May 2023 Photo of the Month

At Tom Bol Photo Workshops, we celebrate great images created on our workshops by selecting a Photo of the Month. For May we chose an image from our Louisiana Birds and Bayous Workshop created by Nancy Lehrer. Nancy is primarily a street photographer. She signed up for this workshop to learn more about wildlife and bird photography. We hope you enjoy Nancy’s images as much as we do!

Congratulations to May 2023 ‘s featured photographer – Nancy Lehrer

The Story… 

We were heading towards an alligator on the boat. I heard Tom yell, “Look at the light, look at the light.”

In that part of the swamp there was less moss. It seemed like there were two parts to the swamp. There were light green, mossy parts and then there were these dark green and brown parts. When we arrived in this spot I had not seen the dark green part before.

I was trying to get the reflections and the floating algae. I shot about 20 frames, but the focus wasn’t right. I focused on the reflection and not on the plants. I decided to try a wider angle lens instead. I grabbed my 24-105 mm lens. I wanted to capture the feeling of a bowl. Wide angle images give more of a fisheye feeling. I wanted the feeling of a lake in front of the trees.

I didn’t put the tops of the trees in the image because they are in the sun light. It would be too much contrast with the understory. By focusing on the reflection, the viewer can see the sky in the reflection on the water. I also wanted to capture the side lighting that brought out the yellow tones on the trees

May 2023 Photo of the Month


EXIF Data:

Camera: Sony A7 R5

Lens: 24-105mm f4

ISO: 640

Shutter Speed: 1/125 sec

Aperture: f/9

Shooting Mode: Aperture Priority

Shot at 30mm, handheld


Great Blue Heron taking flight

About Photographing in Louisiana’s Swamps

I am really not a wildlife or landscape photographer. I found that photographing in the swamp was very much like doing street photography. The actors were the animals. We were gliding on the boat like I’d be walking down the street, very slowly.

It was very peaceful in the swamp. The animals were in their habitat. I found myself just looking around for animals, birds, turtles, alligators.

Great Egret feeds chicks in a mixed wader rookery

Nancy’s Tips for Bird Photography

  1. Get a camera that has really good Auto Focus. I rented a Sony A7 R5 for this trip and it made a big difference.
  2. Using a monopod really helped me be stable. It meant I didn’t have to worry about fatigue. I practiced with it at home on the birds in the backyard.
  3. Be a good motion detector. Look for motion and then follow the bird.
  4. Look for birds that are stationary and getting ready to take off. That’s the only way I can count on getting birds in flight.
  5. Connect the bird to the landscape. It’s just like street photography. The background should tell a story.
  6. Watch the behaviors. Keep shooting different behaviors and decide later which is the best image.

Louisiana has more alligators than any where else in the world

On Nancy’s Horizon:

Hokkaido, Japan for fishing villages and the Ice festival

Iditarod in Alaska

The Silk Road in China

Anywhere in eastern Europe: Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Hungary, Czech Republique

Nancy, the wildlife photographer


Where are Tom and Cree?

We are headed to Africa to photograph in Tanzania for two weeks. Then it’s up to Alaska for our annual Brown Bears at Summer Solstice trip. We have space for 1 male photographer if you’d like to join us from June 18-23. We’ll be photographing brown bears with cubs in Lake Clark National Park. Click here for more information.

We’ll be posting photos from these two trips on Instragram @tombolphoto and Facebook. We’d love to see your photos on our Photos for Inspiration TBPW Facebook Page.

Thanks for reading our posts!

Tom and Cree

www.tombolphotoworkshops.com

Old Car City in Spring: Trip Report

Tom and Cree are just back from their East Coast workshop in the hardwood forest of Northern Georgia. They broke out speed lights, strobes and models to make the most of the collection of old cars at Old Car City. The budding dogwoods and red buds were a much appreciated welcome to spring….

To learn more about our Old Car City Workshop, check out our trip report, click here

Looking for a trip to join in 2023?. We have a few last minute openings on trips including: Utah Landscapes Workshop, Bears at Summer Solstice and Ecuador Cloud Forest Click on the underlined links to learn more. 

Thanks for reading our posts. Happy spring wherever you are…..Tom and Cree

February 2023 Photo of the Month

At Tom Bol Photo Workshops, we celebrate great images created on our workshops by selecting a Photo of the Month. For February we chose an image from our Norway in Winter Workshop created by Ellie Burns-Brookens. Ellie is new to Tom Bol Photo Workshops and recently traveled to both Patagonia and Norway with us. We hope you enjoy Ellie’s images as much as we do!

Congratulations to February 2023 ‘s featured photographer – Ellie Burns-Brookens

The Story… 

We walked through a little gate and could see this amazing color down the fjord. It was a lovely fjord with a beautiful view, but it was the color that first caught my attention.

The challenge for me was deciding what to include. What was my composition? What was my subject? The little town on the fjord caught my attention. There were so many beautiful things in the area.

I decided the color was the most interesting thing about the scene.

I had my 24-70mm on the camera to capture the entire scene. But I decided the mountains, the orange light and the sun were the real subject of the photo.

February 2023 Photo of the Month

I switched lenses in the freezing cold, which I never do, so I could zoom in more on the mountains.

Then, I noticed that there was a very large dynamic range to the scene. I asked myself, “What do I do now?”.

I decided to wait for the sun rays to peak through the clouds and then take 3 different exposures. I did this manually and shot at 0, then -1, then -2. I blended the 3 images in Lightroom. I wanted to bring the direct sunlight down and get some more definition in the brighter areas.

We saw this combination of orange and blue light several times in Norway. It almost did not look real, but that was the color it was. It was so stunning.


EXIF Data:

Canon R6 with a 70-200mm lens

ISO 100 1/800 sec f8

Aperture Mode

Shot at 138mm on a tripod


About Photographing in the Lofoten Islands

Every time I turned around it was “Oh my god!” It was so beautiful everywhere we went. There were small villages, tall mountains and stunning fjords.

I loved the snow. I really like the constant contrast of the orange, blue, read and yellow with the snow.

I think the Lofoten Islands are the most beautiful place that I’ve brought my camera to.

Ellie’s Tips for Travel Photography

Tip 1: Research in advance to figure out where to go. I often look at 500px. I like to know where other people have shot.

Tip 2: Then look for what is interesting when you get there. I look for curves, angles and leading lines.

Tip 3: Remember what your subject is. Try to tell a story with an image.

On Ellie’s Horizon:

Lake District in England – big rolling landscapes

Highlands in Scotland – old castle ruins

Faroe Islands – quirky cousin of Iceland

Ellie composing her image in Norway

Last minute openings on 2023 workshops:

Louisiana Birds and Bayous, May 10-14, 2023 – 2 spaces available. Photograph wading birds in the beautiful cypress swamps of Cajun Country in Louisiana Click here

Bears at Lake Clark, June 18-23 – 1 space available. Photograph grizzly bears with cubs in Alaska Click here

Ecuador Cloud Forest July 30-August 7, 2023 – 1 space available. Photograph exotic hummingbirds with long tails and beaks, toucans, barbets and more: Click here


Where are Tom and Cree?

Next stop: We are headed to Alaska next for an assignment with the Matanuska-Susitna Visitor’s Bureau. We’ll be photographing the Iditarod start in Willow, snow machining, skiing, snow shoeing. If we are lucky, we will find some aurora at night as well.

We hope you are enjoying the winter photography in your area of the world. Thanks for reading our posts!

Tom and Cree

www.tombolphotoworkshops.com

Trip Report: Winter in Norway

Tom and Cree just finished a spectacular workshop in the Lofoten Islands in Norway. Norway is known for terrific aurora photography with warmer temperatures than in Alaska. Because of all the open water in the winter, it is possible to photograph the northern lights reflected in the fjords. After weeks of blustery weather, our group won the weather jackpot….

To learn more about our Photography Workshop in the Lofoten Islands of Norway, check out our trip report, click here

Looking for a warmer destination in January 2024. We have three spaces available on our Oaxaca: the Colors of Mexico Workshop. We will be photographing vibrant art, food, people and more with Marcelo along to show us the sites. Read more

Thanks for reading our posts. Happy photographing from our family to yours…..Tom and Cree

Easter Island and Chile Trip Report

Nothing like a few days on a tropical island in January to shake off the winter blues. We just returned from Easter Island and Chile and could not have had better weather: warm breezes, afternoon clouds and tropical flowers in all the right places.

To learn more about our Photography Workshop in Easter Island and Chile, check out our trip report, click here

We will be heading back to another sunny destination in January 2024. We have three spaces available on our Oaxaca: the Colors of Mexico Workshop. We will be photographing vibrant art, food, people and more with Marcelo along to show us the sites. Read more

Want to learn more about using speed lights? Join us in Old Car City in March 2023 and we’ll teach you to light cars in creative ways and to create portraits with speedlights. Read more

Thanks for reading our posts. Happy photographing from our family to yours…..Tom and Cree

Photo of the Month Dec 2022

At Tom Bol Photo Workshops, we celebrate great images created on our workshops by selecting a Photo of the Month. For December we chose an image from our Patagonia Photo Workshop created by Greg Ness. Greg has photographed wildlife in Patagonia several times and was delighted with his condor encounter on this trip. We hope you enjoy Greg’s images as much as we do!

Congratulations to December 2022 ‘s featured photographer – Greg Ness

Greg, dressed for the weather, at the Mirador del Condores (Condor Viewpoint)

The Story… 

It was humorous. When we arrived on scene we looked like a cautious infantry unit. Everyone took 5 steps forward. Then everyone took 5 more steps. The condor was eye balling us the whole time. It must have been thinking, “What are they doing?”

I was using the Sony A1 because I was hoping for a flight shot. I figured if he did fly it would be a very quick shot. I got a couple of decent flight shots but they were kind of at an angle that did not show off his wings.

I loved the bird just sitting there. What an interesting face. You have to ask yourself, what is it about that bird? A face that could stop a truck. Why is it designed like that. I am sure bird experts have some interesting theories on that. I wanted to show the interesting features.

December 2022 Photo of the Month

The light was just right. We had intermittent sunshine. It illuminated the grass right in front of the bird. This made for a nice counterpoint to the dark body of the bird.

I would like to know why it sat there as long as it did. It must have been eating something.

After I got home I did some research. The condor is the biggest flying bird in the world if you combine wingspan (up to 10 ft) and weight (up to 30 pounds). We saw them all over the place. With the Patagonian winds they barely have to flap their wings to take off.

EXIF Data:

Sony AI Sony 200-600 mm f5-6.3 lens at 600 mm

ISO 500 1/2000 sec f6.3

Aperture Priority Mode

Exposure compensation -.03


The view of Mt Fitzroy when heading into Chalten

About Photographing in Patagonia

One of the things that intrigued me about Patagonia is its ties to our past. Anyone who lives in Colorado asks themselves, wouldn’t it be fun to transport yourself back to the Old West. Some one described Patagonia as being like the Old West – large plains, mountain ranges, dramatic weather.

It’s big and wild there. It’s also hard to get to a lot of the places. It keeps the majority of the tourists out. You have to work for photographs in Patagonia. Even if you get to the locations, you can spend days trying to get a picture of Fitzroy or El Chalten and never see it.

This means you have to have patience. The last day we were in Torres del Paine. The calm waters were incredible. How many people have seen that before?

Calm waters at Hosteria Pehoe, our hotel for 3 days

Greg’s Tips for Photographing in Patagonia

Tip 1: I took two rented lenses. This was not a great idea. Know your lenses and know your camera equipment really well. If Marcos is sprinting across the pond on his horse, you may only get one shot of it.

Zoom lenses are really valuable to have. A condor is sitting on the ground, but it could fly at any minute. My suggestions are: 100-500mm and 70-200 and 24-70mm. Take two bodies: anything could happen.

Tip 2: The weather was like last time. It would almost knock you over one day and the next day, no wind. Shoot a lot on the good days. Consider black and white for the cloudy days.

Tip 3: I liked using black and white for the gaucho photos. It fits with the idea of a hard to get to place that is almost lost in time. It has not changed that much in the last 9 years. But it will slowly change.

Patagonian Grey Fox at ground level

On Greg’s Horizon:

Wanaka in New Zealand

Lofoten in Norway – want to return for hiking

Arizona for a month – both hiking and photography

Polar regions -Greenland, Iceland

Cruise to Northern Greenland

Faroe Islands

Madeira in Spain

Greg photographing a Porcelan Orchid

Workshop News

Few spots left: Masking Made Easy: Online Editing Class. Brush up on your editing skills and learn how to use new masking features in either PhotoShop or Lightroom as well as older features like luminosity masks. Click here to learn more.

Few Spots Left: Old Car City Workshop from March 30-April 2, 2023. Photograph classic cars in the Georgia hardwoods. Learn about speed lights for creative effect. Click here to read more.

Where are Tom and Cree?

We are just back from a personal trip to Jackson, Wyoming. We photographed Great Gray Owls, Moose and Coyotes and had a splendid ski in front of the Tetons on New Years Day.

We hope you have a wonderful 2023 and find plenty of time to take photos. Thanks for reading our posts!

Tom and Cree

www.tombolphotoworkshops.com

Photo of the Month July 2022

At Tom Bol Photo Workshops, we celebrate great images created on our workshops by selecting a Photo of the Month. For July we chose an image from our Glacier Workshop created by Eric Lacey. Eric traveled with us to the North American Indian Days in Browning, Montana. We hope you enjoy Eric’s images as much as we do!

Congratulations to July 2022 ‘s featured photographer – Eric Lacey

Portrait of Eric by Kim Lafleur with a f1.2 portrait lens

The Story… 

I was looking for an opportunity to photograph a Native American person. I wanted to minimize all the distractions in the background. I was paying as much attention to what was in the background then to what the boy was doing.

Everyone at the event was phenomenally cooperative.

I took 4 or 5 photos with the boy standing in this position. I liked this one the most. He looks contemplative.

Photo of the Month July 2022

Aperture of f2.8: The tepees in the background give it a sense of place. I wanted enough bokeh in the background to blur it but also I wanted the viewer to be able to tell what it is.

Shutter Speed 1/8000: It was a bright sunny day so I shot at a really high shutter speed (1/8000 sec) This is the highest my camera would allow.

Exposure compensation of -1: I always shoot with some negative exposure compensation if I am shooting in aperture mode. I prefer lightening up an image rather than darkening it down in post process. I didn’t want to blow out any of the highlights.

This was the first time I used my mirrorless for portrait work. I was pleased with how it performed. I just love the EVF info and being able to see the histogram in real time. It simplifies the actual shooting.


EXIF Data:

Canon R5, Canon 70-200 RF 2.8 shot at 95mm

F2.8, 1/8000 sec, ISO 200

Aperture Mode, Exposure Comp of -1


Tips for Portraits:

Keep shooting – you will end up with a lot that aren’t great. Increase your keeper ratio by shooting plenty of frames.

Control the background – I didn’t move around the subject much. I knew I wanted the tepees in the background as a frame behind him.

Control the light – we had strong overhead sunlight, so I had to work with that. I softened the light in post. Luckily his headdress didn’t cast too much of a shadow on his face.


Sunrise at Swiftcurrent Lake in GNP

About Photographing in and near Glacier

Glacier exceeded my expectations photographically.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect because Glacier is less well known as a national park. The vistas aren’t as iconic. Compare it to Yosemite. Everyone knows about Half Dome and El Cap. I was very pleasantly surprised.

As for Browning and Indian Days, I thought it was one of the best parts of the trip. The photography was very different for me. Aside from the photography, I really enjoyed just watching. The remembrance tributes were really moving.

Taking portraits was a great way to expand my photographic check list. It was something we hadn’t done before. I took hundreds of photos and only had two keepers. It was really a blast!

Eric learned his lesson with this image

My Lesson Learned:

We went out the first morning and we had a beautiful pink sunrise. I thought the shoot was over and packed everything up and headed to the car. As I was walking up the hill, I heard Tom say, “Look at the light”.

I ran back down and unpacked everything. I used my ND grad filter to darken the sky in this image.

I learned that you don’t pack up until you’re sure the show is over!


On Eric’s Horizon:

Pantanal in Brazil

Puffins on Machias Seal Island off the coast of Maine

Oregon Coast & Redwoods

Tanzania

Eric and Kim photographing horses on route to Browning, Montana

Where are Tom and Cree?

As you read this we are sailing around the Galapagos Islands with a group on a three masted sailboat. We will be back in the office from August 8-12 and then off to Greenland with Strabo Tours to photograph enormous icebergs in Disko Bay.

Want to join us for an international adventure? We have a few spots open:

New Zealand Sept 22-Oct 3, 2022

Norway Sept 11-18, 2022

Patagonia Nov 29-Dec 9, 2022

We hope you are having a great summer. Thanks for reading our posts!

Tom and Cree

www.tombolphotoworkshops.com

Trip Report – Brown Bears and Glaciers

We just returned from our Lake Clark Bear Workshop and are already longing to go back next year. The spring cubs were just wonderful. Take a look at our trip report to see the photos and catch up on what Crimp’s Cub looks like this year.

To see the report, click here

Tom has been busy working on articles for Nikon in his spare time. Check out his new piece on the Pre-release Feature of the Nikon Z9. If you are an Olympus user you probably already know about it. If you are a Nikon user, this allows you to record images before you push the button and capture a burst of activity. Great read! Click here. Most of the images for the article were taken on our Texas Birds Workshops in May

Tom and I will be out of the office for several weeks in August with workshops in both the Galapagos and Greenland. We want to be able to answer all of your questions as soon as possible and will check messages whenever we have coverage.

We will be readily available and in the office from August 8-12. We are also around for the next several days (end of July) if you need anything.

Thanks for reading our posts. We hope to photograph with you soon!

Tom and Cree

Can you tell we love Alaska?

Glacier Trip Report

After postponing for two years, our entire workshop group was delighted to be going to Glacier National Park. We showed up in the early morning for our first shoot and an amazing rainbow appeared over Wild Goose Island. It was a spectacular year to be in Glacier!

Click on this link to learn more and to see images from our photo workshop in Glacier National Park.

We have a busy international schedule coming up from now until December. We are traveling to the Galapagos and then on to Greenland next.

Most of our trips are full but there are a few spaces available on our Lofoten Norway Workshop on September 11-18 Learn more This is the perfect place to cool down after a warmer than usual summer!

We also have a few spaces on our Botswana and Zimbabwe Workshop November 10-22 Learn more We visit Victoria Falls, ground level elephant blinds and boat on the Chobe River.

Thanks for reading our posts. Hope you are having a great summer!

Tom and Cree

What is Coming up at TBPW

Greetings Photographers!

We hope your summer is off to a great start!

We will be returning to Alaska next week for an assignment with the Mat-Su Visitor’s Bureau (Palmer, Wasilla and Talkeetna). One of our shoots will be photographing stand up paddle boarding on a glacier pool. It sounds exciting. We are also looking forward to the annual Alaskan brewery photo shoot!

Arches and Canyonlands

New Workshops for 2024

Over the last few weeks we have been rounding out our 2024 Schedule with a few new workshop destinations. We keep adding new destinations in order to give you plenty of options, both international and domestic. We have space available on both of these:

Arches and Canyonlands Nov 3-7, 2024

Details: This is one of our favorite national parks. Tom has been leading photo workshops and doing assignments in Moab for the last 20 years. Photograph striking red rock formations on blue skies. Explore myriad arches against an iconic western landscape. Learn More

Orangutans and Volcanos in Indonesia February 13-23, 2024

Details:  Join Tom, Cree and Phillip Bartlett on a 10 day adventure to the exotic islands of Java and Borneo. These islands are  part of the country of Indonesia – we will be photographing wildlife from a riverboat, landscapes and taking travel portraits. Learn More

Orangutans in Indonesia Photo by Phillip Bartlett

Openings for 2022

Our domestic trips are all full for 2022. We have a few new openings for international trips. We have been traveling abroad since last November and are finding it easier to travel now that the testing requirement for covid has been lifted for re-entry into the US. We are happy to talk more about international travel with you if you have questions. Click on the underlined links to learn more.

Norway Lofoten Islands – September 11-18, 2022

Botswana and Zimbabwe – November 11-22, 2022

Greenland and Iceland – August 12-21, 2022,


We always love hearing from you! creetbp@gmail.com or (970) 631-9383  

Enjoy your summer!

Cree and Tom

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