Maegan Lanham on Photographing Every Texas State Park Over 6.5 Years
Texas-based landscape photographer Maegan Lanham spent six and a half years photographing every state park in Texas, a journey that began with a solo trip to Caprock Canyons State Park. She shares lessons learned, including always waking up for sunrise, revisiting locations to capture changing conditions, matching gear to the environment, packing light, and being flexible when plans fail. Lanham uses an OM SYSTEM OM-1 Mark II camera with M.Zuiko lenses, valuing its in-body stabilization, weather sealing, and features like Live ND and Starry Sky AF. She emphasizes that the experience of being outdoors is the primary goal, with photography secondary. Her work aims to inspire preservation of Texas's limited public lands. Lanham holds a photojournalism degree from the University of North Texas and works as a staff photographer for Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine.
Key facts
- Maegan Lanham photographed every Texas state park over 6.5 years.
- Her first state park was Enchanted Rock, where she took her first night-sky photo.
- She uses an OM SYSTEM OM-1 Mark II camera with M.Zuiko lenses.
- She always wakes up for sunrise, a rule from a Grand Canyon trip.
- She revisits locations like Caprock Canyons up to 20 times.
- She shoots from a kayak at Caddo Lake, relying on in-body stabilization.
- She waited three hours to photograph a green kingfisher in the Rio Grande Valley.
- She helped relocate 77 desert bighorn sheep in West Texas.
- She packs light, prioritizing safety gear over extra lenses.
- She advocates for preserving Texas's public lands through her photography.
Entities
Artists
- Maegan Lanham
Institutions
- OM SYSTEM
- Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine
- University of North Texas
- PetaPixel
Locations
- Texas
- Enchanted Rock
- Caprock Canyons State Park
- Quitaque
- Big Bend National Park
- Mariscal Canyon
- Big Bend Ranch State Park
- Presidio
- Caddo Lake
- East Texas
- Rio Grande Valley
- Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge
- Alamo
- Devils River
- West Texas
- Goliad State Park
- Goliad
- South Llano River
- Pedernales Falls State Park
- Johnson City
- Estero Llano Grande State Park
- Weslaco
- Monahans
- Sea Rim State Park
- Sabine Pass
- Goose Island State Park
- Rockport
- Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center
- Port Aransas
- Grand Canyon