When it comes to photographing South Dakota, Chad Coppess is a seasoned expert. He’s been the senior photographer for the South Dakota Department of Tourism and State Development for the past 15 years, so if you can name a sweeping vista, a special event or a funky town anywhere in the state, chances are pretty good that Chad’s been there, shot that.

In fact, most of the photos you see on the blog that are credited to South Dakota Tourism have come from Chad. His images have been published all over the place – National Geographic Traveler is one of the more impressive publications in his portfolio – but he says he’s also had his pictures in a book about the band KISS. Now that’s a story for the resume.

Chad started a fantastic blog back in November called Dakotagraph, where his sole mission is to help photographers of all skill levels to make the most out of their trip to South Dakota. Of course, he also shows off some of his really impressive photos in the process, so even if your photography experience begins and ends with the “press here to shoot” button, it’s worth checking out. Here are a couple of the images you’ll find there:

This fast-moving stream is from Sica Hollow State Park in eastern South Dakota, but many of his shots are from the Black Hills…

…like this one, from Custer State Park near the town of Custer. Why did the buffalo cross the road? It doesn’t matter. Just let ‘em.

So if you’re headed out to South Dakota with your camera in tow, be sure to drop by Chad’s blog. He’s a heck of a nice guy and a big photo geek, so don’t hesitate to leave comments and ask him questions.