Award-winning photographer, filmmaker and writer Peter McBride will provide a multi-media presentation based on his acclaimed book The Colorado River: Flowing Through Conflict and award-winning film Chasing Water, which document Peter’s three years exploring the length of the Colorado River and its tributaries, source to sea. The presentation will be May 9 at 7 p.m. at the New Hampshire Audubon McLane Center and is free and open to the public.
Using predominantly low-flying aircraft as photographic platforms, plus rafts, underwater equipment, and by foot, McBride documented the 1,500 miles of the majestic and mighty Colorado. His aim was to show exactly where the river and its water goes as it sustains seven states and Mexico, drops 2 vertical miles, and supplies water to 35 million people throughout the arid West. The seventh largest river in the U.S., it is also one of the most perted, silted and heavily litigated rivers in the world. The farmers and residents of the rapidly growing western states rely on the river for irrigation, drinking water and electricity, a demand that has permanently altered the river’s ecology leaving a dry riverbed where it once reached the Sea of Cortez.
Native Coloradan McBride has spent almost two decades studying the world with his camera. A self-taught, award-winning photographer, filmmaker and writer, he has traveled on assignment to more than 60 countries for many major publications including National Geographic Society, Smithsonian, Outside, and Esquire. His perspective on capturing water-related stories led American Photo Magazine to list McBride as “one of the top five water photographers” in the nation. In 2011 and 2012, his film Chasing Water won more than 20 film festival awards, including “Best Short Documentary” at Canada’s Banff Mountain Film Festival and “Best Environmental Film” at England’s Kendal Mountain Festival. His photography honors include awards from Pictures of the Year International, Photo Week DC, Communications Arts, The Society of Professional Journalists and a Knight Fellowship for Professional Journalists at Stanford University. In 2011, he was awarded “River Conservator” by the Roaring Fork Conservancy for his ongoing awareness work with water conservation.
