Wouldn’t you love it if your job consisted of hanging out in and taking photographs of gorgeous parks? That’s sort of what conservationist photographer Ian Shive got to do while creating The National Parks: Our American Landscape, his new book published in conjunction with the National Parks Conservation Association.
Of course, his work wasn’t just relaxing fun. The gig included hiking for days in subzero temperatures subsisting on mashed potatoes, dried turkey and melted snow!
Ian (right) spoke about his experience documenting U.S. parks through photography at a private reception for The National Parks, held at eco-nonprofit TreePeople’s headquarters in Los Angeles earlier tonight.Eco-minded Angelenos came to hear Ian talk about his experiences — including his firsthand look at the havoc wreaked on both the environment and the economy by the hastily approved and built border wall between U.S. and Mexico. On the upside, Ian’s documentation of these effects through is starting to help mobilize some additional socio-political action about the Bush administration’s decision to approve this wall.
Guests also got to enjoy yummy eats from Le Pain Quotidien and my new favorite caterer, Large Marge Sustainables — plus drinks from TRU Organic Vodka, Stone Brewing Company, and Honest Tea. At the end of the night was a drawing for a huge framed copy of one of Ian’s photos — and I won! I now just need to figure out where to hang it in my tiny apartment….
Take a look at Ian’s journey through America’s Southwest by watching the six-minute video below to get a sense of what the book’s like:
Want a copy for yourself? The National Parks contains more than 200 new photographs of major parks across the U.S. — and a portion of the proceeds from the 224-page, $39.95 hardcover book will go to the National Parks Conservation Association.
