Ralph Lee Hopkins

National Geographic photography expert Ralph Lee Hopkins is the founder and director of the Expedition Photography program for the Lindblad-National Geographic alliance. For more than 20 years he has led expeditions from the Arctic to Antarctica and points in between.

An inspiring teacher, Ralph’s enthusiasm for the creative aspects of photography is contagious and is chronicled in his most recent book, Nature Photography: Documenting the Wild World. Back on land he is a lecturer with the National Geographic Traveler digital seminar series and teaches workshops for National Geographic Expeditions, Arizona Highways, and Santa Fe Workshops. Prior to his worldwide travels, Ralph majored in geology and played basketball at Allegheny College. He then studied rocks along the rim of the Grand Canyon while completing his master’s degree at Northern Arizona University. His research later became a chapter in the landmark book, Grand Canyon Geology. Ralph was also contributing photographer on a U.S. Geological Survey Colorado River expedition matching historical photos for the book, Grand Canyon – A Century of Change.

Images from Ralph’s travels are published widely by National Geographic. His work documenting conservation issues in Baja California was published in the National Geographic Traveler story, Is Baja on the Block? A selection of his polar images was featured in the National Geographic companion book to the major motion picture Arctic Tale. He is also author/photographer of the popular guidebooks Hiking the Southwest’s Geology and Hiking Colorado’s Geology.