Issue 03

Yellowstone
as You've
Never Seen It

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A coronal aurora illuminates the landscape surrounding White Dome Geyser as it erupts under the night sky, casting a mystical rainbow glow over the scene.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A coronal aurora illuminates the landscape surrounding White Dome Geyser as it erupts under the night sky, casting a mystical rainbow glow over the scene.

↑ Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A coronal aurora illuminates the landscape surrounding White Dome Geyser as it erupts under the night sky, casting a mystical rainbow glow over the scene.

Reimagining How to Frame the Landscape of Yellowstone National Park

Words and Images by Jennifer Renwick

Yellowstone National Park is an extensive ecosystem where the raw power of earth’s internal heat dynamics, diverse wildlife, and dramatic landscapes come together to create endless photography opportunities.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Orange bacterial mats in an outflow channel of Grand Prismatic Spring stretch across the terraces in the Midway Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Orange bacterial mats in an outflow channel of Grand Prismatic Spring stretch across the terraces in the Midway Geyser Basin.

My love affair with the landscapes of Yellowstone began when I was a geology student finishing my bachelor’s degree. I became enraptured with the geothermal features and the wildness of America’s first national park. That love has held over the past two decades, and Yellowstone has become my favorite place to capture the stories within a landscape, many of which hold deep personal meaning to me.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The colors surrounding Grand Prismatic Spring appear to melt into each other, creating a beautiful edge. These colorful hues result from heat-loving bacteria thriving in and around the spring, with different colors corresponding to varying temperatures.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The colors surrounding Grand Prismatic Spring appear to melt into each other, creating a beautiful edge. These colorful hues result from heat-loving bacteria thriving in and around the spring, with different colors corresponding to varying temperatures.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Abyss Pool reflects the vibrant pinks and oranges of the sky during a colorful sunset in the West Thumb Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Abyss Pool reflects the vibrant pinks and oranges of the sky during a colorful sunset in the West Thumb Geyser Basin.

I approach the landscapes of Yellowstone differently than the usual images of geysers, bison, and sweeping vistas. While those scenes are undeniably beautiful, I instead find myself drawn to the quieter, more intimate moments within the park that often go unnoticed. I enjoy capturing details like the colorful bacterial mats, the soft plumes of steam, and moments of light, all of which reveal the park’s raw, ever- changing nature.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The autumn Milky Way and stars reflect in the still waters of Emerald Spring in the back basin of Norris Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The autumn Milky Way and stars reflect in the still waters of Emerald Spring in the back basin of Norris Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The Milky Way stretches across the night sky and reflects, along with a meteor and stars, onto the terraces of Grand Prismatic Spring.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The Milky Way stretches across the night sky and reflects, along with a meteor and stars, onto the terraces of Grand Prismatic Spring.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Terraced pools surround the Great Fountain Geyser, making it one of the park’s most unique and photogenic geysers. The colors of sunrise and sunset often reflect in the pools, creating vibrant reflections.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Terraced pools surround the Great Fountain Geyser, making it one of the park’s most unique and photogenic geysers. The colors of sunrise and sunset often reflect in the pools, creating vibrant reflections.

Unexpected and magical encounters with wildlife further enrich these moments, adding another layer of wonder to the park’s wild story. I am lucky that each season in Yellowstone reveals new landscapes and moods, and the geological wonders evolve and change over time, revealing new details and stories with each visit.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A summer storm fills the sky with lightning, illuminating the skies above the iconic Old Faithful Geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A summer storm fills the sky with lightning, illuminating the skies above the iconic Old Faithful Geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin.

Yellowstone’s consistent fluidity inspires me to keep returning to this diverse ecosystem with my camera in hand, challenged to see beyond the obvious and discover beauty in even its smallest expressions. Whether it’s the interplay of light on a thermal feature or the peaceful solitude of an early morning landscape shrouded in steam, each visit to the park continues to inspire me.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A late- season snowstorm blankets the surrounding landscape of the famous Morning Glory Pool in the Upper Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A late-season snowstorm blankets the surrounding landscape of the famous Morning Glory Pool in the Upper Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A dead tree, succumbing to the heat and mineral-laden waters of the springs, stands alone amidst the pastel-colored, pool-filled upper terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A dead tree, succumbing to the heat and mineral-laden waters of the springs, stands alone amidst the pastel-colored, pool-filled upper terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A foggy morning blankets a grove of “bobby socks” trees. Geothermal activity around the trees leads to minerals blocking the water channels, eventually killing them and leaving behind a striking white mineral deposit at the base of the trees, creating a sock-like appearance.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A foggy morning blankets a grove of “bobby socks” trees. Geothermal activity around the trees leads to minerals blocking the water channels, eventually killing them and leaving behind a striking white mineral deposit at the base of the trees, creating a sock-like appearance.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming “Bobby socks” trees line the edge of a vibrant blue hot spring, their stark white trunks contrasting with the vivid blue color of the water as the stillness of winter settles over Norris Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming “Bobby socks” trees line the edge of a vibrant blue hot spring, their stark white trunks contrasting with the vivid blue color of the water as the stillness of winter settles over Norris Geyser Basin.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A rare and powerful solar storm creates a dazzling display of aurora, dancing over the Firehole River near Biscuit Basin and painting the night sky with shades of pink and green.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming A rare and powerful solar storm creates a dazzling display of aurora, dancing over the Firehole River near Biscuit Basin and painting the night sky with shades of pink and green.

See more of Jennifer Renwick’s work at www.jenniferrenwick.com.

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Explore this Issue

Wild Eye magazine cover page for Issue 2025.03

Issue 03

Contents

  1. Fire and Ice
  2. A Deeper Photographer
  3. Unlikely Beauty
  4. Field Kit
  5. From Passion to Vision
  6. Wild Hope
  7. Ami Vitale's Vital Impacts
  8. A Nature Photographer’s Inspiration
  9. Past the Tipping Point
  10. Yellowstone as You've Never Seen It
  11. The Derogation of Big Cats
  12. Wild Lands
  13. The Laughing Dormouse