Rob Harwood: Winter Wildlife Photo Workshop

Rob Harwood ~ Workshop #2 Instructor

Yellowstone has been a huge part of my life for the past 24 years, and I have worked full-time as a photography guide in the park since 2022. There is simply no substitute for a truly local guide; someone who lives locally full-time and knows the park and its wildlife on an intimate level. Whether guiding a trip or exploring Yellowstone on my weekends, I am constantly in the park gaining a better understanding of its wildlife and how they use this landscape during each season.

One of our main goals during this early winter workshop is to take full advantage of photographic opportunities of our iconic hoofed animals. Big bull moose, still carrying their massive “paddles”, are often spotted in bachelor groups in photographable range at this time of year. The bighorn sheep rut (mating season) is just winding down, allowing us a chance at capturing rams still in their prime battling for mating rights. Bull elk are still in excellent shape in early winter allowing for stunning images of Yellowstone’s Rocky Mountain Elk population – including the exceptional racks this sub-species is known for. Additional photo opportunities include red fox, coyote, bald and golden eagles, trumpeter swans and other waterfowl, river otters, and, rarely, wolves.

My aim is to help you understand wild animals on a deeper level so you can anticipate those perfectly-timed photos and tell a better story through your images. I love working with photographers of all backgrounds, regardless of experience or equipment. I am most familiar with Canon equipment, but I can help answer technical questions and troubleshoot camera issues whether you shoot Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fuji, or others. My goal is to provide you the tools and knowledge necessary to succeed during future trips.

2026/2027 7-Day Workshop with Rob Harwood:

• December 27, 2026 – January 2, 2027

Included in workshop:

• Local, professional photographer/naturalist Rob Harwood
• Afternoon of Day 2 exploring the oft-overlooked, delicate beauty of the Mammoth Hot Springs terraces
• (2) full days (8-10 hours) on Yellowstone’s famed Northern Range including the Lamar Valley, Blacktail Plateau, Little America, and Round Prairie
• (2) full days (10-11 hours) venturing in Yellowstone’s interior in a privately chartered snowcoach. Stops may include Old Faithful, Madison Valley, Hayden Valley, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Norris Geyser Basin, and other locations
• Hands-on learning and discussion with your instructor
• Plenty of space for your camera gear and extra clothing
• Round-trip transportation from Bozeman, MT, to Gardiner, MT
• (1) Night lodging in Bozeman, MT, the day you arrive
• (5) Nights lodging in Gardiner, MT
• (4) private, catered dinners and evening sessions for group sharing, Q&A, instruction, and more
• (1) Dinner at a local, cafe and gallery
• (1) Sit-down lunch en route to Gardiner for orientation, trip preparation, and Q&A
• (1) Sit-down breakfast on the final day before returning to Bozeman
• Continental breakfast to start each day
• Hot drinks (coffee, tea, hot cocoa, cider)
• Healthy and hearty snacks (various protein/granola bars, mixed nuts, hummus, crackers, snack cheese, fruit, veggies, etc.)
• Fruit juice, sparkling water, and fresh water
• Full picnic lunch spread (GF and vegetarian available)
• Snowcoach driver gratuity
• Interpretation of wildlife activity and behavior to help understand the wildlife in the context of their habitat
• Park Entrance Fee(s)
• Hand/toe warmers
• YakTrax ice traction “boot chains”
• Snowshoes/poles as needed

NOT included in workshop price:

• Transportation to get to/from Bozeman, MT, before and after package dates
• Dinner on Day 1
• Breakfast on Day 2
• Gratuity for workshop instructor
• Camera equipment/gear

2026/2027 7-Day Workshop Overview:

Upon booking guests will receive a comprehensive comfirmation email. 90 days before the package starts,  additional planning documents will be sent via email. 10-14 days prior to arrival, guests will receive a day-by-day detailed final itinerary. Please read all of these thoroughly to find answer to frequently asked questions and ensure enough time for proper preparation.

Day 1: Arrive in Bozeman, MT. Free shuttle to Best Western GranTree in Bozeman, MT. Dinner is on your own. There is a restaurant on site.

Day 2: Breakfast on your own. (We recommend you eat early or wait until lunch with the group around 11:30 a.m.). Rob will pick you up at 10 a.m. for a leisurely transfer to Gardiner, MT, with a stop for lunch at the popular Old Saloon in Emigrant, MT. After lunch you will continue to Gardiner where you will then head into the park for an afternoon exploring the magnificent Mammoth Hot Springs terraces. You’ll  check into your lodging  before enjoying a catered dinner where Rob will provide an overview of the upcoming week.

Days 3 – 4: Rob will pick you up each day before sunrise to venture out in search of wildlife in the Northern Range. These days focus on photographing moose, bison, bighorn sheep, elk, coyotes, foxes, river otters, winter songbirds, birds of prey, wolves, and as many other species as possible. Breakfast, lunch, snacks, and a variety of hot beverages will be enjoyed in the field throughout the day. Each each evening you’ll return for delicious meal before heading in for a good nights rest. Dinner on day 3 will be at a high-end, local cafe. Dinner on Day 4 will be privately catered.

Days 5 – 6: These days are centered around visiting the park’s rarely visited interior via a privately chartered oversnow vehicle (snowcoach). Rob will pick you up at 6:30 a.m. each day for transfer to Mammoth Hot Springs where you will board your coach for the day. You’ll have the opportunity to photograph otherworldly thermal basins, rainbow-hued canyons, frozen waterfalls, rivers, frosty bison, elegant trumpeter swans (among other wild occupants), and vast expanses of snow-softened landscapes. Based on conditions, interests, and wildlife activity, Rob may choose to spend time in some of the following areas: Old Faithful and Upper Geyser Basin, Fountain Flats, Firehole River, Norris Geyser Basin, Swan Lake Flat, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, Hayden Valley, or Fountain Paint Pot. Breakfast, lunch, snacks, and a variety of hot beverages will be enjoyed in the field throughout the day. Each afternoon you’ll return to Gardiner between 5:30 and 6 p.m. Dinner on Days 5 and 6 will be privately catered.

Day 7: Rob will pick you up at 7:30 a.m. to enjoy breakfast together at a local restaurant before transferring the group back to Bozeman, where our workshop ends. Due to possible adverse weather conditions during this travel day, we ask that you DO NOT book flights out of Bozeman/Yellowstone International Airport any earlier than 1 p.m.

A deposit in the amount of 30% is required at time of booking in order to secure your reservation. The balance due will be charged to the card on file 60 days prior to your tour start date. If you would like to change your form of payment prior to the final payment, it is your responsibility to notify Yellowstone Wild in advance. A receipt will be emailed upon payment of deposit and again when the balance has been collected.

Should you need to cancel your tour with us more than 61 days prior to your tour departure date, your deposit is fully refundable minus a *$300.00/person service fee. 

*If you booked online, the fees charged by the third-party booking system are also non-refundable.

Should you need to cancel your tour  within 60 days of your tour departure date, your payment is non-refundable.

Should your tour need to be canceled due to factors beyond our control, including (but not limited to) extreme weather conditions, wildfire, natural disaster, park closure, airline cancellations, war, government shutdown, pandemic, or an “Act of God” we are unable to offer a cash refund.

As a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions.  Due to winter travel involving additional challenges related to flights, roads, and severe weather, we highly encourage you purchase third party trip insurance to protect your investment.

We reserve the right to cancel the trip if the minimum enrollment of 4 guests has not been met 31 days prior to the trip start date. A full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare, car rentals, or other incidentals.

We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect your investment in case of unforeseen cancellations, changes to your travel plans, natural or human caused disasters, or other unpredictable events. (For suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor].

What our Yellowstone Wild Photography Guides Recommend for Multi-Day Winter Workshops:

Recommended Gear:

• Batteries/Charger – Enough battery power to shoot the entire day (recommend 3 batteries per camera body).
• Memory cards: Budget for using up 50-100GB of card space PER DAY (more if you shoot video clips in addition to stills). This may be overkill if you tend to shoot on single-shot mode instead of high-speed burst mode. But if you are using high-speed burst mode, you will eat through card space very quickly. You’ll want to have at least 64GB per camera body available per day for this multiday workshop. Or, if you prefer to bring a laptop/hard drive and offload images from your card each evening, that could work too.
• Cleaning – Lens cloths, air blower, lens solution.
• Filters – Clear UV, Polarizer
• Tools: Allen wrenches or Leatherman type tool

  Required Gear:

• • At least one quality camera body (DSLR or mirrorless recommended) with lenses of your choice.
  • At a minimum, we recommend one telephoto lens (maximum focal length of 400, 600, or 800mm would be ideal) for safely photographing wildlife, as well as one wider lens (examples: 16-35mm, 14-24mm, 24-70mm, etc.) for photographing landscapes.
  • Do not underestimate the harshness of the environment. While we provide hand/toe warmers, hot beverages throughout the day, and foam stand pads, nothing will keep you warm if you are not prepared with the proper gear. Please review our blog, The Art Of Layering, for more information.

Recommended Lenses:

• Canon/Sony/Nikon 500mm or 600mm f/4
• Canon/Sony/Nikon 400mm f/2.8
• Canon/Sony/Nikon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6
• Canon 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1
• Canon 200-800mm F6.3-9
• Nikon 600mm f/6.3
• Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6
• Nikon 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3
• Sony 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3
• Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3
• Sigma 60-600mm f/4.5-6.3

Renting lenses is also an option at the following sites:
www.borrowlenses.com
www.bozemancamera.com

Yellowstone exhibits some of the most extreme changes in temperature and weather conditions anywhere. Temperatures on a winter tour could range from -40°F to +40°F (-40°C to +10°C). We therefore recommend plenty of warm clothes that can be layered and easily removed, allowing you to adjust and stay comfortable throughout your tour.

Visit our Blog “The Art of Layering: How To Dress For a Yellowstone Winter Adventure” to learn more about appropriate clothing including links to purchase or rent the items you’ll need.

For winter tours, here is what our guides wear:

• Long underwear. Starting with your base layers, synthetic or wool long underwear tops and bottoms are critical to your comfort (we can find places to shed this layer later in the day if necessary). Please stay away from cotton, which can hold moisture and chill the body, whereas wool and synthetics wick moisture and can even insulate while wet.
• Sweater or fleece. Ideally multiple insulating layers like fleece and/or wool sweaters allow for effective layering and to easily shed layers as the day warms up.
• Fleece or down vest. Vests are great as a layering item that can really hold in core body temperature yet also allow for maximum comfort and mobility.
  A windproof and water-repellent insulated jacket is your most important protection from the biting Wyoming wind. Gore-Tex or something similar is highly advised as the best moisture/wind barrier and goose down is the best insulation.
• Snow pants/ski pants. Insulated pants with moisture/wind barrier should serve as an outer layer. You should wear long underwear thermal layers in addition.
• Heavy gloves or mittens with windproof barriers.
• Warm hat that covers your ears. We lose tremendous body heat from our heads. Protect your ears from the chilly wind with a wool or fleece hat.
• Warm wool or synthetic socks are key to keeping those toes from hampering your good time. Be sure you have plenty of wiggle room inside your boots. If your socks are too thick and fit too tightly in your boots you can actually reduce blood flow to your feet, resulting in cold toes, regardless of how warm your socks are.
• Insulated winter boots (roomy boots are better as you do not want to restrict circulation in your feet/toes). There are several ways you can go for winter boots including the insulated rubber “muck” boots that farmers and ranchers prefer. These are slip-on boots that come in varying levels of insulation (down to -50 degrees). They are fine for short walks, but you would not want them for full-day hikes. For the purpose of this trip, they are fine. Brands including Muck and LaCrosse are probably the best bang for your buck.
  https://www.lacrossefootwear.com
  https://www.muckbootcompany.com
  The other option is a lace-up, insulated boot. There are lots of them on the market. Here is a link with discussion about boots recommended for Antarctica tours:
  https://www.coolantarctica.com/Shop/antarctica-clothing/antarctic-boots.php
• Sun protection. With high-elevation sun, many of us burn easily, especially when we are distracted by something like watching wolves for extended periods of time.

A daypack can be very handy for personal items: hand and toe warmers, water bottles, sunglasses, cameras, and, of course, for all the extra layers you will want.

Please let us know if you have additional questions about gear.

Yellowstone Wild photography instructor/guides are leaders in the field of ethical wildlife photography. An in-depth understanding of wildlife biology and keen observational skills drive their ability to set our photography clients up for powerful images while respecting the wildlife and without causing any undue stress, discomfort, or harm. Your guide’s capacity to read animal behavior and anticipate their next movements, paired with a familiar understanding of the local topography, often allows them to plan ahead and help you set up for wonderful shots of Yellowstone’s wildlife on the stunning winter landscape.

We encourage photographers to focus on capturing images of wild animals interacting naturally with their habitat, with one another, and with their prey species, unaffected by human presence; our photo guides strive to help clients capture images that tell powerful stories of animal behavior and ecology while creating a sense of place within the pristine winter setting of Yellowstone.

OUR CODE OF ETHICS

Yellowstone National Park is a reminder that everything is connected and that its landscapes thrive through balance, diversity, and coexistence – as do all of us.

When the world feels divided, we turn to this wild place for lessons in how to move forward together.

At Yellowstone Wild, we promise to lead by example. We will choose curiosity over judgment, compassion over indifference, and connection over division — both on and off the clock.

We welcome our guests into an environment of shared discovery guided by kindness and curiosity. On our tours, we honor the backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures each guest brings, while holding firm to the expectation of respect for one another and to this place we all care for.

We believe our tours, though limited in time, have the power to establish common ground, form connections, and share experiences that bring us closer together as humans. 

Ethics, Regulations & Responsibility

Yellowstone Wild operates as a licensed Commercial Use Permit holder under the National Park Service (NPS). This means we are required to follow—and strictly enforce—all NPS rules and regulations. Beyond that, as lifelong advocates for wildlife and wild places, we uphold our own ethical wildlife-viewing and resource protection standards.

Our goal is to provide exceptional viewing and photography opportunities without negatively impacting wildlife or the natural fluctuations of ecological processes. That balance is only possible when animals are allowed to move, feed, rest, and hunt without interference, and our geologic features are allowed to function without human tampering.

While on tour with Yellowstone Wild, the following National Park Service regulations apply and are non-negotiable (subject to federal law enforcement). Please note this list is not all-inclusive. You can visit the Yellowstone National Park NPS website for a comprehensive list of all regulations:

• Maintain at least 25 yards from all wildlife
• Maintain at least 100 yards from wolves, bears, and cougars (mountain lions)
• Never approach, follow, or remain near wildlife—including birds—if your presence alters their behavior
• Vehicles must be completely pulled off the road when stopping to view wildlife or load/unload passengers
• Feeding wildlife is illegal
• In thermal areas, travel is restricted to boardwalks and designated trails only
• Throwing anything (including snow or natural objects) is prohibited and may result in fines and/or tour termination

Why These Rules Matter

Wild animals live demanding lives. The ethical responsibility of visiting Yellowstone is to ensure our presence does not add stress, risk, or hardship to theirs. Your guide is trained to read animal behavior, and if an animal shows signs of disturbance, we must increase our distance immediately.

Failure to follow a guide’s instructions—especially regarding wildlife proximity—may result in the immediate termination of your tour, at the guide’s discretion.

Special care must be taken around animals feeding on or resting near carcasses. Approaching these areas can displace animals from critical food sources and may put people at serious risk. Carcasses are often defended by predators and scavenged by multiple species, including grizzly bears. Approaching such areas is strictly prohibited.

Finally, we share this park with other visitors, researchers, and permanent employees. Quiet, respectful behavior ensures the best possible experience for everyone and helps preserve the integrity of wildlife observations and continued preservation of our sensitive thermal features, waterways, and all pristine areas.

At Yellowstone Wild, ethical behavior is an expectation. Meeting these expectations is the foundation of meaningful, safe, and responsible wildlife and wilderness experiences.

It’s important to remember the wild animals we seek to observe and photograph are exactly that, wild, free-ranging animals that can roam throughout all of Yellowstone’s vast and rugged 2.2 million acres and beyond. The probability of locating and observing them is greatly elevated due to your guide’s familiarity with the landscape and the animals themselves. We do not guarantee any wildlife sightings on our tours; however, we will guarantee your guide will use his or her knowledge, skills, and network of other guides, wildlife watchers, and photographers to do everything possible to find and photograph the animals you’d like to see. Our guides are in the park nearly every day searching for and watching wildlife, and that consistent experience pays off in finding the animals you’ve traveled to observe.

How likely are you to photograph wild wolves? Over the course of the workshop there is a strong likelihood you will see wolves (sometimes multiple packs in a single day). However, as these wolves are truly wild (they do not like to be close to people) and their movements can be unpredictable and lengthy, up-close, portrait-style photo opportunities are rare and should not be expected. We encourage our photographers to focus on capturing images of wolves out on the vast Yellowstone landscape, interacting naturally with their habitat, with one another, and with their prey species, unaffected by our presence. Our photo guides strive to help you use your images to tell powerful stories of animal behavior and ecology while creating a sense of place within the pristine winter setting of Yellowstone