Jackson, Wyoming - Part 2 | Kaiya, Class of 2017 | Destination High School Senior Portrait Photographer

While Kaiya and I were in Wyoming in November, we decided to add a few photos to her ever-growing high school senior portrait portfolio!  Here are a few of our favorites from Grand Teton National Park, Mormon Row, and downtown Jackson Hole.

Here's a fun fact about the incredible antler arch that you will see in the photos...  Jackson is home to a National Elk Refuge, and the roughly 8,000 antlers that make up the four matching arches in downtown Jackson Hole all come from the elk's annual antler shedding.  No animals were harmed to obtain the antlers to create these enormous and iconic arches.

Jackson, Wyoming - Part 1 | Elk, Coyote, Moose, Bighorn Sheep, Waterfowl | Wildlife Photographer

A few weeks ago, my oldest daughter was supposed to have a snowboard race in Jackson, Wyoming.  The race was cancelled due to lack of snow, but our plane tickets and hotel were nonrefundable, so we decided to go on our trip anyway.  Neither of us had ever been to Wyoming, so I thought it would be a great experience for both of us.  We packed up our laptops, camera gear, and sense of adventure, and headed west.

On our first day in Wyoming, we went out in search of a grocery store and Starbucks... and found much, much more! My daughter noticed something moving in the tall brush on the side of the road, so I pulled over to check it out.  What we stumbled upon was a migrating herd of elk.  I grabbed my camera, hopped out of the car, and ran alongside the herd snapping as many photos as I could.  It was absolutely incredible and breathtaking to witness.  On a separate trip, we encountered bighorn sheep, moose, a coyote, and various waterfowl!  (We eventually did find the grocery store and the Starbucks.)

Here are some of my wildlife photos from our trip.  I definitely plan to go back again when I have more time to explore... and next time I'm planning on bringing some bigger lenses!