A Wild Western summer: OHIO sophomore spends summer photographing Philmont Scout Ranch

Ohio University sophomore Zoe Cranfill spent her summer in the mountains of New Mexico, hiking the wilderness and snapping photos along the way.

The visual communication(opens in a new window) major was interning with Philmont Scout Ranch, located in Cimarron, New Mexico, photographing those who come from all over the globe to explore its beautiful mountain trails.

Philmont Scout Ranch(opens in a new window) is known as the largest youth high adventure camp in the world and is owned and operated by the Boy Scouts of America. The camp expects around 20,000 scouts to visit throughout the summer.

Cimarron is a quaint town in the heart of the New Mexican mountains.

“It’s basically the wild west, we call it,” Cranfill said. “It’s a one lane road. We have a coffee shop and a few restaurants. It was one of the biggest Wild West towns, so a lot of history here.”

Its location gives view to the surrounding Sangre de Cristo Mountains of the Rocky Mountains.

“It’s absolutely beautiful here, the mountains are gorgeous. So, I do not complain about the town ever because I am in the mountains," Cranfill said.

Cranfill found out about the opportunity from a fellow member of Ohio University’s chapter of the National Press Photographers Association. She had no idea about scout ranches prior, but knew she wanted something adventurous in an internship.

“I love hiking, this is what I love to do,” she said. “And so, I applied and realized it is perfect me. I get to hike and take photos all day.”

As an aspiring photojournalist, Cranfill hopes to deviate from traditional newspaper work and explore adventure photography. Her main goal of the experience was to discover if this is the work she wants to pursue throughout her career.

“I came in this internship to see if I can withstand being an adventure photographer,” she said.  “It has really made me appreciate this kind of work and shown me that I definitely can do it. Every day I’m doing something new, trying something new, and hiking a whole lot. It’s helped me realize this is what I want to do in my life.”

Cranfill explained that the hiking can be very challenging mentally and physically. It is an average of 60 miles per trip at an altitude of around 10,000 feet. In addition, she completes hikes with the extra weight of photography equipment.

“My first time I hiked was from a few different staff camps and it pushed me a lot. I am carrying a lot of equipment and supplies,” Cranfill said. “We hiked about 15 miles in two days and that was very memorable to be able to stop at each camp and just hike on.”

She described how rewarding the experience can be, as she captures the emotions of the trailblazers.

“The 14-year-old scouts are super nervous and scared at first, but once they get off the trail, they’re like a whole different person, she said. “Our trails definitely change people.”

Cranfill’s photos are used to document experiences of those adventuring the scout ranch. Over the summer, they were seen in the weekly newspaper, on social media, and in a magazine that she helped to design with her multi-faced visual communication skills.

One of her most memorable experiences throughout the internship was photographing the ranch’s annual rodeo on the Fourth of July.

“It was super cool to be able to get behind the gate and behind the horses with wranglers during such a crazy event,” Cranfill said.

Her love for nature and the outdoors combined with accredited visual communication programs made OHIO the perfect choice for Cranfill, who came to Athens from just outside of Cincinnati.

“It was a feeling of ‘oh I feel at home here,’” she said. "Knowing that my class sizes would be small and very hands on. And Athens is gorgeous.”

She also acknowledged the wide variety of clubs and student publications that allow students to gain hands-on experiences in their field.

“The different number of clubs I wanted to do are ways to explore different types of photojournalism,” Cranfill, who is also involved with All Campus Radio Network (ACRN) and The Post, said.