Brian Grossenbacher is a Bozeman, Montana fishing guide and professional photographer whose work has appeared in Field & Stream, Outdoor Life, and Saltwater Sportsman. He also shoots commercial campaigns for Orvis, Simms, Mossy Oak, Shimano, and Costa. Basically everything that you love to wear while you’re in the field, he’s the guy behind the camera making it look good, and everywhere you’ve ever dreamed of going to hunt or fish, Brian’s been there on assignment. I managed to catch him between a grouse hunt in the Yaak Valley and a shoot in Mexico to talk about the importance of public lands.

TRCP: So, Brian, what makes you #publiclandsproud?

BG: You know, I just came back from a shoot in northwest Montana, where we never stepped off public lands in three days. It was amazing! We hunted blue grouse, spruce grouse, and ruffed grouse on the most beautiful remote terrain, and our toughest decision each day was ‘Do we turn right or left?’ That kind of access makes you feel like you’re in Alaska. I truly believe that improving access to public lands, and promoting the resources that we have, will only encourage communities to fight to maintain that habitat for generations to come.

It’s worth adding that a lot of my photography work is done on public lands, so I owe a huge debt to having access to beautiful places that make hunting and fishing possible.

TRCP: Have you always had a connection to public lands?

BG: Well, it used to be my living—for 18 years I was a flyfishing guide and I spent 90 percent of my time guiding on public waters. The Yellowstone, Madison, Jefferson, and Upper Missouri became my office. And I once worked as an events coordinator for Bridger Bowl, a non-profit ski area that’s entirely on National Forest land. It’s a pretty unique place and a true collaboration between the Forest Service and local community that has thrived for more than 70 years.

TRCP: What will you be looking for in a winning photo?

BG: Of course, lighting is key, composition is important, but photography should pull the viewer in to experience the scene, just the way that the subject of the photo is. I find that the best photos I’ve taken come from being able to disappear into the background on a shoot. The more a subject forgets that I’m there, the more their humor comes out or they’re better able to concentrate on the task at hand and more genuine moments emerge. In an upland hunting situation, things happen very quickly, so a photographer has to have 100 percent of his senses in the next moment. I’d just recommend that you never rest. Never set the camera down. The moments I capture after the hunt, in little local bars, or after the fish is landed, tend to be just as interesting.

Show us your #PublicLandsProud moment and you could be featured on our blog, or win a new pair of Costa sunglasses.   

Thanks again to everyone out there using the hashtag and transporting us to all the gorgeous places you’ve experienced on public lands for the latest round of our contest devoted to photos of beautiful scenery. Our guest judge Johnny LeCoq, founder of Fishpond and a pretty awesome photographer himself, considered all your shots of craggy landscapes and scenic vistas and selected a winner who will receive a brand new pair of Costa sunglasses—all the better to see with, as he frames up his next shot—and a Fishpond Summit Sling pack where he can stash photography AND fishing gear. Not too shabby.

And the winner is…

Kokanee Salmon travel up Taylor Creek in #laketahoe #CA to spawn each fall. The spectacle is quite amazing and makes me thankful for our bountiful public lands. #publiclandsproud #salmon

A photo posted by Eric Fisher (@ericfisherphotography) on Oct 1, 2015 at 6:31pm PDT

Eric Fisher (yep, that’s his real name) from Washington, D.C. with his “waterscape” image of Kokanee salmon swimming up Taylor Creek near Lake Tahoe, California! Fisher is an amateur photographer who grew up hunting, fishing, and camping, and says he’s never without his camera (or a fly rod.) He hopes to capture his enthusiasm for the outdoors and all of the beauty nature has to offer through his photos. Well, our judge was captivated by this shot, which proves that an unconventional angle can really change the scene. Way to go, Eric!