This series of photos were captured across three different visits to Hart Prairie throughout 2024 and 2025. Hart Prairie is a 245-acre alpine meadow preserved by The Nature Conservancy on the west slope of the San Francisco Peaks. This 130 year-old homestead full of isolated beauty is home to the largest population of the extremely rare Bebb’s Willow, the lowest elevation Bristlecone pines in the state, as well as ancient aspen stands throughout. Hart Prairie never ceases to impress in every season, with wildflower blooms and cold mornings in summer to stunning stars in snowy winters.

As a photographer and biologist in the Arthropod Imaging Lab at NAU- I have often found myself tagging along to fieldwork expeditions to the preserve to research the rare trees that help make this place special. As such, I set out to capture the special nature of these species in detail and in the landscape. Below is a collection of moments from my time in the Prairie.