Local Estes Park photographer Dawn Wilson won the Past President’s Award at the national conference for the North American Nature Photography Association held in Tucson in May. Each year, the outgoing president gives the NANPA member who has shown outstanding dedication and made significant volunteer contributions in support of the organization’s mission.
Wilson is an acclaimed nature photographer and writer with over 800 bylined articles and photographs in numerous national, regional, and community publications. She was named a top ten female nature photographer by Wild Planet, a monthly photo magazine, and her award-winning images have appeared in the Audubon and Nature’s Best Photography magazines.
Wilson was chosen for the award in recognition of her actions during her two-term presidency for NANPA. Wilson was credited with providing steady leadership throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, playing a key role in shaping a new strategic plan, and setting the stage for NANPA’s alignment with the American Society of Media Professionals.
As a former NANPA president, Wilson understood the importance of receiving the award.
“I actually gave the award to somebody when I was the outgoing president, so I know the importance behind it—of picking through an organization of 3,000 members and trying to identify one person that, over the last year, a few years, or over the course of their membership has made an impact,” said Wilson. “It takes some thought, so it was pretty humbling.”
Before establishing herself in the photography world, Wilson attended Rowan University in New Jersey, where she majored in communications. She later earned an MBA in marketing from Temple University.
While living in New Jersey, Wilson’s photography captured the urban environment around her, but she never felt a strong connection to that work. Upon moving to Colorado in 2002, Wilson joined a camera club and began exploring many different types of photography.
“You get mixed up in this whole hodgepodge of different types of photography,” said Wilson. “I was trying all these different types of photography mediums, but I wasn’t getting very good at any of them.”
In 2012 and 2013, her perspective on finding a passion shifted, and she chose to focus on a single subject.
“I really took a step back and said, ‘I really do love being around animals. I love sitting outdoors, watching them, understanding them,’” said Wilson. “I just really enjoyed that aspect of it, so I took a step back and I focused on wildlife photography.”
Wilson became a part of the Estes Park community in 2016, and her passion has remained fixed on wildlife photography. She finds a big part of what makes wildlife photography so interesting for her is the uniqueness of each animal.
“Every animal kind of has their own little niche in this world. Every animal has their own set of behaviors and their own places they like to go. And I just find it fascinating to see how all of that kind of works together,” said Wilson.
Throughout Wilson’s career, she has photographed a wide range of animals in various locations—from polar bears to goslings—but there are three photos that stand out in her mind. Those photos are of two elk in the tundra of Rocky Mountain National Park, a fox in winter, and a ram looking through the horn of another ram.
With advancements in AI-generated photos, Wilson has been thinking about how AI may impact nature photography.
“It’s a double-edged sword, like any new technology,” said Wilson. “[AI] opens a lot of opportunities, but if used in the wrong hands, it could really create kind of a mess and alter our reality,” said Wilson.
An example Wilson provided was when she worked on an ad campaign and was searching for a photo of a hiker at an iconic location in RMNP. Wilson found many AI-generated photographs that had noticeable errors, such as a mountain positioned incorrectly.
“The question becomes, does it matter?” said Wilson. “I have a journalism background, and to me, it does matter. I want to represent things in a truthful way, but from an artistic side, it gives you artistic leverage to create things that maybe don’t exist in nature.”
“That’s going to be the big question, I think, is at what point do we say it’s going too far and distorting our reality,” said Wilson, adding that another point of concern with AI and photography is figuring out the copyright issues.
“I am so glad that Dawn has been recognized by the NANPA for her leadership,” said Patti Brown, editor of the Estes Valley Voice. “I have had the opportunity to work with her as an editor, colleague, and friend. She is a gracious person and her work as both a photographer and a writer are ‘par excellence.’ Dawn was so supportive when the Estes Valley Voice launched and actually helped name the publication over chips and margaritas at Ed’s Cantina. She has written several articles for us,” said Brown.
Wilson is currently the marketing and communications specialist at Estes Park Health and is currently working on multiple book projects, including themes such as wildlife at night, the evolution of wildlife over the last 150 years, her personal experiences, and a series of children’s books. Wilson’s publications, including her book “100 Things to Do in Estes Park Before You Die,” photographs, and tour information can be found on her website.