New York Alpine Plants

Project Summary

This project is meant to benefit the Adirondack Summit Stewardship Program by providing them with high-quality professional photographs of the plants that around found in the alpine ecosystem. Many thousands of people visit these summits each year and the Stewards work hard to protect the plants, allowing the visitors to enjoy this special place while simultaneously conserving this rare and fragile plant community. Due to the remote location and difficult terrain, most people will never get to experience the beauty of this place. I hope to change that by making photographs that will be used to educate the public about the alpine ecosystem. 

You can view the images produced as part of this project thus far in the gallery below. These images have been published in regional publications and in a book to benefit the Summit Stewardship Program. If you are interested in using these photos please contact me at photography@brendanwiltse.com. 

Outcomes

• Cover photo and eight page photo spread in the June 2016 issue of Adirondack Life

• Article published in the Adirondack Explorer

• Photos contributed to "Adirondack Archangels," a book about people and organizations working to protect and conserve the High Peaks. All proceeds from this book go to support the Adirondack Summit Stewardship Program.

• Photos published in the Adirondack Almanack.

• The photos have also been used on ADK's social media outlets to promote the Summit Stewardship Program and in reports and presentations on the program. 

Future Work

I will return to the summits in the spring and summer of 2016 to capture images of the plants I could not photograph in 2015. This year will also be focused on creating images and telling the story of the Summit Stewards themselves. These will be portraits of the individual stewards as well as images of them at work. Finally, I hope to produce a time-lapse and traditional video content of this amazing landscape.