About - ColdSnap Photography

About ColdSnap

John Gregor  has owned and operated ColdSnap Photography for over 30 years. He has 45 years experience as a professional photographer.

Gregor has a Masters of Education through St. Scholastica College with an emphasis in photographic literacy.  He earned his BA from the University of Minnesota  with a degree through the University Without Walls program, his degree was entitled “Documentary Expression of American Culture Through Photography” a combined degree of Social Sciences and Fine Art Photography.

Gregor’s photographs have been published in numerous regional and national magazines, his fine art prints are in museums and collections worldwide. During his career he has worked on some interesting projects including: 2 years as the Track Photographer at Canterbury Downs Racetrack, a month long photographic project in Africa documenting the first attempted kayak decent of the Blue Nile from Lake Victoria to Lake Albert, a photography project on horse-mounted military musical bands with trips to England, Belgium, Austria, Denmark, and Sweden, funded by the University of St. Thomas,  photographic documentation of over 100 Scientific and Natural Areas in Minnesota, “Northland Wildflowers” a guide to the Minnesota Region.

For the last five years Gregor has been wintering in Utah and Mexico. His work in Mexico has resulted in an exhibit and a photographic workshop at Mueseo y Archivo de la Fotographia the premier photographic center in Mexico City.

Gregor currently spends his time in Bluff Utah, Mexico, and Duluth Minnesota.

Randy Hagar has a degree in biology from the University of Minnesota. His photographic work has been published in numerous regional and national magazines. He has worked with and co-taught with Gregor for over 25 years. They have taught photography at seminars, workshops, and accredited courses including courses at: University of Minnesota, North Hennepin Community College, Split Rock Arts Program, Arrowhead Regional Library System, the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, General Mills and many others.

Hagar has been instrumental in developing the tours in Newfoundland and the Canadian Maritimes, he assists in leading the tours to Newfoundland.

Hagar lives in South Minneapolis.

Tim Zeltinger is largely a self-taught photographer. He has studied with some of the best photographers in the Midwest. Zeltinger’s photographs have won numerous awards including Digital Photo of the year at the N4C a collection of regional camera clubs, “Best of Show” for two years running at the North Dakota State Fair. Zeltinger spends most of his free time photographing the landscape and wildlife in North Dakota. He also enjoys photographing rodeos, and he makes an annual photographic pilgrimage to the Manitoba Stampede in Morris Manitoba.

Zeltinger has been instrumental in developing the tours in North Dakota and the region, he assists in leading these tours.

Zeltinger lives on the prairies of North Dakota, land of spectacular sunrises and sunsets.

Tomy O’Brien has been a full-time career professional photographer since 1982. He grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Marine on St. Croix, Minnesota, where he raised his three children. He graduated from the University of Minnesota, and studied at the University of Fine Arts in San Francisco where he began a career as a fashion and portrait photographer. He retired from studio photography in 2018 and began to travel with his cameras. He quickly  discovered that Mexico and its incredible people and landscapes would become an enduring passion and obsession. To that end he has spent as much time as he possibly can learning Spanish and living in Mexico. We led our first tour together in Mexico in 2020.

Tomy has been instrumental in the development of ColdSnap Photography’s tours in Mexico and with co-leading these tours. It would not be possible for us to offer these experiences without his devoted research and discovery.