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The Cook County News-Herald is thrilled to announce that a group of great local amateur and professional photographers have agreed to submit pictures to the newspaper for your enjoyment. We will introduce these men and women over the next few weeks so you can get to know who is behind the camera.
Some of these photographers have excellent websites with their work for sale or just for your viewing pleasure. We will include these websites and hope you visit them because you will find that what we can show on our pages is just a small sampling of their hard work and amazing talent.
Gary Siesennop was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1948. He grew up in Bloomington, where he explored the local woods and waters: hiking, fishing, and canoeing the Minnesota River valley. He has been a Cook County resident since March 1980. In early March 2021, helped by his wife (and perhaps by various medical professionals) he actually made it to 73 years-of-age.
His introduction to photography began by viewing black and white photographs of scenic places in Minnesota and Wisconsin, the Black Hills of South Dakota, Yellowstone, and other western national parks that were visited by parents and relatives during the 1930s through the 1960s.
Photos by Ansel Adams, Les Blacklock, and Audubon magazine were inspirational as were many photos taken by some hiking, camping, and canoeing friends in the 1970s.
Since 1971, he has used several Canon 35mm film cameras (with various lenses) to photograph birds, other wildlife species, local scenery, and landscapes in the western half of the United States.
He used his camera gear to document some of his work as an Aquatic Biologist for Ecological Services Section and as a Fisheries Research Biologist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. He purchased a second 35mm SLR film camera and telephoto lens in 1977 when he lived in Ely, Minnesota. The first two images he captured with that camera were of a radio-collared grey wolf that was hunting along Filson Creek, a woodland stream near the Spruce Road and Kawishiwi River.
After retiring from the Minnesota DNR in July 2007, Gary and his wife Kathy converted from film cameras to digital cameras. He now uses a variety of small Panasonic and larger Canon DSRL cameras, as well as several game or trail (scouting) cameras.
Some of his favorite photographic haunts include many national parks and monuments in the mountainous regions of Montana, Wyoming, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska. More recently he has explored Arizona and Colorado and, of course, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Sometimes Gary photographs classic aircraft (mostly WWII era) especially when they are flying at regional air shows. During the last few years, he sometimes stalks dark night skies to get pictures of stars, planets, and meteors. Wildlife, nature, and landscapes, however, remain his most frequent subjects. During these trying COVID-19 virus times, his photography has been limited to Cook County.
Weather permitting, Gary keeps photography as an almost daily habit. It is a life-hobby to share mostly with family, friends, and acquaintances. Several of his favorite wildlife photos of moose, wolves, and ruffed grouse are displayed at the Tourist Information Center in Grand Marais. He shares photos with email contacts. He does not (yet) have a website, Facebook page, or commercial outlet.
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