Rainier Reflection

Ian Bornarth is a Bay Area–based photographer whose work explores the evolving relationship between people, place, and the natural world. With a practice rooted in travel, environmental observation, and long-form documentary storytelling, Bornarth creates images that reveal both the quiet resilience and the fragile impermanence of the landscapes he encounters.
Bornarth holds a B.S. in Applied Photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology and an M.F.A. in Photography from the University of Hartford. His academic training led to nearly two decades of teaching photography at institutions including the Art Institute of California – Silicon Valley, Hartford Art School, and Quinnipiac University, where he helped shape the creative development of emerging photographers.
His photographic work spans fine‑art landscapes, night photography, and environmental documentation, with a particular focus on the forests and coastlines of California. Since 2015, Bornarth has collaborated with the Sempervirens Fund, creating visual records of conservation efforts and documenting the ecological transformation of the Santa Cruz Mountains following the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fires. His images serve as both artistic expression and environmental testimony, capturing the subtle rhythms of regrowth and the enduring presence of fire in Western ecosystems.
Bornarth’s work has been featured in exhibitions, publications, and conservation campaigns, and he continues to contribute to the Northern California photography community as a workshop presenter and competition judge. Whether photographing distant landscapes or the forests just beyond his doorstep, he approaches each image as an opportunity to witness—and share—the ongoing story of a changing world.