Resilience Through Land Work And Family

Edge of Humanity Magazine

8 hours ago

Photographer Ton Schless is an Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the project ‘Climate Change Awareness – Drought ’. To see Ton ‘s body of work, click on any photograph.

Two Massive Bales a Day
Scot feeds his cattle two massive bales of hay each day. With additional hay difficult to obtain, he may be forced to reduce the herd again.

Not Enough
The drought has reduced what Scot’s fields can produce. The bales behind him reveal the difference between the hay he can harvest and what he must obtain elsewhere.

Contemplation
Without sufficient pasture for grazing, Scot must feed his cattle hay. Keeping his remaining herd has become increasingly difficult.

A Must
Unable to rely solely on farming for his family’s livelihood, Scot works construction to help support them.

Hurting
Even with a torn tendon, Scot continues working his construction job.

Drought is a social documentary about Scot and Jill, a cattle-farming couple in southern Utah who confront the human consequences of prolonged drought. Scot, a third-generation cattle farmer, watched his Black Angus herd decline from about 450 cattle to just over 130 as diminishing water and forage made it increasingly difficult to sustain the herd.

The drought extends far beyond the dry fields. Unable to grow enough feed and facing a hay shortage, Scot must also work construction to support his family and preserve the farm. Through photographs of the land, cattle, work, and family life, Drought documents the economic and emotional realities of a family confronting an uncertain future while remaining deeply connected to their land, livelihood, and one another.

Victim of Drought
The land has dried and the grasses have failed to grow. A cow lies dead in a pasture where drought has left too little forage.

No End in Sight
Across the parched landscape, the effects of drought remain. There is still no end in sight.

Drought began with the land, but it became a story about a family.

In 2021, I photographed Scot and Jill on their cattle farm in southern Utah to document the human consequences of prolonged drought. Scot is a third-generation cattle farmer whose livelihood depends on water, pasture, and the land’s ability to sustain his herd. As water became scarce and fields could no longer produce enough forage, his Black Angus herd declined from about 450 cattle to just over 130. Currently, in 2026, he only has 35 mother cows.

I wanted the photographs to show how an environmental crisis extends beyond a dry landscape. Drought enters everyday life, in feeding cattle that can no longer graze, searching for hay, paying bills, taking work away from the farm, and confronting uncertainty about whether a way of life can continue.

I chose black and white to emphasize the austere landscape and the relationships among people, animals, and the land. As the series progresses, the photographs move from the visible consequences of drought to increasingly personal moments with Scot, Jill, and their family..

At its core, Drought is about resilience. It follows a family as they confront circumstances largely beyond their control while holding onto their land, their faith, one another, and the hope that their way of life will endure.