Braeden Roesler Photography

Pika in the Beartooths

I know I've been neglecting posting lately, and have a big backlog of photos to go through, but I have made a few trips into Yellowstone and over the Beartooth Pass this spring, and am writing this post from Yellowstone currently.

Driving into the park this Sunday over the pass, the rainy day turned to snow at the top, but that didn't stop the wildlife from being out. I managed to get a whopping 3 images fired off before this guy disappeared off into the rocks further down - by which time the snow suddenly started dumping heavy wet snow and it was time to retreat back to the car.

Thankfully, he posed majestically amongst the snowflakes and I couldn't wait to get this image posted.

Happy Spring, y'all!

Earlier this week, my grandmother and I took the dogs up to The Beartooth Highway for the day, getting out of the hot muggy city to photograph a band of mountain goats at 10,000ft.

This time of year, the goats are shedding their thick winter coats, revealing their rugged beauty beneath matted tufts of fur caught in the wind. Among the herd were several kids (that’s what baby mountain goats are called) lounging in the sun, exploring, and playfully shadowing their mothers across the alpine tundra.

These moments - a kid dozing on the hillside, an inquisitive gaze from a young goat, or a sudden leap across the rocks - are the kind of quiet wildness that makes the Beartooths so special.

Pika atop The Beartooth Highway just outside of Yellowstone National Park earlier this month early in the morning.

The first 3 images are from one I got to spend some time with after photographing goats, the 4th image is from a different one I caught right at the first sunlight of the morning as it beamed over the mountain tops.

These little guys are one of my favorite creatures to photograph and are so cute!

Sometimes it's the small, unexciting, intimate moments and interactions with wildlife that are the most beautiful to watch.

Here, a black bear mother nuzzles one of her two cubs (this one is cinnamon-phase), at the shaded base of the tree they spent the morning napping under in Yellowstone National Park.

The Circle of Life

This July, I traveled up the Beartooth Scenic Highway to photograph mountain goats at the summit. I spent most of the morning of July 3rd observing two different herds (bands) with several kids (yes, that's actually what young mountain goats are called!).

Toward the end of the morning, three kids suddenly bolted toward the cliff edge, their mothers quickly following. Curious, I repositioned to get a better look — and that’s when I saw what had drawn them.

Just below, resting on a narrow rocky ledge surrounded by grass and wildflowers, lay the body of a deceased adult mountain goat, which had obviously not been there long.

Over the next 20 to 30 minutes, several kids and adults gathered around the goat. Each taking turns, approached it cautiously, as if investigating — perhaps even mourning. I believe this goat was part of the first, larger herd I had seen earlier in the day in the same area.

It was a somber moment. Unfortunate, yes, but natural. Whether from illness, injury, or simply old age, this goat had reached the end of its life. And yet, standing all around it was new life — healthy, vibrant, and curious.

It felt important to document that contrast — the quiet, powerful truth that life and death are always intertwined in nature. One ends, and another begins.

Andromeda Galaxy

While in Yellowstone National Park the other week attempting to get a few Milky Way pictures one night, I decided to throw my 400mm f2.8 lens on the tripod at the end of the night and snag a few pictures of the Andromeda Galaxy for fun.

This isn't the best shot - I didn't use a tracker, or properly do a full in-depth stack-job with dark and bias frames and filters and so many other things necessary for proper deep-space imaging, but considering this was just a last-minute couple of snapshots and not my priority target, I still think it ended up pretty cool!

Andromeda, also known as Messier 31, is the closest galaxy to the Milky Way (us), at a "mere" 2.54 million light-years away from Earth! It's also larger than the Milky Way with over a trillion stars in it! The very faint galaxy above and perpendicular, is Messier 110.

This was a fun little side quest to the night, up on Dunraven Pass, and I'd love to do more deep-space photography in the future!

Hope everyone had an amazing Fourth of July holiday!

Hope everyone had a safe and festive Fourth of July!

I was able to make it out to the amazing fireworks celebration at Thompson Park in Laurel, MT for it's last year held at the park after decades.

The display is the largest fireworks show in the state of Montana, and is funded entirely from the Laurel Volunteer Fire Department and donations.

Normally a small quiet community, an estimated 25,000-30,000 people flood into the streets packing lawn chairs and coolers with kids in tow to line the sidewalks, school grounds, baseball fields, and park grass to watch the spectacular show that really brings the community together year after year. Food trucks and craft tents take up a corner of the park, and earlier in the day a parade makes it's way through the historic downtown.

It's the first time I've been able to watch the show in well over 15 years, so while I took some photos, It was also nice to just sit and enjoy the show and overall experience.

Wishing everyone a safe and wonderful Independence Day today!

Image of people enjoying Harvest Church's firework show at Castle Rock Park several years ago (it's been a few years since I've been able to enjoy/photograph fireworks and not had to work, so had to pull from the archives).

The other week, I shared several photos of two grizzly bears spotted along the Beartooth Highway. A few days later, I encountered three different grizzlies along a separate stretch of the same highway—so today, I’m sharing some portraits of those beautiful young bears.

Unfortunately unlike my previous encounter, this moment wasn’t a quiet one. It was the middle of a busy afternoon, and traffic had jammed near a series of pullouts as the bears emerged from the forest, crossed the road, and began grazing along a hillside near a creek.

I say unfortunately not because I mind sharing the experience—but because of the irresponsible behavior of several people who got out of their vehicles and stood within 25–50 feet of these wild bears - who were already right next to the roadway, just to grab photos on their phones. My attempts to explain the danger to them—the safety of both people and the bears—were largely ignored.

Many don’t realize how incredibly lucky they are to witness wild grizzlies this close. But that luck turns into recklessness the moment you push the boundary. These were likely recently-separated siblings, newly on their own after being kicked away by their mother. They were simply grazing—uncertain, vulnerable, but peaceful. It only takes one bad decision, one sudden movement, for everything to go wrong, though.

Modern phones are capable of incredible zoom and detail from a safe distance. In this particular scenario, zooming in wasn't even required. There’s no need to get dangerously close. As someone who photographs wildlife for a living, I invest in long lenses, high-resolution gear, and—more importantly—time, patience, and ethical distance. Sometimes that means sacrificing a better angle or shot to do what’s right. As you can see here, even by remaining in my car I still got great images.

Despite the stress of the scene, I’m grateful the bears remained calm for the most part and eventually disappeared back into the forest after crossing the creek. It was still a blessing to watch them— I hope we can all someday learn treat the bit of wilderness with the respect it deserves.

My favorite entrance to Yellowstone National Park is the Northeast Entrance, because I get to go over the amazing Beartooth Scenic Highway from my home here in Billings.

But a bit of a hidden gem for me and close second that I still adore, is the East Entrance, coming in from Cody, Wyoming. The tunnels, Buffalo Bill Reservoir, and the stunning unique canyon rock formations along the Shoshone River, before finally winding up a lovely scenic mountainside and over Sylvan Pass once you enter the park, which gives off vibes similar to Glacier National Park - thick greenery, mountain slopes and views down below, and tons of small creeks and waterfalls right along the highway.

Last week I spent a night in the park specifically for some milky way photos, and without much wildlife that afternoon, I spent the evening along the East Entrance Road, spending some time along those creeks and waterfalls that feed into Middle Creek, and capturing some of the beautiful wildflowers, such as this Sticky Geranium clinging to a wet rocky cliff along one of these mountain creeks in a tucked away crevasse, a small cascading waterfall and the creek working it's way through rocks and logs, and Mountain Penstemon clinging to the mountain slopes.

It's moments like these - quiet, colorful, small - yet so beautiful - that make Yellowstone such an amazing place!