I booked a private photography workshop and tour of Rocky Mountain National Park with Dawn Wilson with 3 loose “objectives” in mind: 1) make the most of my time in Rocky and maybe see some wildlife, 2) use more of my camera than auto-everything; and 3) reignite my passion for my art. No small ask in retrospect. Additionally, I hoped Dawn could help my teenage daughter feel more comfortable with her starter SLR and capture some images she would enjoy. All I can say is “Wow. Just wow.” In short, Dawn is cool. As a photographer, she’s off the charts. As a person, she’s an enthusiastic supporter and coach, flexible and works hard to ensure you have an awesome experience. I believe she was more excited, when we captured a good shot or figured something out than we were. She helped us with our gear, patiently explained (and re-explained on a few occasions) techniques for landscape and wildlife photography and taught us a lot about our cameras. We saw moose, mule deer, coyotes, trout, numerous birds, picas, marmots, an entire herd of elk and a snowshoe hare. She pointed out great locations for additional hikes and photography, provided maps and kept up interesting and fun conversation the entire day.

Shannon G.

Shannon and her daughter Meghan in Rocky Mountain National Park

Mary and I appreciate your direction and guidance that evening in RMNP. It got us off to a super start. Although we were never able to see the Old Fall River Road, the Trail Ridge Road above Many Parks Curve, or Bear Lake because of the weather, we had a great time in Rocky, and hope to come back again.

— Paul H.

“I can’t speak more highly of Dawn and her knowledge of the Colorado Mountains. I spent the day with her as she guided me thru RMNP. Her insight into the park was fantastic. She knew right where to be at the right time to get the best shots. When it came time for some wildlife she knew where to go—Mom and baby moose were exactly where she said they would be. It was a great experience.”

— Greg M.

"On my recent trip to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park, I contracted a photo trip with Bob Maynard’s Colorado Plateau Photo Tours. I reviewed several tour photographers before choosing Bob’s company. I have no doubt that I made the right choice. As part of my research, I examined sample work provided by each company and discovered Bob’s was hands down the best of the bunch. Bob assigned Dawn Wilson to work with me because I was mainly interested in wildlife photography which is her specialty. (They are both excellent wildlife and landscape photographers.) Dawn tailor-made my tour by focusing on what was most important to me. We started early for a sunrise shoot at Dream Lake with a gorgeous view of Flattop Mountain and Hallet’s Peak. Since I don’t have a lot of experience with landscape photography, Dawn helped with composition and settings to capture the best images. Had I done it alone, it would have taken multiple days to get the shot as she helped me find the best locations and the sun moves so fast that you only have a couple of minutes to get prime images. After working on landscape photos, we started on our search for Big Horn Sheep. The sheep did not cooperate with us that day but along the way we photographed elk, marmots, pika, (SO cute!) red tail hawks, turkey’s, some fun shots of Magpies and shots of a few waterfalls. Dawn went out of her way help me get the photos I wanted even if the animals were in hiding that day. She took extra time with me to go over the shots we captured and offered both critiques as well as processing suggestions. Dawn is an award winning photographer and I was honored to be on the tour with her as my guide.“

— Dennis M.

"A bucket list trip of mine was photographing the brown bears in Alaska. I knew this would be a once in a lifetime experience, so I wanted to make sure I went with the right guide. After doing a lot of research I selected Dawn Wilson Tours. All I can say is that I definitely made the right choice. Dawn knew all the secrets so that my experience was better than I expected. Not only did I get amazing pictures of the bears but we also got amazing pictures of bald eagles and moose. Dawn was also very helpful in suggesting compositions and camera settings. She never got tired of my questions. The lodging accommodations were also great. The meals at the lodge for the brown bears had gourmet food and they were very accommodating to our picture shooting schedule. Dawn set the perfect pace throughout the trip so we never felt rushed. I highly recommend Dawn if you are looking for a photo trip experience that most people will never experience."

— Gene S.

"I'm late in reviewing my 2021. Actually, in an indirect way you reminded me of that. I finally listened to the 12/21/21 Wild and Exposed Podcast. You mentioned a story about a client and a weasel and I was laughing and almost drove off the road. I got out to shoot over 100 times last year according to my Lightroom folders. Of all of those, the RMNP trip was the top. I don't know if the client with the weasel was me, but my time with the weasel is a great memory. (And, if it was me, then I think you actually said "Weasel. Weasel ! "WEASEL !!"). Actually, the entire trip was awesome."

— Ben T.

Testimonials