Photographer Rick Burgess has been documenting West Virginia through photography since the 1970s. His work has long been considered among the most evocative ever produced, especially with regard to landscapes.
Farm on Jordan Run Road
Fog in South Branch Valleys
Mountain barriers such as the New River Gorge helped preserve West Virginia speech patterns. (Photo: Rick Burgess)
Drawdy Creek Falls
Driven Snow, Canaan Valley
A gravel road winds toward a restored farmhouse at Twin Falls State Park. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess.
Blackwater River in Winter
View from Table Rock
Snowy boulders beneath hemlock
Kayakers in the New RIver Gorge
Spires on North Fork Mountain
Patterson Creek Mountain
Potomac below Hilltop House
Hikers take in the view of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia from Maryland Heights. Photo by Rick Burgess
Mountain view from Kumbrabow
Douglas Falls on Blackwater
Dolly Sods Wilderness on Ice
Champe Rocks, near Seneca Rocks, are named for a hero of the American revolution. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess.
Crest of North Fork Mountain
Seneca Rocks from Smith Mountain
Late afternoon at Dolly Sods
Canaan Valley from Bald Knob
Highway WV-32 courses across the southern Canaan Valley near Canaan Valley Resort State Park in Tucker County in Allegheny Highlands Region. Photo by Rick Burgess
Barn in Canaan Valley
Cabin on Blackwater River
September view from Dolly Sods
Sunrise at Bear Rocks Preserve
Cabins can make for incredibly romantic getaways and great rendezvous points, but snow can make it difficult to travel.
Blackwater Falls in Winter
Misty morn in Mineral County
Pocahontas County Farm
Back Fork of Elk River
Allegheny Wind Farm
Not all regions in the Monongahela National Forest are as pristine as on Spruce Mountain (Photo: Rick Burgess)
West Virginia National Cemetery
Tygart Valley River
Stretcher Neck on New River
Cove at Summersville Lake
Summersville Lake in spring
Cliffs rise from Summerville Lake near Summersville, West Virginia, in Nicholas County. Photo by Rick Burgess
Spring along the Kanawha River
Snow in the Alleghenies
James Helmick became lost in the Alleghenies in 1885, and his harrowing tale is recounted here. Photo by Rick Burgess
Smoke Hole Countryside
Anglers on Shavers Fork
Paddlers on the Shenandoah, immortalized in "Take Me Home, Country Roads," to be adopted as an official West Virginia state song. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess
Inside the Sinks of Gandy
North Fork from Smith Mountain
Seneca Rocks from Pasture
Blade at Seneca Rocks
Sandstone Falls from WV-20
The saddle in New Creek Mountain appears in the distance from near Skyline, West Virginia. (Photo courtesy Rick Burgess)
North Fork Valley
The valleys of the Potomac River and its branches descend eastward to Chesapeake Bay. Photo by Rick Burgess
Autumn at Plum Orchard
Barn in Raleigh County
North Fork of Blackwater
New River at Hawks Nest
The New River courses toward its gorge below the Grandview overlooks in southern West Virginia. (Photo: Rick Burgess)
View from Nelson Rocks
Autumn leaves turn red and gold along a rural backroad in Mercer County. (Photo courtesy Rick Burgess)
Middle Falls of Hills Creek
Mill Creek near Ansted, WV
Monongahela Valley Evening
Fog at Kanawha Falls
Autumn at Lake Stephens
Lower Falls of Hills Creek
Lower Meadow River
Snow blankets a dale in the lowlands horse-country in Jackson County near Ripley, West Virginia.
Horses in Frost, Raleigh County
Upper Falls of Holly River
Hokes Mill Covered Bridge
West Virginia Hay Barn
Field on Highland Highway
Mended Fence
Hikers at Beauty Mountain
Cliffs overhang a mountain road in Webster County, which once declared itself a state. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess.
Coonskin Fork tubles through at grotto at Coonskin Park at Charleston. (Photo courtesy Rick Burgess)
Autumn arrives in Greenbrier County in September and lingers into early December. (Photo courtesy Rick Burgess)
Telescopes at Green Bank
Gandy Creek Landscape
Allegheny Landscape
Winter at Grandview
Landscape in Grant County
Dan Friend at Sods
Dock, Plum Orchard Lake
Eagle Rock at Smoke Hole
Anglers cast into the Elk River on a spring morning above Queens Shoals in Clay County. Photo by Rick Burgess
Country Road, Fayette County
Summer at Coopers Rock
Autumn at Coopers Rock
The I-64 Bridge at Charleston is one of countless bridges in the West Virginia to be maintained. (Photo courtesy Rick Burgess)
The Cheat River pools behind a rapid in its gorge in Preston County in the Allegheny Highlands Region. Photo by Rick Burgess
Chenoweth Home, Beverly, WV
Coal River
West Virginia is top-of-mind for travelers, thanks to the Tourism Office. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess.
Trout will be stocked in streams such as Camp Creek, at Camp Creek State Forest, through May 31. Photo Rick Burgess.
Cacapon River
Autumn at Brush Creek Falls
Why visit WV in winter? Winter at Bruceton Mills, West Virginia, in Preston County. Photo courtesy Rick Burgess.
Lindy Point above Blackwater
Fog at Lindy Point
Autumn on Bluestone River
Morning in Braxton County
Blackwater RIver Canyon
McCoys Falls on Birch River
Hills Creek Pond
Greenery in the New River Gorge begins to fade into gold and orange in September. (Photo: Rick Burgess)
Dawn glows pink above the mountains west of the Allegheny Front at Bear Rocks in the Dolly Sods Wilderness Area in the Allegheny Highlands Region. Photo by Rick Burgess
Nelson Rocks near Judy Gap
More about the photography of Rick Burgess
Rick Burgess is among the most personable photographers you'd ever hope to meet and welcomes inquiries about his work. To contact Rick or to enjoy more of his photography, visit his Facebook profile page.