Springtime Milky Way over Monument Cove, Acadia

Northern Lights and Big Dipper in the North Maine Woods

Atlantic Puffin coming in hot! Machias Seal Island, Maine

Guided Photography:

Workshops, Tours &

Photographic Coaching

Small-group workshops in Maine’s dramatic natural settings.
Photograph Atlantic puffins on Machias Seal Island, or moose in the North Maine Woods or maybe and stars under some of the darkest skies east of the Mississippi.
Photographers of all experience levels are welcome with our goal to grow from where you are and capture some amazing images!
Private 2 - 4 hour photo tours exploring the wild beauty of Acadia National Park, Maine’s Bold Coast, Baxter State Park, or the iconic North Maine Woods.
Each tour tailored to your interests, pace, and skill level.
Personalized photography coaching, online or, occasionally, in person, tailored to your goals.
We can work on basic photo skills, birds in flight, lightroom processing and introduction to timelapses.
I specialize in Canon R5 and R5 Mark II systems, and Nikon D600 and D810 for time-lapse.
My focus areas include landscapes, nightscapes, wildlife, and birds.

Learn More About Workshops, Tours, and Coaching

My “blog”. Explore the stories behind the images.

Field notes, quiet moments, and reflections from life behind the lens -whether I’m chasing puffins on the coast, waiting for moose on a pond, or learning from the light. Part storytelling, part creative process, and always an appreciation for the adventure!

Journal

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Loon On The Pond Got to spend a quiet hour with this fella yesterday! We floated around together in one of the little coves on our pond. I've been out three times now looking for loons with the long lens (I love aLLiteration) and they seem a bit wary of me. I've never noticed this before, but maybe I don't normally get out with them this early in the year. In years past they seem fairly oblivious to me - I always keep a respectful distance and just float around in their vicinity while they fish and they don't seem to spend much time looking my way and seem relaxed. But in all three times I've been out so far they seem to move away from me. Not in a hurry, but my theory is that when they're wintering on the ocean they don't deal with a lot of kayakers so I'm just going to have to take it easy with them and let them get used to people, again. Canon R5 Mark II with Canon RF600mm f/4 Exposed at 1/1000 of a second at f/4 and ISO 500 Side note - it's CRAZY how handholdable this lens is!

Pussy Willows, Bangor Forest, Maine As so often happens, went out looking for one thing, but found another. Went out with Cheryl B's Photography and friends yesterday evening hoping to find barred owls. Didn't find them But these pussy willows in the dark were awesome! Before we get any green leaves in the spring we get pussy willow buds and I just love them for that! Canon R5 Mark II and RF600mm f/4 Exposed on a tripod for 1/400 of a second at f/4 and ISO 3200

Boulder Beach - Two Years Ago I love this beach! I'm finally getting around to rebuilding my website so flipping around through a lot of old images and 2 years ago today I was out at Boulder Beach for this gorgeous sunrise! One of the fun things about having photographed for so many years is being able to look back and see growth. Canon R5 and RF 15-35mm f2.8 at 15mm Exposed for 28 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 6400 #AcadiaNationalPark #BoulderBeachAcadia #MaineCoast #CoastalPhotography #SeascapePhotography #CanonR5 #CanonLandscape #SunriseShoot #NaturePhotography #VisitMaine #RockyShoreline #BoldCoast #EastCoastViews #LandscapeLovers #AcadiaMagic

If you're fortunate enough to be someplace that ISN'T currently overcast then it's your lucky night! Get out!! I mean, get outside and start making some wishes on the shooting stars! This is peak night for the Lyriads Meteor shower. Depending where you're at they're predicted to get up to about 16 per hour. Canon R5 with RF24mm f/1.8 Exposed for 23 seconds at f/1.8 and ISO 5000

And Just because it's spring, here's another!!!

Another quick loon from yesterday morning - I've learned to love winter, but WOW am I excited for the world to come alive, again!

First paddle of the season on our pond! It's still kinda cold - good excuse to keep pulling out the wool sweaters! I spent a quiet hour with one of our resident loon pairs. They were back almost as soon as the ice melted. We've been cracking a window when we go to bed so we can hear their calls at night. This black and white image felt like the right way to capture the stillness and early spring light on the pond. Grateful for mornings like this, it still feels a little wintery, but you know spring is about to burst any minute! Canon R5 Mark II with RF600mm f4 Exposed 1/1000 of a second at f/4 and ISO 200

HADLOCK FALLS, ACADIA NATIONAL PARK I’ve a personal project to photograph all the Rockefeller Bridges in Acadia that span waterways. I spent yesterday afternoon at Hadlock Falls and found myself completely captivated by the waterfall itself. So much so that I didn’t leave time to photograph the bridge! HAH! I suppose I’ll just have to go back! Darn! 😉😉😉 For now, here are a few images from under and atop the bridge. Canon R5 and R5 Mark II with the RF 24-105 f4 and 15-35 f2.8 Exposed with various shutter speeds from 1/5 to half a second and apertures ranging from f11 to f18. There's no focus stacking on these images - f18 did the trick! A couple are composites. #AcadiaNationalPark #RockefellerBridges #CarriageRoadsOfAcadia #HadlockFalls #MainePhotography #NaturePhotographyDaily #WaterfallWednesday #LandscapeLovers #CanonR5MarkII #CanonPhotographyOfficial #CanonUSA #CanonRF24105 #CanonRF1535 #WideAngleWonders #photographyinthewild @canonusa @acadianps

BLUE HOUR ON ACADIA'S COAST Yesterday afternoon in @acadianps I hiked to photograph waterfalls (more on that later) and took a quick run to the coast to finish the day. The clouds weren’t great for sunset so I wandered around a little and found FROGS! I know, right! I just don’t think of frogs on the ocean’s edge, but in the craggy parts of Otter Point between the forest and the sea there were hundreds of peepers peeping away! I tried to find them, but even when I crept up and lay next to a spot with my flashlight, I couldn’t find them tucked in a crevice. I feel like I’m always saying it, but I really am always so amazed by what you find out there in the wild places! So, since I couldn’t photograph frogs on the coast I did some Intentional Camera Movement. I think the folks down the way thought there was something wrong with me as I stood on the cliffs swaying back and forth… hah! Canon R5 Mark II and RF 24-105mm Exposed for 3.2 seconds at f/14 and ISO 200 while swaying childishly on the edge of a cliff

A simple portrait of a dark-eyed junco at Fields Pond Audubon Center. Sometimes it’s the quiet, familiar moments that deserve our attention. Canon R5 Mark II and RF600mm f/4 Exposed for 1/2000 of a second at f/4 and ISO 1250 #DarkEyedJunco #BirdPhotography #FieldsPondAudubon #MaineWildlife #CanonR5MarkII #Canon600mmF4 #CanonWildlife #BirdsOfInstagram #BackyardBirding #WildlifePerfection #AvianBeauty #NaturePhotography #BirdPortrait #BirdLoversOnly #MainePhotographer

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About Me

Hello! I'm L’aura Bradford, a nature photographer, educator, and Registered Maine Guide with over a decade experience behind the lens. What began as snapshots of the beauty on backpacking trips has became a passionate focus on the wild world.

Over the years, I’ve photographed in some of the most remote places on earth - from Antarctica to the Arctic Circle. Currently, I’m based in Maine, and spend my time exploring northern Maine from Acadia National Park up along Maine’s Bold Coast and over to Baxter State Park and the iconic North Maine Woods - coastal cliffs, dark skies, and quiet forests, Oh My! I also travel frequently for photography projects, workshops, and scouting new locations.

My photographic specialties include wildlife, birds, landscapes, and nightscapes. I shoot primarily with the Canon R5 and R5 Mark II mirrorless systems and love their wildlife and nightscape capabilities. For time-lapse photography, I fall back on my “old” Nikon D600 and D810 bodies, which are still fantastic workhorses.

My approach to photographic guiding is to meet you where you are—whether you’re just starting out with a camera or an experienced photog looking for a local guide. We can focus on camera skills, composition techniques, or fieldcraft - whatever supports your interests and goals. I also place strong emphasis on the ethics of nature photography and I believe it results in better images. The best photographs come not just from technical skill, but from curiosity, fieldcraft, and a willingness to slow down and see.

Photography, for me, is both art and adventure—and I'm grateful every day to share that journey with others. Whether you're joining me on a workshop, booking a coaching session, or just browsing the galleries, I hope you find something here that inspires you to explore your own vision.