Tom just returned from the Iceland: Puffins and Waterfalls and we are sharing the highlights with you. Tom led a group of photographers to the coast and the Highlands of Iceland to capture both wildlife and landscape images. Highlights of the workshop were the abundance of puffin on Grimsey Island and the variety of waterfalls all over Iceland.
To see photos from our Iceland: Puffins and Waterfalls Workshop, check out the trip report by clicking here
What’s Next: Tom will be heading to Greenland with two groups of photographers to photograph dramatic icebergs and Humpback Whales in the middle of August. Cree will be back home working on the schedule for 2028. Where would you like to go in 2028? Let us know
Our Iditarod Workshop for 2026 is starting to fill up. Photograph Northern Lights and the Last Great Race during the best month for winter photography in Alaska. Rental packets available for warm clothing and boots Read more
Our new workshop Alaska Kenai Explorer has space available: July 7-12, 2026 Calving glaciers, whales, snow capped mountains, eagles and more. This is a workshop with easy walking. Read details
Tom and Cree just returned from their Redwoods and Rocky Coastlines Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. Ten photographers joined us in Redwoods National Park in California to photograph the largest trees on Earth. Highlights of the workshop were photographing beams of light coming through the foggy canopy and sea stars on the coast.
To see photos from our Redwoods & Rocky Coastlines Workshop, check out the trip report by clicking here
What’s Next: Tom is currently in Iceland with a group photographing puffin and some of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. He says the puffin are everywhere! Cree is back in Alaska planning photo workshops for 2028. Where would you like to go in 2028? Let us know
Our new workshop Alaska Kenai Explorer has space available: July 7-12, 2026 Calving glaciers, whales, snow capped mountains, eagles and more. Read details
Our Iditarod Workshop for 2026 is starting to fill up. Photograph Northern Lights and the Last Great Race during the best month for winter photography in Alaska. Read more
At Tom Bol Photo Workshops, we celebrate great participant images by selecting a Photo of the Month. For July we chose an image taken on the Redwoods and Rocky Coastlines Workshopcreated by Scott Harrison. Scott worked as a digital imaging specialist for the LA Times for 33 years. His journalistic approach to photography comes out in the breadth of images he created on the workshop. You can see more of his images at www.harrysonpics.com
Congratulations to July 2023 ‘s featured photographer – Scott Harrison
Scott on the Redwoods and Rocky Coastlines Workshop
The Story…
On the second session on the evening walk I wanted to get a scene setter. I hoped to capture the overall picture. We started up the trail and met with the fog. I started using my 16 mm lens and shot about 20 versions of this scene.
I was trying to use the trail as a leading line. In half of the photos I included a person to give scale to the forest. Almost all of the people were members of our group.
My style – I always use 2 camera bodies. This time I had a 24-200 mm on one. My second lens is always special, in this case a 16 mm. Sometimes I use a LensBaby, sometimes an old manual focus lens.
I like to mix in a variety of focal lengths to tell a story. This keeps the images fresh and not repetitious. By adding a specialty lens I also get creative effects.
July 2023 Photo of the Month
EXIF Data:
Camera: Canon EOS RP
Lens: 16 mm
ISO: 100
Shutter Speed: 1/60 sec
Aperture: f/4
Shooting Mode: Shutter Priority
Exposure Comp -.03
Colors in the fog on the Damnation Creek hike
About Photographing in the Redwoods
I love it!
I’m not a landscape photographer per se, but I like to walk around and photograph things. It is a different world in the Redwoods. I loved the quiet and peacefulness. That is why I was often by myself on the workshop.
I was happy to be in the fog. In Southern California I deal with high contrast lighting all the time. In the fog the lighting is flat and I had the ability to capture more detail. The colors are also saturated. I found the colors were so bright that I had to desaturate them in PhotoShop.
Coquille River Lighthouse in Brandon, Oregon
Scott’s Tips for Photographing on a Workshop
Tip 1
Because of my background, I hate shooting the same photo that everyone takes. I stay away from the Grand Canyon and the parks in Utah. If I am there, then I take photos of the crowds in the foreground taking photos in scenic spots.
About 15 years ago I started taking road trips by myself. To plan my trips I used iphone apps like Roadside America. I also use Fotospot and Atlas Obscura. These apps give me information on all the unusual places in the country. I try to find things that other people do not photograph.
From my training with newspapers, we used to travel to a new town and go right to the local drugstore and look at the postcard rack. Find things outside of the mainstream, including in your own home town.
Tip 2
Join the local camera club and do photo walks. Going as a group can really help.
Tip 3
Listen to what the leaders are saying. I took the fern photo because Cree mentioned dialing back the exposure compensation to create a moody shot. I underexposed by 2 stops for that one. I also created a whole series from the Simpson-Reed Grove in black and white.
Low Key Fern in the Simpson Reed Grove
On Scott’s Horizon:
Route 66 in Oklahoma
Tucson and Saguaro National Park
South Dakota Badlands
New Zealand and Australia
Scott wandering in the redwood forest at the Lady Bird Johnson Grove
Online Image Celebration: Join us on August 10 at 5 pm Denver time to see more of the work created on our workshops in the last 4 months. This is a great way to celebrate new work. Sometimes people need more time to edit their images. If you were on a workshop you are invited to send in 3 images to creetbp@gmail.com. If you would like to join us, send a quick message here and we will send the link.
Tom and Cree are headed to Ecuador next for Ecuador Cloud Forest Workshop. In August they will be out of the office on a wilderness canoe trip in Canyonlands, Utah and then on a scouting trip in remote arctic Alaska.
Tom and Cree just finished their Redwoods and Rocky Coastlines Workshop and want to share the highlights with you. We had a late season rhododendron bloom this year and the pop of colors was beautiful in the foggy forest. Cool, summer temperatures meant we had diffuse light for the trip and this gave the forest a moody feel. This is a great workshop for photographers interested in both landscapes and filter use with seascapes.
To see photos from our 2023 Redwoods and Rocky Coastlines, check out our trip report, click here
Next National Park Opening is Grand Teton National Park: click here
Cree and Tom are on their way to Arizona for the Arizona Hummingbirds Workshopnext. Then they are off to Ecuador to photograph some of the most interesting hummingbirds in the world in the Ecuador Cloud Forest.
Tom will be giving a free online talk on July 13 for Singh Ray Filters called From Sandals to Snowboots: Photographing Easter Island and Lofoten, Norway. If you were on either of those workshops you will see some familiar images. Register online here.
Be sure to check out our page of Immediate Openings to see where we have space available.
