Opening Weekend: April 18-20, 2014 – Yellowstone National Park, Montana

I often get questions about how to photograph Yellowstone National Park, since I live so close, so here is the first of many blog posts on the topic. I was looking back through my photos from this Spring in Yellowstone National Park so I thought I would share them. I took most of these on the park opening weekend, when we drove all the way from the West park entrance to the Cooke City entrance. Now there is a quaint little town, Cooke City. It has been voted the funnest tiny town in America, but we are talking very tiny town. The day we arrived was the first day the road had been opened up, so it had been a long winter. You can see they still had plenty of snow! Of course you can find animals all year long in Yellowstone, but I recommend you get out there early in the morning and evening to see the most wildlife activity. Of course that is also the best time to take photos, so that is handy! If you get to the park entrance before 6:00am you can usually drive in without paying, so there is another incentive to rise early.

April, May, September and October are the best months for wildlife viewing and photography and there are not so many tourists then too. Take a long lens to get in as close as possible without disturbing the animals as they feed and interact. Have fun on your next trip to Yellowstone National Park, Montana.