Tom and Cree had a terrific time on their Kenya Photo Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They joined 10 photographers on a 8 day exploration of the Masai Mara in Kenya. The variety of big cats in action was a highlight for everyone.
To see photos from our Kenya Photo Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s new:
We had a spectacular night of aurora in Alaska on October 10, as did many of you in the Lower 48! Tom just finished a blog post with tips for capturing the aurora: Click here to learn more. If you want to join us on an Aurora Workshop, we have space on our Northern Lights and Iditarod Workshop in 2026
We will be traveling to New Mexico for our next two workshops on Route 66. We will be based in Oklahoma and Texas for the first workshop and in New Mexico and Arizona for the second one. After that we are headed to Arches and Canyonlands to capture beautiful red rock formations and look for the Milky Way at night.
Any upcoming openings?
Our 2025 schedule is close to full. You can always join a waiting list for a trip that is full by sending us a note from our Contact Page
Tom and Cree just finished their Katmai Bears Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They joined 9 photographers on daily flights in small planes to locations all over Katmai National Park in Alaska. Photographing multiple sets of triplet cubs was a highlight for everyone.
To see photos from our Katmai Bears Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s new:
Interested in seeing images from our workshops this Summer? Join us for a free online Summer Image Celebration on Sunday, August 25 at 6 pm MDT Denver time. We will be showing images from photographers on our workshops to Lake Clark NP, Badlands NP, Katmai NP, Nome and the Pantanal. Click here and request a link if interested in viewing or participating.
Any upcoming openings?
Route 66 Albuquerque to Winslow: Oct 23-27, 2024 Read more Photograph iconic locations like the WigWam Motel, Route 66 Diner, and Petrified Forest National Park. Learn more about using a speed light to add color and creativity to your images.
Arches and Canyonlands: Nov 3-7, 2024 Read more An all time classic. Photograph brilliant red rock arches on crystalline blue skies.
Bosque and White Sands National Park: Dec 8-12, 2024 Read more Perfect workshop for photographers who want to improve their birds in flight photography. Photograph the dazzling white gypsum dunes at White Sands National Park.
Tom and Cree just finished their Brown Bears of Lake Clark Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. Their group of 10 photographers flew down the remote Alaskan coastline to Lake Clark National Park. Numerous opportunities to photograph bears on the beach digging for clams were a highlight for everyone.
To see photos from our Brown Bears of Lake Clark, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s new:
Our address is new! Please add our new address to your contact list for future mail:
Tom and I celebrate great images from workshop participants by selecting a Photo of the Month. For July we chose an image taken on our Pantanal Workshop for Strabo Tours. The image was taken by Melissa Stanton while photographing jaguars in the wetlands of Brazil. Melissa is a travel and wildlife photographer and has a strong fondness for felines.
Congratulations to July 2024 ‘s featured photographer – Melissa Stanton
Photographer Melissa Stanton
The Story…
We came around the corner and the jaguar was walking down a log. Tom was yelling and dancing around. He is always so excited about cats. I figured I better get ready to take a photo.
It looked like the cat was thinking about jumping into the water. I turned up the shutter speed a bit so I could get it in focus, Then the cat jumped.
It was fun to watch him swim. Cats do not normally like water. To see cats swimming was really kind of cool. Everyone was so impressed with watching the jaguar jump. The jaguar was pretty close to us when it happened. It was definitely cool to see.
I didn’t know that I had such a good picture until I got home and looked at in on the bigger screen.
Photo of the Month – July 2024
EXIF Data:
Camera: Nikon Z9
Lens: Nikon Z series 600 mm PF
Aperture: f6.3
Shutter: 1/5000 second
ISO: 1600
Mode: Manual with Auto ISO
About Photographing in the Pantanal
It was great. It was relaxing to be in the boats, riding around on little rivers. Everywhere you looked there were capybaras or caimans or something else.
The drivers were very good at getting us close to the wildlife. We were close but we did not disrupt them.
We were ridiculously close to some of the birds and they did not seem to care. They knew they could just fly away. They also knew that we were not going to bother them so they just went about their business.
The birds were easy to capture. Many of them were perched right near the river. There was a lot of variety between the huge storks and the tiny kingfishers.
I was going through my photos and landed on the Road-side Hawk. I thought he looked so cute. He’s on one foot and is looking right at the camera. This created a connection which I really liked.
Roadside Hawk
The Capybaras looked so chill. They sit around on the banks. Lucas, our guide, said they are stressed because of the jaguars but to us they seemed like the Chill Dudes of the river. The caiman would lie right next to them without a worry. They just look like fun animals.
It was a great trip, fun leaders and companions. I was glad I was able to do it!
Melissa’s Tips for Wildlife Photography
Tip 1
Try to be aware of everything. There were so many birds and animals that I needed to watch my shutter speed. I didn’t want to miss the shutter speed and end up with soft photos.
Tip 2
Shoot in manual with auto ISO. The light conditions changed all the time and using these settings made it easier for me to get it right.
Tip 3
The Nikon 600mm pf lens was amazing. It was very sharp and very light. For 70% of the shots on this trip it was the perfect focal length. A few times I was a little too tight and ended up focusing on just a part. of the animal
On Melissa’s Horizon:
Route 66
Greenland
Moving to Spain in 2025
Antarctica
Melissa photographing hummingbirds in Ecuador
Join us on a workshop this fall! Spaces Open in 2024:
Route 66: Albuquerque to Winslow, Arizona from Oct 23-27, 2024 Learn more
Route 66: Oklahoma City to Amarillo from Oct 18-22, 2024 Learn more
Bosque and White Sands National Park Workshop from Dec 8-12, 2024 Learn more
Tom and Cree just finished their Nome Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They traveled with a small group of 5 to remote Nome, Alaska to photograph arctic birds and primitive muskox. Several of the photographers in the group commented on how special it was to photograph animals in the wild that they had never seen before.
To see photos from our Nome Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s new:
Tom and Cree have settled into their new home in Palmer, Alaska and have their offices up and running. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions about workshops.
Tom and I celebrate great images from workshop participants by selecting a Photo of the Month. For May we chose an image taken on our Badlands Workshop. The image was taken by Jim Seward while photographing bison in Badlands National Park. Jim is a travel and landscape photographer from the Chicago area.
Congratulations to May 2024 ‘s featured photographer – Jim Seward
Photographer Jim Seward
The Story…
I do not have a lot of experience shooting wildlife. First I got some of the iconic shoots of bison but I wanted to get something different as well.
We were on the long road with a fence line. I didn’t like the fence line in the background. On the left side of the road there were a pair of bison standing up but they were not doing much. I saw a little head pop up in the yellow flowers. He was lying down with just his head up. I got down low and shot at eye level.
It was all the things I have learned from taking pictures over the years. I wanted my mid ground to be sharp with interesting bokeh in both the foreground and background. I shot through the flowers to get the effect.
If somebody puts me in the right spot and I have decent equipment, I can take a decent picture.
Photo of the Month – May 2024
EXIF Data:
Camera: Canon EOS 6D Mark II
Lens: Sigma 150-600 mm with 1.4 extender
Aperture: f6.3
Shutter: 1/400 second
ISO: 500
Mode: Manual
About Photographing in the Badlands
I was completely surprised at how much color variation there was. This was especially in the rocks. The yellows and the reds blew me away. Before the trip I had looked at several sites to see what we would be shooting. None of those images did justice to what we actually shot in the park.
It was like shooting sunsets in Patagonia. The colors are so good right out of the camera that you barely need to do anything in post. I just let the colors speak for themselves.
The timing for the green grass in Spring was important. The green grass, yellow rocks and blue sky were tremendous. It is the right time to go to the Badlands if you like color.
These is also a great variety of wildlife. I got a couple shots of the Burrowing Owls. I had never seen them before in my life. I was amazed by their habitat. Just to see it was terrific.
Goin to the abandoned town was as fun as anything in the park. I have used ND filters before in New Zealand, Utah and in North Dakota. The sky was perfect for Cottonwood. With an ND filter I like spending a little more time. It is a more relaxed pace.
With the silo I kept repeating the process over and over to get the right sky. I wanted the clouds moving over my head. I like it when the clouds are moving into the background.
Abandoned Silo in Cottonwood
Jim’s Tips for Landscape Photography
Tip 1
When you are in the field and you think you might be done, wait another five or ten minutes. You might be surprised with a piece of light that breaks through or a change of color. Things can change just when you think it is time to leave.
Tip 2
Don’t be afraid of unusual light situations. On the last morning we had fog roll in. We thought the fog would obliterate everything. However, as the fog moved through the scene it created some interesting photos.
On Jim’s Horizon:
Namibia
Greenland
Oregon Coast and Redwoods
Harris and Skye in the Hebrides
Jim photographing Big Horn Sheep
Interested in joining us in a national park this year? We have space on our Bosque and White Sands National Park Workshop from Dec 8-12, 2024 Learn more
Tom and Cree just finished their Texas Birds in Spring Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They traveled with their group to the South Texas Plains of the Rio Grand Valley. They spent 4 days photographing songbirds and raptors from bird blinds. The group was delighted to photograph abundant Painted Buntings, several types or warblers and several types of orioles.
To see photos from our Texas Birds in Spring Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s new:
Tom and Cree sold their house in Colorado and will be moving back to Palmer, Alaska during the first week of June. They are driving all the way up the Alcan over a period of 6 days. Expect us to have more limited communication during that time. Our new address will be:
Tom Bol Photo Workshops
6342 N Mountain Meadow Trail
Palmer, Alaska. 99645
Any upcoming openings?
Yes! Our schedule was full before but due to a few cancellations, we have 4 workshops with space available this year. Check out our Upcoming Openings Page
We also added some new workshops for 2026 including:
Tom and Cree are headed to Badlands National Park in South Dakota for landscape and wildlife photography. They are hoping for stormy skies in order to photograph lightning using the new Pre-Release technology.
Tom and Cree just finished their Louisiana BayousPhoto Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They traveled with their group to the swamps around Lafayette, Louisiana to photograph the reptiles, trees and birds in the Bald Cypress bayous. Our group were delighted to photograph Barred owls, nesting egrets and Roseate Spoonbills in flight.
To see photos from our Louisiana Bayous Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s next:
Tom and Cree are headed to Badlands National Park in South Dakota for landscape and wildlife photography. They are hoping for stormy skies in order to photograph lightning using the new Pre-Release technology.
What’s new:
Cree just had a two page spread of her Bohemian Waxwing image published in the Spring 2024 Living Bird Magazine. It was the background for a Nikon ad promoting the Z8 camera.
Any upcoming openings? Yes! Our schedule was full before but due to a few cancellations, we have 4 workshops with space available this year:
Tom and I celebrate great images from workshop participants by selecting a Photo of the Month. For April we chose an image taken on our Costa Rica Rainforest Workshop. The image was taken by Jason Fox during our macro photo shoot near Corcovado National Park. Jason is a wildlife and travel photographer from Ontario, Canada.
Congratulations to April 2024 ‘s featured photographer – Jason Fox
Photographer Jason Fox
The Story…
I was looking for an angle with the right light. I remember Cree was right next to me. I was also looking for just the right angle for the background. The frog wasn’t going anywhere. So I was looking for the right expression as well.
I chose the Nikon Plena lens because I don’t really have a macro lens. I do not photograph macro that often. The minimum focus distance is quite short on the Plena. I figured this lens would give me good separation form the background. It also has legendary bokeh. Everyone goes on and on about the bokeh with this lens. I’m not quite sure why it is so unique, but it seems to do quite well.
My daughter absolutely loves frogs. This one of the reasons I chose to go to Costa Rica. I took the photo for her. I want to make a print of this one for her wall. This frog is a bit on the plain side. I thought it worked well with the muted background.
The editing for this image was pretty light. I wanted to leave some of the natural gunk on the plant because I didn’t want it to look too staged. I wanted the image to look natural. I did very little to the frog because it was so sharp, right out of the camera. I increased the vibrance on the frog just a bit and desaturated the background about 10%.
Photo of the Month – Gladiator Tree Frog
EXIF Data:
Camera: Nikon Z9
Lens: Nikon Plena 135 mm
Aperture: f2
Shutter: 1/160th seconds
ISO: 180
Exposure Comp +.7
About Photographing in Costa Rica
The critters and the locations are fantastic. I have shot in a lot of jungles. I was just in Borneo with Tom and Cree the month before. I found the lighting in Costa Rica to be challenging. The light seemed to change more frequently then in other places I’ve photographed. It was an exposure compensation workout.
I really enjoyed the macro subjects.. The Yellow Eyelash Viper was really striking. The anteater was also very cool. It is a rare critter and I felt very fortunate to be able to photograph it. I was next to Tom in the right place at the right time.
I have been to Costa Rica a few times before. This particular part (the Osa Penninsula) feels more wild and less developed. It was wilder than I would have expected for Costa Rica.
The sloth shoot was pretty phenomenal. I love sloths. We were much closer than I expected. In the past they always seemed to be way up a tree and hard to photograph. Usually they are just furry lumps in trees. But not on this shoot.
Three-toed Sloth in Costa Rica
Jason’s Tips for Wildlife Photography
Tip 1
Patience. It all comes down to finding different angles than everyone else. For the sloth image above, everyone was trying to get the clear shot from straight on. I looked at the direction that it was headed and moved over to the side. I like that he is partly covered by the leaves. This is a critter that is designed to hide and the image shows that.
Tip 2
Generally I like slower shutter speeds. Digital cameras are almost too sharp. I like to shoot slow and have the image be a little softer in the background or in the foreground.
Baby sloth in Costa Rica
On Jason’s Horizon:
Everywhere is on my bucket list
Canary Islands
South Africa and Madagascar
Bhutan
Antarctica
Indonesia
Jason getting to know his macro subject
Interested in joining us in Costa Rica next year?We have space from March 22-29, 2025 Learn more
Tom and Cree just finished their Iditarod and Northern LightsPhoto Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. They traveled with their group to Alaska to photograph the action and pageantry of the Iditarod and then on to Fairbanks for Northern Lights. Our group was surprised how caught up they became in the ongoing race standings. It was also a great year for aurora, with the lights showing up 4 times on the workshop.
To see photos from our Iditarod and Northern Lights Workshop, check out our trip report by clicking here
What’s next:
Tom and Cree are headed to Central America for their Costa Rica Rainforest Workshop. We will be photographing tree frogs, macaws and 4 species of monkeys in Osa Peninsula.
What’s New:
It’s official! Tom and Cree just bought a house in Palmer, Alaska and will be moving in June. They will continue to offer workshops in the Lower 48 and abroad, just from a different home base. New address coming soon.
Want to join us in Alaska this summer? We have a few openings:
Nome: Arctic Birds and Musk Ox: June 17-22, 2024 – 2 spaces available Click here
Brown Bear Safari: August 13-19, 2024 – 2 spaces available Click here
