I Love the Desert

I took this shot along the road to the Devil's Golf Course in Death Valley National Park, CA. It's titled "Broken Heart" (thanks, Suzy!). The dirt road was closed because of last week's rain storms, but we walked down to check out the condition of the location before most of our students arrived. Jay noticed these unusual patterns in the mud along the way, so he ran back to the car for our cameras. This one looks like a heart to me... and it makes an unusual valentine. :)

We had a great time in Death Valley. We had eleven students with us, and I really enjoyed this group. Everyone seemed ready to learn, and the whole group meshed really well. We've seen some really neat photos from this trip. We were lucky to get some fantastic skies, too. I'm looking forward to processing some more of my own photos... and seeing more from the group.
We shot at the dunes a couple of times, and after the sun rose, some of us started playing around with our own shadows. We ended up laughing so hard our stomach muscles were cramping up... we looked pretty ridiculous trying to capture our shadows as we posed and jumped around. It's a good thing there aren't very many people out there! Here are the results...
The series is titled Desert Petroglyphs thanks to Tex Schneider. Thanks for the suggestion, Tex! :)

Death Valley Workshop - January 2010

Registration is now open for our Death Valley workshop coming up in January of 2010! Spaces are limited - if you want to join us, you’ll need to register right away!

For detailed information, and to register, use this link: https://www.regonline.com/DVworkshop

Death Valley is a Landscape Photographer's dream-come-true. Beautiful skies, incredible textures, and intense colors provide inspiration wherever you go. This is a land of extremes... it is the driest, the hottest, and the lowest place in the Western Hemisphere. Intense weather conditions and an amazing variety of landscapes characterize the area. From the scorched and windblown sands of the dunes, to the peaceful flow of Darwin Falls - from the bizarre salt formations at Badwater, to the fascinating tracks left by moving stones at the Racetrack - Death Valley is a fascinating place.

Students will face a variety of challenges here - including handling a high dynamic range of light, dealing with extreme temperature changes, and reaching remote locations. One of the most important skills for a landscape photographer is choosing the best possible shooting location based upon weather conditions and other environmental factors. In order to learn this skill, students will be encouraged to participate in the selecting the right location under the direction of the instructors.

• Registration: https://www.regonline.com/DVworkshop

• Dates: Jan 29th - Jan 31

• We will meet in the evening on Jan 28 (the day before the workshop begins) at Stove Pipe Wells to make sure everyone is ready for our early morning shoot on the 29th.

• Price: $899

We will stay at Stove Pipe Wells, and students will make their own lodging and travel arrangements. There is a camp ground just a few steps away for those who choose to camp. Students will pay for their own transportation, food, and lodging - these are NOT included in the price of the trip. Reservations for lodging in Death Valley are hard to come by so if you are interested in attending the workshop, we highly recommend that you make reservations at Stovepipe wells as soon as possible.

Hotel: http://www.stovepipewells.com/accommodations-1238.html
Campground: http://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/camping.htm

Here are some images from Death Valley:

Travel Plans...

We have some exciting travel plans this year. We'll be in the Canadian Rockies at the beginning of August. I was born in Canada, and have made small trips into Canada a few times in the last several years... but never to shoot. We're both looking forward to that trip. In September, we'll head out to Montana to visit Glacier National Park again. And we've just booked flights to Hawaii in December. We weren't expecting to make it to Hawaii this year, so we're pleased to have been able to schedule this trip. With any luck, we'll get to stop in to see my Grandmother on Maui for a day or two during our stay.

Of course, in between travel, we'll be teaching another seminar in August and preparing for upcoming webinars. We have a workshop in November, too - in Utah... Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. So if we aren't busy enough with our six kids, we should be able to find plenty to do. ;)

And last but not least - I've updated my website once again. You'll find a new Details gallery... textures, macros, and small details. I've also added images to several other galleries. Check out the Newest Photographs gallery to see all the new photos in one place.

Home - and more rain!

Here we are, back in Cleveland - and it's pouring. Reminds me of Death Valley... hmmm. What's going on here? :) Ah well... it's good to be home, and I'm awfully glad that it's not freezing, here.

I'm glad to be home and looking forward to some sleep. We had a great time! I can't wait to start processing some of my photographs. I'm hoping our students will start sending us some of theirs too. If I can get permission, maybe I'll post a few here.

Thanks to all of you for staying with me this week - hits on my blog increased substantially while we were away. It's great to know that so many people are interested. I hope some of you can join us for our next workshop.

Wrapping it up...

We shot the setting full moon at Zabriskie Point this morning, then did some processing this afternoon. We shot sunset at Badwater - amazing textures on the ground and a pretty nice sky. We were glad to find the playa dry after such a wet start to the trip.

We did a last bit of processing practice with our students tonight, and we're getting ready to turn in. It's 1 am in Cleveland right now, so I'm pretty tired - especially since we've been up at 5am for the past four mornings. We'll be up at 5am to shoot one last time before we head for the Las Vegas airport.

Overall, I think this was one of our best trips to Death Valley as far as the sky was concerned. The passing storms provided a stunning collection of colors and patterns. Unfortunately, most of the roads in the park were closed - so we never got to visit the Racetrack. Still, we did shoot Mesquite Dunes, Zabriskie Point, Bad Water, Darwin Falls, and a few really nice spots between locations. Not too shabby.

And the rain came down...

It's still raining. And raining. And raining. Certainly not your typical Death Valley weather. All the roads in the park are flooded - and closed - and we're stuck in Stove Pipe Wells. Luckily - we have back-up plans for this kind of weather. Our students are practicing some processing... and the storm should be clearing up tonight. We are looking forward to some more unusual shots in the desert tomorrow. A really neat opportunity.

I'm going to get back to work.

Death Valley

We'll be on a plane this afternoon - en route to Death Valley, California for our 4-day workshop. We're looking forward to some fantastic skies - we've been watching the weather, and it looks like it will be just right for shooting. The challenge is to be in the right location at the right time... you never know what the sky is going to do on location. So... we have our fingers crossed.

We should be visiting Zabriskie Point, Ubehebe Crater, The Artisit's Palate, The Racetrack, The Salt Flats, Mesquite Dunes, and the Devil's Golf Course. We'll teach some RAW processing skills, and spend as much time as possible in the field. We believe that the best way to learn is by doing... so we'll do as much as possible. :) Can't wait!

Today's Presentation

I'm just about to head out - it's time for another presentation. I'm speaking with a small group today - about Landscape Photography. I'll be talking about lighting, equipment, and what it takes to get some of the shots you see on my website. I'll also touch briefly on some of the research and planning that goes into landscape photography. I always enjoy doing presentations - it's a lot less formal than teaching a class, and I really enjoy getting to know people.

I have another presentation coming up next week - for the Cleveland Photographic Society. That one will focus on shooting for stock and making money from photography. It will be a bit more formal than today's talk, but I'm ready for it.

A busy couple of weeks - presentations, our Death Valley workshop... and more! :)

Prep Week

All right - I have to say, I love this photo. He went down this hill a hundred times. He'd hit the bump and both he and the sled would fly up into the air... and then he'd come right back down on the sled and finish the hill. Everyone else fell off their sleds over and over again - but not him. He nailed it every time - without a bit of effort. We were laughing so hard our sides hurt. It was great fun shooting in the snow.

I haven't had much time for updating my blog this week - I'm sorry about that. I've been busy preparing for our upcoming workshop in Death Valley. I'll try to keep my blog updated, but once we're in the park, I won't have internet access for a few days.

Upcoming Photo Tour

Our next photo tour is coming up in November. All the necessary information can be found at the Nature Photo Tours website. We'll be leading a workshop in Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks in Utah. We're excited about this upcoming class. Jay and I always have a lot of fun teaching and getting to know our students. If you are interested, you can make reservations from the NPT website.

We are also preparing for a workshop in Death Valley in February 2009. I hope some of you will join us on one or both of these trips.