DENVER (KDVR) — A well-known, award-winning nature photographer from Colorado, John Fielder, has died.

Fielder was 73 years old. He has taken hundreds of thousands of photos documenting quite literally each of Colorado’s 104,984 square miles since 1973, according to a press release from History Colorado.

According to his website, Fielder was enthralled with the beauty of Colorado since his first visit at the age of 14 on a school field trip from North Carolina.

“In all my life, I have not forgotten my first sight of the Rockies rising up before me over the plains,” he wrote on his website. “I was simply smitten by this wall of snow-capped peaks above a treeless plain.”

Photos used on the set of FOX31 and Colorado’s Very Own Channel 2 were taken by Fielder.

He is also known for his conservation efforts to protect Colorado’s ranches, open space and wildlands.

“My goal was always to reveal and preserve the essence of the place that I think is the most
beautiful on Earth: Colorado,” Fielder told History Colorado in January. “I am humbled that these photos have inspired others and spurred the passage of numerous environmental protection projects and laws across this beautiful state that I love and cherish.”

He served as a foundational advocate in the creation of Great Outdoors Colorado as one of the original governor-appointed board members and influenced the passage of the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1933, History Colorado said.

Gov. Jared Polis released a statement regarding his death Saturday afternoon.

“I am saddened by the loss of John Fielder, who captured Colorado’s iconic beauty during his 50 years as a nature photographer. His unique talent and work allowed him to showcase our state to millions across the world and he will be dearly missed,” Gov. Polis said.

Fielder said on his website that he donated some 7,500 photos to History Colorado, which is available for the public to gaze at and admire on the website.

  • A John Fielder photo of farm houses and clouds in the distance.
  • A John Fielder photo of red rocks in front of snow-capped mountains.
  • A John Fielder photo of sand dunes in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of a river running through a meadow in the fall.
  • A John Fielder photo of farm buildings in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of an old brick structure in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of red rock cliffs in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of mountains and a farm house reflected perfectly on the water in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of wildflowers in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of snowy Rocky Mountains in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of a red rock arch in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of red flatiron rocks covered in snow in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of red rocks and a river nearby in Colorado.
  • A John Fielder photo of Rocky Mountains surrounded in clouds and water in Colorado.

“I last saw John two weeks ago at the opening of the ‘REVEALED: John Fielder’s Favorite Place’ exhibition at History Colorado. On behalf of the state, I thanked him for donating his life works to History Colorado,” Polis said.

FOX31 was at the opening of that exhibition. There, Fielder told FOX31 that he was battling pancreatic cancer.

In July, History Colorado said in a press release that Fielder planned to continue exploring the mountain ranges, waterways, desert canyons and plains of Colorado.

The cause of his death was not immediately released to the public.