By Janet Rowe, Hot Springs Village Audubon Society President
The Hot Springs Village Audubon Society held its monthly meeting at the Coronado Center on Thursday, November 10, featuring guest speaker Tim Ernst. Residing in Arkansas, Mr. Ernst is a photographer whose primary focus is the beauty of nature that Arkansas, The Natural State, is known for. He has resided and hiked in the area of the Ozark Mountains for most of his life, but he travels and hikes to many different areas to capture visual treasures with his acclaimed photography.
Mr. Ernst is published in several major publications, including Audubon, and National Geographic, in addition to his own books. He has published 20 coffee-table books, but, unfortunately, many are no longer being printed. His latest book in circulation is called Arkansas’ Greatest Hits: 45 Years of Wilderness Photography, of which he was gracious enough to bring several copies to the meeting, where he autographed the copies sold. Mr. Ernst also brought several matted prints of his photography that were available for purchase.
Mr. Ernst has been a regular presenter at the Audubon meetings here in the Village, and we were so fortunate to have him present again to us in what will be his last presentation. He showed a musically-choreographed slide show presentation of several photographs from Arkansas’ Greatest Hits and answered several attendees’ questions concerning the photographs. Retiring from the presentation circuit, Mr. Ernst plans to concentrate on enjoying his life with his family.
The photographs that he has taken over the years are stunning and certainly showcase the beauty found here and spark folks’ enthusiasm for the outdoors. Several of his publications, including his guides to waterfalls in Arkansas, of which he has located hundreds, can be found in bookstores and online.
Thursday’s meeting was widely publicized, and approximately 150 people were in attendance. Some of the attendees were not Audubon Society members. Audubon, working with the POA in helping to advertise the monthly presentations, invites all Villagers to their meetings.
The December 8 meeting will be on Bird Identification. The January 12 meeting will showcase a Village resident, Margrit Harris, originally from South Africa, who will speak about her work with Vultures in Africa. February 9 features a presenter talking about the upcoming solar eclipse that will cross over Hot Springs Village on April 8, 2024.
The eclipse event is huge, and the POA is working on holding a major event to commemorate that day, with more information to follow as the plans develop.
Photography by Janet Rowe and Joe Dowden
Click here to check out Arkansas’ Greatest Hits: 45 Years of Wilderness Photography on Amazon.
