Capturing the Story of the Desert West in Photographs - An evening with writer and photographer Stephen Trimble

Stephen Trimble* tells stories in words and photographs. He says, “I could never choose between writing and photography. I love them both, for different reasons. Writing engages my brain—it takes everything I can muster—over a long, long period of concentrated work. Taking pictures is a release, an outlet for reacting directly to the land and to people, a way to reap the instant emotional gratification that writing cannot grant.”

In this presentation (on August 20th, 6:30-8pm), Steve will introduce his work, taking us inside his process as an editorial photographer tasked with creating a narrative with photographs—a challenge he’s mastered in nearly fifty years worth of books, articles, and slide shows. He’ll then take us through his most recent book, The Capitol Reef Reader, in detail.

Editing this anthology of the best writing about Utah’s Capitol Reef National Park has been a labor of love. Steve has been working on the book for 45 years without knowing it—ever since serving as a seasonal ranger at Capitol Reef in his twenties. For the Reader, he’s gathered excerpts from 50 writers—160 years worth of words that capture the spirit of the park and its surrounding landscape in personal narratives, philosophical riffs, and historic and scientific records.

In this Zoom presentation, he’ll share stories from these lovely pieces of writing, talk you through the adventure of tracking down these books and authors, and project the 100 photographs included in the book—historic photos, his own pictures from years exploring the park, as well as images from master visual artists who have worked in Capitol Reef. 

You will need to have Zoom installed in this member's only presentation.

Register for the presentation here.

* See Stephen Trimble's bio here

Cainesville Mesa Overlook and Deer Silhouette photographs copyright Stephen Trimble