused by hot water acting on volcanic rock. We will see the 109-foot high Upper Falls and the iconic 308-foot high Lower Falls. From different vantage points we will be able to capture images of the sheer magnificence of the water falls and the mighty river weaving through the canyon.

Dinner: At the Canyon eatery.

Evening: We will return to our accommodations for the night and enjoy possible photo ops along the way.

DAY
5
Hayden Valley, Dunraven Pass, Free Time
Gardiner, MT
B,L,D
Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone

Activity note: Expect long days to take advantage of photo ops in different lighting situations. Several walks, up to 2 miles total on dirt and rocky trails with uneven terrain. Getting on/ off the SUVs or sprinter vans several times for picture taking opportunities and wildlife observation. Long periods of standing waiting for photo ops, up to 1 hour. Early morning departure; Driving distance about 53 miles one way with slower speed limits, approximately 3.5 hours total driving time.

Breakfast: At a local restaurant.

Morning: We will check out of our hotel and depart early to take advantage of lighting options during the magic hour of sunrise as we head north We will then continue over Dunraven Pass on the Grand Loop Road, the highest road pass in Yellowstone National Park at an elevation of 8,859 feet. As our instructor leads us on our journey, we will stop for many photo opportunities along the way.

Lunch: Sack lunches in park.

Afternoon: We will continue travelling back towards Gardiner via Yellowstone's northern range to check into our hotel in Gardiner and enjoy some leisure time.

Dinner: At a local restaurant.

Evening: At leisure with option of self guided evening photo shoot.

DAY
6
Tower Fall, Lamar Valley, Cooke City
Gardiner, MT
B,L,D
Ridgeline Hotel at Yellowstone

Activity note: Expect long days to take advantage of photo ops in different lighting situations. Several walks, up to 2 miles total on dirt and rocky trails with uneven terrain. Getting on/ off the SUVs or sprinter vans several times for picture taking opportunities and wildlife observation. Early morning departure. Long periods of standing waiting for photo ops, up to 1 hour. Driving distance about 53 miles one way with slower speed limits, approximately 3.5 hours total driving time.

Breakfast: On the road, we will have hot, boxed breakfast to-go, including a breakfast sandwich, fruit, and yogurt Water provided

Morning: We will depart early to take advantage of lighting options during the magic hour of sunrise, heading into one of the best places to watch the wild things in Yellowstone, the Lamar Valley. This is prime habitat for bears, wolves, elk, bison, pronghorn, eagles, and bighorn sheep. We will take advantage of this wide expansive valley for wonderful landscape photographs. We will then travel to Yellowstone's beautiful and isolated northeast gateway community of Cooke City for lunch before returning to Lamar Valley.

Lunch: At a local restaurant in Cooke City.

Afternoon: We will travel back through the Lamar Valley, enjoying further photography assistance and instruction from our instructor.

Dinner: At a local restaurant.

Evening: We will have the opportunity to show off one of our photographs from the week in a closing slide show. Our instructor will offer some final critiques and answer questions.

DAY
7
Program Concludes
Gardiner, MT
B

Activity note: Hotel check-out by 11:00 a.m.

Breakfast: At a nearby restaurant.

Morning: We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Please join our Facebook page and share photos of your program. Visit us at www.facebook.com/rsadventures. Best wishes for all your journeys!






Recommended For You

loading spinner