Clyde Butcher: Everglades Photography Near Naples

Clyde Butcher Photography – Visit his Gallery outside Naples,FL

Even if you haven’t been to the studio, you’ve probably seen his work. All over Naples, from galleries to private homes to offices, walls are displaying Clyde Butcher photography. But he’s not just a local treasure, he’s been recognized by the state of Florida as well as Sierra Club and North American Nature Photography Association. The Clyde Butcher photography gallery is located about 47 miles east of Naples on US 41 East and is well worth the drive. It’s situated on 13 acres and there’s an amazing nature walk which is great during the winter (not now, too many mosquitos). Even if you don’t want to go on the nature walk, there’s a lot of eye candy inside the studio with fascinating old photography equipment, photos, and other miscellaneous items relating to Clyde’s long history with the Everglades and our area.

Clyde first discovered the Everglades as a photography subject in 1983 through a native guide. Apparently after Clyde Butcher’s 17 year old son was killed by a drunk driver in 1986 he destroyed all his color photos and decided to only publish in black and white media. What makes his work special is the dedication that it takes to get to the locations for the shots and the eye that he has to visualize the Everglades and bring it to everyone’s attention.

The Clyde Butcher Photography gallery is simple location that if you aren’t looking for the studio, you might just pass it and never know what you missed. If you stop there even for just a few minutes, you’ll see some amazing perspectives of the Everglades that few of us will ever venture out to see. It’s not the land of airboats, swamp and alligators, it’s so much more, a pristine treasure and a fragile beauty. We highly recommend checking out Clyde Butcher’s studio to view his photography and nature walk the next time you want to do something a little different and get back to nature without having to venture into the swamp. You’ll want to bring some of Clyde’s vision back with you and that can be pricey but looking is still free.

Here are some of the photos I took during our visit (with permission of the staff member) and outdoors.