As the world grapples with challenges of coronavirus, artists from all walks of life and around the globe are bringing much relief and perspective to our current situation. Social media feeds are filled with live music, paintings, drawings, and photography. The comments on these posts exude an appreciation for art and the relief it brings during challenging times.

This is my second video in a series about photographing the Eagle Mountain Preserve.

The overarching goal of my work as a photographer is to connect people to the natural world and engage them with issues related to its conservation. Those connections are fundamental to people caring about nature, and their willingness to take action to conserve it. In an ever-increasing digital and urban world, full of stress and distractions, it can be challenging for people to maintain connections with the wild places they love.

This year the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) stared the process of removing Marcy Dam. The dam suffered significant damage to the bridge and splashboards during Tropical Storm Irene in August 2011. DEC decided that the cost of repair was too great and that the dam itself did not conform with the wilderness land classification applied to the land upon which it sits. The gut reaction by many is disgust and anger. People feel that the DEC is needlessly removing and altering an iconic location within the High Peaks Wilderness.