Custer State Park has a “Wildlife Loop” road, which we visited both in the afternoon and morning. We saw lots of bison each time, but not surprisingly, they were more active in the morning. This photo was from sunrise, where I found a low angle as some were crossing the road. Nikon Z 50, Manual exposure, Sunny white balance, ISO 400, 1/1250 at f/8 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor VR Zoom 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 290mm.

With blue skies and bright white clouds, finding this group of bison on a hillside screamed “BLACK AND WHITE!” Nikon Z 6 converted to full spectrum for IR, Aperture Priority, Preset white balance, ISO 125, 1/400 at f/8 in Matrix metering, +1.7 EV, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 20mm.

It’s not legal (or safe) to approach close to the wildlife, but if you’re in a vehicle on the road, you may get opportunities like this. Nikon Z 50, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 800, 1/500 at f/5.6 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor VR Zoom 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 290mm.

Many decades ago, burros were used as part of a tourist attraction at Custer State Park. Since then they’ve been set loose, and you can now find them wandering the park. Nikon Z 6 II, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 320, 1/400 at f/6.3 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens at 24mm.

Also common in Custer State Park are Pronghorn. Early morning sidelight like this, with a dark background, makes for easy photography. Nikon Z 50, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 400, 1/640 at f/5.6 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor VR Zoom 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 460mm.

One of the major attractions in Custer State Park is Needles Highway. Near the north end of it you can find Needle’s Eye, where we did some early evening night photography. I added some light from the left side with a Lume Cube. Nikon Z 6, Aperture Priority, 3800K white balance, ISO 250, 3-seconds at f/4.5 in Matrix metering, -0.7 EV, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 15mm.

Iron Mountain Highway was designed so that a couple of the tunnels frame Mount Rushmore in the distance. Nikon Z 50, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 1600, 1/200 at f/5.6 in Matrix metering, 0.0 EV, Nikkor VR Zoom 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at 200mm.

My main mission in Badlands National Park was to find good locations at the right time of day to make the most of the unique geography. This is one of those spots at the right time. Nikon Z 6, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 125, 1/125 at f/8 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 26mm.

Sometimes you just get lucky. This pair of male bighorn sheep walked right by me as I was photographing some rock formations in Badlands. I then followed them to the watering hole they were headed to. These were the only two males we saw, but were able to photograph a lot of females and young during our time there. Nikon Z 6 II, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 100, 1/200 at f/7.1 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens at 200mm.

Erosion is the name of the game at Badlands National Park, and why you’re allowed to walk literally anywhere (your footprints won’t last). The area goes through periods of rain and then intense dryness, and that’s obvious all around. Nikon Z 6 II, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 200, 1/60 at f/8 in Matrix metering, 0.0 EV, Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens at 67mm.

I always try to include some night photography in my workshops, and this one will be no exception. While scouting areas outside the park, I found this abandoned car in a field near the road we were driving. Because of the relative brightness of the sunset, I used a flash above and to the left to light it. Nikon Z 6 II, Manual exposure, Sunny white balance, ISO 100, 1/15 at f/7.1 in Matrix metering, -1.7 EV, Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR lens at 31mm.

The drama of the geography paired with dark blue skies and white clouds makes black and white an easy choice in the Badlands. Nikon Z 6 converted to full spectrum for IR capture, Aperture Priority, Preset white balance, ISO 100, 1/250 at f/10 in Matrix metering, +1.7 EV, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 14mm.

Being able to get up close the erosion in the Badlands gives me a great opportunity to work with both a strong strong foreground and strong background. This foreground formation is only a foot or two in front of me, the main reason I used a small aperture (f/16). Nikon Z 6, Aperture Priority, Sunny white balance, ISO 100, 1/160 at f/16 in Matrix metering, -0.3 EV, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 18mm.

For the final shoot of the trip, I returned to a mushroom formation I’d seen earlier that was relatively close to the road. Walking in at dusk, I set up two Lume Cubes, one at far left, with a barndoor for sidelight and one directly behind to backlight it. Nikon Z 6 II, Manual exposure, Sunny white balance, ISO 2000, 20-seconds at f/4.5 in Matrix metering, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens at 14mm.