Outdoor Photography – Field-studies Experience:Exploring the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Location: Big Horn Gallery
Hangs: October 13 - November 19, 2026
Within Northwest College’s mission is the promise to its students to be a place of distinction in a destination of place within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Since 1982 when Emeritus Professor Craig Satterlee invited his 35mm film class for a day of photographing in Yellowstone, the Photographic Communications program has fostered both initiatives. With the help of colleague Assistant Professor Dennis Davis in 1983, the Outdoor Photography field experience class was instituted into the two-year degree program to build camaraderie and an appreciation for the unique landscape that is Northwest College.
Since the inception of the class, the Photographic Communications program has been taking students into Yellowstone and The Grand Teton National Parks, the Shoshone National Forest, Custer National Forest and the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area during the fall semester. This photographic exhibition provides a glimpse of images taken on these trips beginning in 2008 to our most recent trip in the fall of 2026.
Over the years the two-credit class expanded into a three-credit Outdoor Photography Freshman Experience class. The class objective was to build a cohort that created a bond among photography majors as they worked together in lighting studios, computer labs, and darkrooms, thus building lifelong friendships, including a few weddings along the way.
The achievements of this unique class have not gone unnoticed. In the Spring 2018 issue of Tamron’s Edu Magazine, the program was featured in the article titled “The Jewel in the Crown: the best classroom isn’t necessarily the traditional classroom.” Throughout the years representatives from Nikon USA Inc, Canon USA, Tamron Lenses, Sigma Lenses, Fujifilm, and Robert’s Camera have joined students in the wilds of Wyoming and Montana as they shared lenses, cameras, and important photographic techniques with NWC students that guaranteed photographic success in the field.
By taking students enrolled in the Outdoor Photography classes into some of the most distinctive destinations in Wyoming and Montana, the Photographic Communications has cultivated a strong community of students and alumni. As retired Associate Professor Anthony Polvere had always said during the first day of class, “we are a photo family.”
Molly Gjervold - 2016
Eileen Bobinski - 2014
Brian Harrington - 2008
Harleigh Riley - 2017
Taryn Hill - 2024
Tyler Yates - 2016
Jessica Quick - 2008
Trent Schweitzer - 2008
Andrew Dimich - 2013
Taryn Hill - 2024
Jaycie Roberson - 2021
Kelsey Herman - 2021
Selena Spaulding - 2024
Brian Fredberg - 2014
Olivia Fortun - 2026
Christine Garceau - 2022
Owen Olichwier - 2026
Matty Dillon - 2013
Colby Jones - 2015
Kathy Morris - 2025
Courtney Weber - 2017
Scott Castleberg - 2025
Jennifer Litterer-Trevino - 2020
Stephanie Thomson - 2013
Anthony Polvere - 2020
Courtney Richardson - 2017
Ronnie Wolfe - 2024
Trey Erickson - 2025
2020-2021 Annual Photo Student Show
The show is an annual event featuring work by students enrolled in the NWC Photographic Communications Program. It contains representative samples of the photography career options offered at Northwest including photojournalism, portraiture, fashion, food and product photography.
During the opening reception, the NWC Trustees’ Purchase Awards will be announced and students represented in the show will be on hand to talk about their works. The winners for this year;
Commercial Portrait: Abigail Cubbage
Product Advertising: Lauren Yates
Digital Composite: Ilene Olson
Editorial & Media: Katlynn McKenzie
This year’s purchase awards were selected by Megan Baumeister, alumni of NWC Photographic Communication Program and owner of Tilt/Shift Brands in Cody, Wyoming. It was juried by faculty and staff in the NWC Photographic Communications Program.
2019-2020 Annual Photo Student Show
The show is an annual event featuring work by students enrolled in the NWC Photographic Communications Program. It contains representative samples of the photography career options offered at Northwest including photojournalism, portraiture, fashion, food and product photography.
During the opening reception, the NWC Trustees’ Purchase Awards will be announced and students represented in the show will be on hand to talk about their works. The winners for this year;
Commercial Portrait: Shyane Schultz
Product Illustration: Jaydn Engelhardt
Digital Alteration: Ronnie Wolfe
Media & Editorial: Austin Kennedy
This year’s purchase awards were selected by Craig Satterlee, retired NWC Professor Emeritus of the Photographic Communication Program. It was juried by faculty and staff in the NWC Photographic Communications Program.
Chile: Abrria y Abajo
This 2019 spring break, April 28-March 9, the Photographic Communications program at Northwest College lead a group of twenty-three students, faculty and community members to Chile. This was the sixteenth spring break trip that the Photographic Communications program organized but it was the first trip lead by Jennifer Litterer-Treviño, Instructor of Photography. Similar to other trips, Chile provided a valuable opportunity for Northwest College students to experience the challenges of travel photography within the structure of a multicultural experience.
The Abrria y Abajo exhibit, which translates from Spanish to up and down, showcases photographs from fourteen students, faculty and community members. The images represent both the metaphorically and geographically theme of up and down. The trip began in capital city of Santiago, where students acclimate to the late summer weather and cityscapes. Santiago has a rich culture of mixing old colonial Spanish architecture with newer modern buildings. After a couple days in Santiago, the group took a flight down to Punta Arenas, which is the southern tip of country and in the Patagonia region. During the second morning in Punta Arenas the group rode a boat to visit Magellanic penguins on Magdalena Island in the Strait of Magellan. The following day the group flew back to Santiago and spent the remainder of the trip visiting the port cities, Valparaíso and Viña del Mar, and a tour of the Concha y Toro winery.
2019-2018 Annual Student Photo Show
The show is an annual event featuring work by students enrolled in the NWC Photographic Communications Program. It contains representative samples of the photography career options offered at Northwest including photojournalism, portraiture, fashion, food and product photography.
During the opening reception, the NWC Trustees’ Purchase Awards will be announced and students represented in the show will be on hand to talk about their works. The winners for this year;
Commercial Portrait: Rebekah Ozer
Product Illustration: Randy Quarles
Digital Alteration: Tannar Ranstrom
Media & Editorial: Jeff Codevilla
This year’s purchase awards were selected by Melissa Thompson, Alumni of NWC Photographic Communication Program and owner of Thompson Portrait Studios. It was juried by faculty and staff in the NWC Photographic Communications Program.