Acacia Johnson: Photographing Living Landscapes
4-Day Seminar
When: Friday, February 13 through Monday, February 16
Ages: 18+
Cost: $2,100 per person
This course is application-based; submissions are due Friday, December 19, 2025
Please read the details below for more information on application requirements
Strata Editions
18 Business Park Road
Unit 1C
Livingston, MT 59047
Description
Join acclaimed photographer Acacia Johnson for an immersive winter workshop in the raw and storied landscapes of Montana and Yellowstone. Over four days, we will delve deep into the elemental language of snow, ice, and winter light, and inquire how to be receptive to a sense of place that emerges from the land itself.
Through fieldwork, lectures, critiques, and guided investigation, Acacia will help participants develop a visual vocabulary for telling stories about the natural world—stories that can transcend literal documentation into the realms of metaphor, memory, and mythology.
Our time together will be structured to balance technical and creative instruction (light, color, movement, and composition in outdoor conditions) with conceptual guidance (how to listen to a place, how to translate emotion into images, and how to build narrative through visual motifs).
A highlight of the workshop will be a wolf-watching expedition in Yellowstone, where Acacia will lead you into the field to observe, photograph, and reflect on the presence, character, and significance of the wilderness. These and other outdoor encounters will form the basis for narrative and poetic image-making assignments.
Participants will leave with:
- A new body of natural world images rooted in personal vision and place
- Exercises and practices for building a compelling body of work
- One-on-one feedback and group critiques tailored to each student’s work
- Deeper confidence in working in winter conditions (cold, snow, contrast)
- An enriched understanding of how poetic and ecological perspectives can inform a photographic practice
Beyond the structured sessions, there will be plenty of informal opportunities to engage—whether over shared meals or casual drinks—offering insight into Acacia’s working methods and forming a sense of community among the workshop participants.
Fee
This four-day course costs $2,100 USD.
A 50% deposit is required upon acceptance to secure your spot, with the balance due by Monday, January 15, 2026.
Breakfast and lunch are provided.
Application
To apply, email us at will@strata-editions.com with the subject “Montana 2026” and include:
- 20–30 photos of your work
- A brief project statement
- CV (optional)
Please use a file hosting service like WeTransfer or Dropbox to share your images. There is no fee to apply.
Deadline
Applications are open and must be submitted by Friday, December 19, 2025.
Selected participants will be notified on Thursday, January 1, 2026.
Schedule
First meeting: Friday, February 13, 2026 (10am–6pm daily)
Location
This workshop will be held in Livingston, Montana, just north of Paradise Valley and Yellowstone National Park. Course sessions will take place at Strata Editions’ project space, with excursions into the nearby wilderness for fieldwork and dedicated photography time.
We will be going on an expert-led wolf watching tour in Yellowstone National Park.
Please note that the closest major airport to Livingston is Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) is approximately 35 miles away. We will help to coordinate carpooling among attendees.
Your Instructor
Acacia Johnson is a photographer, writer, and 2023 National Geographic Explorer based in Anchorage, Alaska. Drawn to painterly light and otherworldly landscapes, her work has focused on the environment, conservation, and the connections between people and place. She has also made over fifty expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctica as a photographer and a guide—an effort to inspire wonder and compassion for these remote regions during a time of rapid change.
Her photographs have been exhibited internationally and are housed in collections at the Anchorage Museum and the Smithsonian Museum of American History. Her work has appeared in National Geographic, The New York Times, TIME, and The Guardian, among others. In 2020, she was featured on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for Art and Style, and in 2021 received the Canon Female Photojournalist Grant. She was the 2022 recipient of the ICP Infinity Awards for Documentary Practices and Photojournalism.