The Black Hills in western South Dakota hold a really special place in my heart. I spent most of my younger childhood growing up scrambling over the granite and getting lost in the Ponderosas that make up this little area of the world. It’s also a place that I have gotten to visit many times in my adulthood. And it all comes back around for me that I’ve been able to introduce my own kids to this space that has done a fair bit of formation in my own soul.

This time of year, I always get a special little itch to get back to the Hills. For quite a few years I went with my dad to the Black Hills Photo Shootout – a gathering and educational opportunity for photographers from all over to get a feel for the Hills, to practice, to learn and to be with fellow photographers. I haven’t been in too long, and this would have been the weekend to be there. From all accounts, it was an excellent gathering, and I can’t wait to get back again myself.

But, in the spirit of the Black Hills, I wanted to share a few of my favorite images from the times more recently that I have spent shooting there. I very much believe that there are spaces and landscapes in our lives that go a fair way toward shaping who we are and who we become. For me, the Black Hills is huge in this area.

All the best,
Alison