Bob Willis, a Fort Collins-based photographer and travel writer, has a pretty incredible portfolio. His photos have appeared in a number of travel guides, national magazines, metro newspapers and fine art galleries. His work has taken him to Kenya, Thailand and across the United States.

Now, one of Bob’s images from the Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup has been selected to appear in the 2010 American Art Collector Annual. He was among 200 artists nationwide to be selected by the American Art Collector jury.

Bob was nice enough to let the Black Hills Travel Blog post his photo on this page. Thanks, Bob, for letting us share it.

The Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup is arguably the most-photographed event in South Dakota. Some 14,000 spectators turned out last year to witness the spectacle of 1,500 American bison chased across the hillsides by a menagerie of cowboys on horseback, pickup trucks and SUVs.

And each year there is always a contingent of professional photographers and filmmakers recording the event. So Bob has a lot of competition in the quest for that perfect image.

Bob’s photo stands out in part because he composed it in a way that shows no humans. You can’t see any cowboys, Jeeps or even the crowds of spectators in the background. (I can’t say I’ve seen every Roundup photo taken, but I don’t recall seeing a roundup photo quite like this one.)

And with the sepia-tone print, it looks as if it could have been shot 150 years ago, when the American bison ruled the prairies.