A Visual Conservation Effort for Wilderness Park

Conservation photography has been practiced since the early 1800’s by photographers who had the talent for photography, and passion for protecting our planets most precious resources. The photographical works of many photographers used their images as conservation tools to protect areas of land they intrinsically valued. Like these photographers, I have found a piece of land close to home that I intrinsically value, and this piece of land is Wilderness Park. Wilderness Park is 1,472 acres of riparian woodland and is part of the Salt Creek watershed, which is a tributary of the larger Platte River Basin. However, I am not the only one who finds this piece of land worth preserving. The Friends of Wilderness Park is a non-profit Organization that is committed to preserving the long-term sustainability and ecological integrity of Wilderness Park through proactive education, preservation, and community cooperation. The purpose of my project is to create a photobook for Wilderness Park, and donate any profits made from the book to the Friends of Wilderness Park organization. By dedicating my time, talent, and effort in creating this archive of images and donating the profits to this like-minded organization, I will be combining my love for photography and passion of preserving our natural resources. This paper will explore the effectiveness of using photography as a conservation tool, the history and importance of Wilderness Park, and the design process of creating this photobook