There are places in America that have become icons of the landscape, almost as though they have demanded to be photographed. The question is asked over and over: What is it that makes your heart beat faster and your blood begin to rush, leading you to reach for your camera? Marc Muench believes the answer to this question is buried in the stories of what landscape photographers have been doing over the past 50 years.

As a third generation landscape photographer, Muench has been fortunate to live the experience, explore the regions, lug the large cameras, wait for the light, and in a few cases, photograph a unique location for the first time. In Exploring North American Landscapes, Muench tells us his stories as well as those of his father and grandfather. He shares his stunning images and discusses how landscape photography is more than simply an exploration of the landscape—it is also an exploration of one's equipment and, ultimately, of oneself.

Also included is a discussion of the technical aspects of landscape photography, including what equipment to use and techniques for working with environmental conditions. Easy to understand, step-by-step lessons teach about image optimization using Photoshop and other tools.

Photographers of all levels will learn how they too can find, capture, and process their own amazing landscape images.

Target group:

• Photographers, Students, Artists

Author / Authors:

Marc Muench was born in Santa Barbara, California, where he now resides with his wife, Stefanie, and their three children. He has been a professional landscape and sports photographer for over 20 years. After completing his studies at Pasadena Art Center College of Design, Marc immediately began photographing for book publishers such as Graphic Arts Center, Browntrout Publishing, and Time Inc. His photographs have appeared in numerous magazines, books, calendars, and postcards, and in 2003, he was designated as a Kodak Photo Icon.

Marc is now the artist-in-residence at dgrin.com for Smugmug, where he contributes on a regular basis to the “Muench University” critique thread. He is also the photo editor of the National Parks Guide, published by The American Park Network. The guides contain many of his images taken throughout the United States National Park system.

Marc recently completed a year-long video project on Catalina Island for the Catalina Island Conservancy. The five-minute video highlights the new Trans Catalina Trail, capturing dynamic landscapes, wildlife, and hikers exploring their way across the Island.

Marc’s goal is to convey the drama and the power of nature—to share the “experience”— in his photographic images. And his images show that, without a doubt, Marc has achieved his goal time and time again.