Meet Liz Guertin | Nature Photographer and Maryland Master Naturalist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Liz Guertin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Liz, what inspires you?

I am most inspired by two things: 1) time in nature; and 2) other artists. Time in nature is my lifelong passion. I’ve worked in the outdoors as an educator, leader, activist, and now as an artist. I work to combine all aspects of my outdoor experience into my photography practice, and aspects of my photography into my outdoor experience. For my practice, what I need is alone time; time in the forest, beach, wetland, desert, jungle, even urban environments. I need time to walk or stand for hours outside and I will find the shots!

Second is time with other artists. This is something that has grown so important during the pandemic. Connecting with other artists to see what they’re working on. I always come away wanting to enhance my practice with a little bit of what they’re doing. Artists are excited by materials, process, and practice. It’s a magical way to experience the world and I need their perspectives. It’s so nourishing.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

Right now, I’m most excited about watching my vision come to life. I have dreamt of bringing people along on a sensory journey at the intersection of art, science, conservation, and outdoor adventure. I create an experience for others that’s hard to find. Through all my offerings (classes, workshops, walks, etc.) I aim to make the natural world more accessible, something folks can connect to in a deep, meaningful way. My work brings people to beauty and beauty to people. It brings complexity. Spending time in the field with me is exciting, fresh, and compelling. I want it to challenge you to rise to the next level in what you’re trying to accomplish and serve as an inspiration. The way I bring my photography into every experience with people, and the feedback I get for it, tells me that it’s working. Folks leave me feeling inspired and ready to try bigger and better.

My career as an artistic professional is still in its nascent stages, yet I’ve been building toward this for decades through my years as an outdoor leader and instructor, in the science community, and as an amateur photographer. Was it easy? Absolutely not easy. The challenges are fear, time, persistence … life events, like a global pandemic (that was not in my plan!!). But I try not to focus on outcomes. Outcomes are outside my control. The thing I focus on is my to-do list. I set a list of annual goals that are all action items — I will send in this number of applications, that number of photographs, or spend this many hours working on something. In this way, I have absolute control over my success. It’s been a winning formula for me and it helps me control my fears immensely.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

I spend about half my year in the DC area and the rest of my year on the road, working in the Colorado Rockies, the Arizona desert, and even this year, in Costa Rica. In terms of restaurants and leading friends around, the DC area is what know best.

The DMV, as we call it, DC/Maryland/Virginia has a wealth of riches. It’s one of the best places in the country to see a wide variety of wildlife and experience the natural world, all within easy reach.

A few natural areas we would hit: Probably the best spot around to see and experience wildlife is a wetland park in Alexandria, VA called Huntley Meadows. It has many different habitats — riparian, wetland, forest — beautiful flowers, birds, mammals, great sunsets and sunrises, and a fantastic boardwalk over the marsh. It’s amazing.

We should also check out the Chesapeake Bay, perhaps the boardwalk in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland. Great Falls National Park, Shenandoah National Park, and the National Mall, where we’d see the monuments, Capitol, White House, and the many Smithsonian and art museums (the Mall takes at least two days, not one day).

Food: There are some must-dos, like a Jose Andres restaurant: Jaleo or Zaytinya (https://www.jaleo.com/ or https://www.zaytinya.com/). Union Market in DC has an awesome smorgasbord of offerings (https://unionmarketdc.com/). We’d have to hit some Ethiopian Food in the U Street Corridor. When I’m on the Mall, I always stop for lunch at the Mitsitam Cafe in the National Museum of the American Indian — the food is amazing (https://americanindian.si.edu/). And my personal favorite for breakfast/brunch is a long-time DC establishment called Teaism, opened in 1996 (https://www.teaism.com/).

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My best friend, Mike Yoder. Without him, none of my success is possible. He gives me courage to seek a creative life, he supports me, cheers me on, gets excited about my successes, talks me through ideas, and listens when I fail. When I am terrified, he tries to convince me I’m excited. He pushes me to find the ability to do what I think I cannot do. He doesn’t deserve ALL the credit, but I know for sure I couldn’t do this without him.

Website: www.wildliz.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wildliz_photography/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liz.guertin.90/

Image Credits
I am the photographer on all photos — even the headshot (I’m in a bit of a bind on headshots, so had to shoot one myself at a stopgap measure — haha).