Treasured Lands - A Photographic Odyssey Through America's National Parks

Beautiful, most complete visual tour of all 59 US National Parks in a coffee-table book, with location notes for each photograph. Winner of 4 national book awards.

It is said that a photograph helped launch the national parks. After Congress viewed photos of Yosemite, President Lincoln was moved to sign a bill that paved the way for the U.S. National Park Service, which was founded in 1916 and is now celebrating its centennial. In Treasured Lands: A Photographic Odyssey Through America's National Parks, photographer QT Luong pays tribute to the millions of acres of protected wilderness in our country's 59 national parks.

Luong, who is featured in Ken Burns's and Dayton Duncan's documentary The National Parks: America's Best Idea, is the most prolific and versatile photographer working in the national parks and the only one to have made large-format photographs in each of them. In an odyssey that spanned more than 20 years and 300 visits, Luong focused his lenses on iconic landscapes and rarely seen remote views, presenting his journey in this sumptuous array of more than 500 breathtaking images.

Accompanying the collection of scenic masterpieces is a guide that includes maps of each park, as well as extended captions that detail where and how the photographs were made. Designed to inspire visitors to connect with the parks and invite photographers to re-create these landscapes, the guide also provides anecdotal observations that give context to the pictures and convey the sheer scope of Luong's extraordinary odyssey. The guide is also available as a PDF formatted for use on mobile devices, and owners of the book are offered the option to download it for a nominal fee.

Including an introduction by award-winning author and documentary filmmaker Dayton Duncan, Treasured Lands is a rich visual tour of the U.S. National Parks and an invaluable guide from a photographer who hiked--or paddled, dived, skied, snowshoed, and climbed--each park, shooting in all kinds of terrain, in all seasons, and at all times of day. QT Luong's timeless gallery of the nation's most revered landscapes beckons to nature lovers, armchair travelers, and photography enthusiasts alike, keeping America's natural wonders within reach.

Includes: Acadia National Park, Arches National Park, Badlands National Park, Big Bend National Park, Biscayne National Park, Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Channel Islands National Park, Congaree National Park, Crater Lake National Park, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Death Valley National Park, Denali National Park, Dry Tortugas National Park, Everglades National Park, Gates of the Arctic National Park, Glacier National Park, Glacier Bay National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Great Basin National Park, Great Sand Dunes National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Haleakala National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hot Springs National Park, Isle Royale National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, Katmai National Park, Kenai Fjords National Park, Kings Canyon National Park, Kobuk Valley National Park, Lake Clark National Park, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Mammoth Cave National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, National Park of American Samoa, North Cascades National Park, Olympic National Park, Petrified Forest National Park, Redwood National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Saguaro National Park, Sequoia National Park, Shenandoah National Park, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Virgin Islands National Park, Voyageurs National Park, Wind Cave National Park, Wrangell - St Elias National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Zion National Park.

Brand: Cameron Company

Published on: 2016-10-01

Original language: English

Number of items: 1

Dimensions: 10.00" h x 1.70" w x 12.60" l, .0 pounds

Binding: Hardcover

456 pages

Review 

Independent Publisher Book Award ("IPPY") - Coffee Table Books Gold Medal

IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards - Arts and Photography Gold Medal

Nautilus Book Awards - Photography and Arts Silver Winner

National Indie Excellence Awards - Photography Winner

"The centennial of the National Park Service has been the occasion of exhibits, documentaries, presidential proclamations, and many books. The most glorious of these is TREASURED LANDS . . . No one has captured the vast beauty of America's landscape as comprehensively." - Dominique Browning, The New York Times

"Treasured Lands is the culmination of a multi-decade effort that showcases the national parks in all their natural splendor and diversity. The work serves as a memorable statement of the importance and value of protecting the parks and an inspiring invitation." - Will Shafroth, President, National Park Foundation 

"The book not only serves as a marvelous example of what this talented photographer has accomplished after many years exploring some of the most beautiful places in America, but it also acts as a guide for his fellow photographers who may want to travel to the parks too. It's a must-have for fans of landscape photography in particular and lovers of the National Parks in general."  William Sawalich, Outdoor Photographer

"QT Luong has produced the definitive volume of images of all 59 national parks." - Audrey Peterman, Huffington Post

"Treasured Lands is the single-most monumental literary achievement during a year that brimmed with words and pictures dedicated to the centennial of the National Park Service . . . To be sure, it is a visual feast. But it's much more than that, because of its geographic completeness and the attention to detail that only someone who has lived and breathed the parks for a long time could provide . . . Luong's work stands out on the crowded shelves of national park tomes because of the generosity not just of his vision but of his accumulated wisdom." - Glenn Nelson, High Country News 

"If you're a fan of our National Parks and want the best book about them yet to be published, I recommend you beat a path to your bookstore and buy it." - Jim Barnes, Independent Publisher Magazine

"A unique treat . . .  Luong's shots are so luminous that you'll likely be booking a trip soon." - Alice Cary, BookPage

"An inherently fascinating and consistently compelling volume of superbly produced and presented images. This is one of those rare photographic collections that will linger in the mind and memory long after the book itself is finished and set back upon the shelf." - James Cox, Midwest Book Review

"Luong shares with us something vastly more than his vision, which is beautiful and uncontrived, and his knowledge, which is considerable; he shares with us hope." - David DuChemin, Craft & Vision

"The book I would have loved to have when I was dreaming of visiting America's National Parks. Part travel guide and part inspirational photographic opus, it is a complete, yet concise resource to all the parks.  I'm enthusiastically recommending Treasured Lands, a seminal and immensely useful book." - Laurent Martres, PhotoTripUSA Publishing

"Treasured Lands is a book that celebrates the National Park Service centennial, but it goes much beyond that anniversary. It captures the 59 "national parks" in their various moods in all seasons of the year, and is certain to lead you to add mightily to your to-do list in the parks." - Kurt Repanshek, National Park Traveler

". . . Luckily, this year the centennial of the National Parks Service has been the occasion of exhibits, documentaries, presidential proclamations, and many books. The most glorious of these is Treasured Lands. No one has captured the vast beauty of America's landscape as comprehensively. . ." - The New York Times

From the Author 

Exploring the national parks has brought me much joy, and the act of photography was an extension of that love, a desire to share with you in a tangible way the elation that comes with being in such special places, so that you can experience the same joy. I measure its success by how much these photographs inspire you to visit the places for yourself, for the happiness they will bring through a deep connection with nature, and because the experience is likely to transform you into an advocate for conservation. My hope is that this book will not only inspire you to go out and discover new places but also provide you with enough information for you to stand at the places where the photographs originated.