Flowing, frozen, falling from the sky. Kinley Bollinger was near the east entrance of Yellowstone National Park in February 2021 when she captured an image of water in three distinct forms. 

The Powell photographer, 18, said the contrast of the gauzy sky and the clarity of the turquoise water inspired this shot, published in full below. 

“Such soft lighting truly made me feel the magic of winter, and I wanted to capture its grandeur,” Bollinger wrote in an email. 

The image she captured won first place in the “water” category of The Nature Conservancy of Wyoming’s 2021 “I Believe in Conservation” student photo contest. Bollinger said the image transports her back to the sensory experience. 

“I feel the chilled air when viewing the image,” she wrote. 

That feeling is likely familiar to residents across Wyoming. A winter storm blanketed much of the state this week, bringing the season’s first snowfall to many communities. 

Water in its frozen and flowing forms is captured in this February 2021 image near Yellowstone National Park’s east entrance. (Kinley Bollinger/The Nature Conservancy of Wyoming)

Katie Klingsporn reports on outdoor recreation, public lands, education and general news for WyoFile. She’s been a journalist and editor covering the American West for 20 years. Her freelance work has...

Leave a comment

Want to join the discussion? Fantastic, here are the ground rules: * Provide your full name — no pseudonyms. WyoFile stands behind everything we publish and expects commenters to do the same. * No personal attacks, profanity, discriminatory language or threats. Keep it clean, civil and on topic. *WyoFile does not fact check every comment but, when noticed, submissions containing clear misinformation, demonstrably false statements of fact or links to sites trafficking in such will not be posted. *Individual commenters are limited to three comments per story, including replies.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *