Brandenburg's Minnesota
Over the decades, nature photographer Jim Brandenburg's images have captured the essence of Minnesota's wild places.
It’s fair to say that few photographers have done more to shed light on Minnesota’s ecological richness and natural beauty than Jim Brandenburg. In fact it’s reasonable to claim that none have. Brandenburg, whose work was first published in Minnesota Conservation Volunteer in 1970, came to wider fame in subsequent years as an award-winning photographer for National Geographic.
For decades, Brandenburg roamed far and wide to depict dramatic landscapes and remarkable creatures including Peary caribou in the Arctic, puffins on the coast of Iceland, and flamingos, elephants, and oryx in Namibia—as well as, closer to home, timber wolves, the beating wild heart of Minnesota’s north woods.
It was also back home in Minnesota where the photographer challenged himself with a rigorous assignment that became one of his best-known bodies of work. For 90 days, he shot only a single frame a day, and the resulting photo collection—elemental, vital, and profound—was published first in National Geographic and then in the book Chased by the Light (NorthWord Press, 1998).
“The ritual and simple study reminded me of what I had forgotten, and took on overtones of prayer and homage,” he wrote of the project.
The images on these pages show the flora, fauna, and landscapes of Minnesota as seen through Brandenburg’s keen eyes. The photos encompass early prints, wolves (of course), selections from his 90-day project, and other subjects including scenes from the prairie lands where the photographer grew up, and to which he has often returned.
Collectively, these Minnesota-made images reflect Brandenburg’s deep and soulful approach to nature photography, and to life itself. As he wrote in Chased by the Light, “We simply are a part of nature and our soul always seeks that core.
