Jake Mosher, an international, award-winning photographer from Bozeman, believes that the view from the other side of the mountain is always worthwhile, and that time spent in the wilderness is added onto his life.

“In extraordinary country, remarkable moments occur much more frequently than people would guess,” Mosher says. “Off the beaten path, I’m convinced that the world is still a wondrous thing to see. That’s what I want to convey with my photos. I want people to see these places through my eyes, and perhaps feel a little of what I do when I’m there.”

Mosher grew up in Northern Vermont, where he fell in love with the outdoors as a boy.

“I couldn’t get enough of it,” he says. “I was fortunate to live within a stone’s throw of big woods, and that’s where I felt most at home. Fishing, hunting, exploring. That’s what I spent my childhood doing.”

By the time Mosher graduated from college in 1995, he wanted more space and set his sights on the Rocky Mountains, settling in Butte, where he worked as a logger, miner, prize-fighter and published novelist.

“It was a rough and tumble existence, and I loved it,” Mosher says. “Seasons revolved around what I was doing in the mountains, from steelhead fishing in Idaho to bow hunting elk along the Continental Divide. I never had a penny of money, but I had a world of freedom.”

Eventually, Mosher says he needed more stability and became an explosives engineer, running the blasting at a large, Eastern Montana mine for a decade.

“It was great for my wallet, but hard on my soul,” he says. “One day, right in the middle of my life, I decided it wasn’t for me anymore. I wanted to spend more time in the country that speaks loudest to my heart.”

Against the advice of nearly everyone, Mosher quit his job to become a full-time photographer.

“There’s been a definite learning curve,” he says, “but I love what I do, and I love the places I photograph even more. Montana is changing at light speed, and maybe my photos will show the importance of preserving the wildest places that are left.”

A two-time winner of the National Wildlife Federation Photo Contest for the world’s best landscape, and the 2022 World Nature Photography Awards winner, again for a landscape image, Mosher attributes much of his success to where he lives.

“The world makes it easy for me sometimes,” he jokes. “Hard to beat the beauty of SW Montana. Every artist shares a little of their soul with their work, too. This is how I see the world. If you can slow down a little and look around at what lies in our literal backyard, you won’t be disappointed.”