Travel Photography Workshop Archives - Tom Bol Photo Workshops

Tom and I celebrate great photos from workshop participants by selecting a Photo of the Month. For October we chose an image from our Acadia National Park Workshop. The image was taken by Karen Adair on a sunrise shoot at Otter Rocks. Karen is a graphic designer and photographer from Oregon. You can see more of her work here.

Congratulations to October 2025 ‘s featured photographer – Karen Adair

The Story…

We were shooting the stars. It was beautiful. I felt like I got the shot and then I stopped. The light was changing and starting to dilute. It was loosing the more emotional part of the light. I thought I would just enjoy the sunrise

I turned and saw the rocks in front of me. There was a beautiful opening in the rocks. I turned my tripod 90 degrees and there it was. It was beautiful.

Tom started walking over and he was shooting next to me. I photographed him in front of the sun. Then he walked away.

I was so in love with the glow of the sun on the rocks and the little window that caught the sunbeams. The color was just glorious. It was a beautiful palette.

There was not a lot of color editing. That was all natural color that was there. I masked the rocks to bring the exposure up on the rocks but did very little else.

EXIF Data:

Camera: Nikon 7ii

Lens: 14-24mm at 17.5mm

Aperture: f16

Shutter: 1/80

ISO: 100

Exposure Compensation: -1

About Photographing in Maine

Inspiring. The nature and the beauty are infinite.

There was such a calm watching the waters. Even watching and hearing the crashing waves was calming. The solitude and quiet of the woods was heart-filling.

The color is brilliant. They are mind-blowing. Even though we did not have the peak colors I recalled from being there before, they were still there. The seasons seem to be shifting anyway. It felt like the peak colors may have been earlier.

The coastal villages were familiar to me. It reminded me of spots on the Oregon Coast. It is a respectable culture. I was happy to watch the fisherman go in and out of the harbor. I did not know that the buoys were a signature to each fisherman. That was neat to learn about.

Karen’ s Tips for Photographing Landscapes

1) Rather than trying to get a good photo, I connect with what I am seeing….what is grabbing my attention. Is it the red tree among all the golden and green ones? Is it the power of the wave crashing on the rock?

A lot of time it is emotion. What did I feel when I saw the sun come up in the rocks? Then I try to connect to that with my camera. I am not looking for a shot. I am trying to express what I see and feel in the scene. What moved me. How will the camera see that?

Landscapes are how nature inspires and moves you. Imagine how the camera will see that.

2) Post is such a great way to put the cherry on the top. It allows you to draw out the part of the image that captivated you in the first place. I am grateful for my 35 years of background using PhotoShop.

3) A lot of times when I am not feeling or seeing something, I just put my camera down and chill. I just take it in.

When we were at Jordan Pond I got the shot but I couldn’t see where I wanted to go next. I decided I would just find a spot along the lake and enjoy the view of the trees across the lake. The density of the trees was beautiful. The water in front of the trees was beautiful. I just wanted to stand along the shore and take it in.

I looked down and there were all these bubbles and brightly colored leaves. I thought, the bubbles would make a great background. I found a couple of beautiful leaves by the shore. I let them drop into the bubbles to give it an element of randomness.

On Karen’s Horizon:

Oregon Coast: King Tides at South Shores

Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park

Smith River

Toketee Falls in

Workshop Openings:

Join us for more Coastal Photography on the Kenai Fjords National Park July 7-12, 2026. Calving glaciers, Sea Otters, Whales, and beautiful scenery near Seward and Homer, Alaska. 4 Spaces Available. Learn more

Check out other openings on our Upcoming Workshops Page

Thank you for taking the time to read our posts!

Tom and Cree

www.tombolphotoworkshops.com

Tom and I celebrate great photos from workshop participants by selecting a Photo of the Month. For September we chose an image from our Greenland Photography Workshop. The image was taken by Eric Lacey in the Greenlandic town of Ilulissat. Eric is a landscape and travel photographer from Boston.

Congratulations to September 2025 ‘s featured photographer – Eric Lacey

Eric sharing his portraits with the locals

The Story…

We were out walking the town of Ilulissat with Tom and Odd. We photographed whatever caught our eye. The colorful buildings were interesting and we tried to compress them. We came down to the bottom of the hill and we could see the water. There was a dog kennel nearby. I was looking at the puppies.

I heard the words, “Take Picture.” I turned around and there were two little girls behind me. I said “Oh, do you want me to take your picture?” and she said, “Yeah!”

So I started taking pictures of her and her friend. I went over and sat down to show them the photos. I started taking more photos and more children started coming out of the houses and they all wanted to have their pictures taken.

The girl who I first heard, was the only one who seemed to have any English skills. She understood me pretty well. I tried to get her name, but I couldn’t understand what she said.

I am very intimidated by taking pictures of adults. But it is very easy for me to interact with children. The interaction with the kids was very unexpected. It was spontaneous. I wouldn’t have asked them to pose, but since they raised it first, I was very willing.

The photo may not be my favorite photo of the trip, but it is the one I will remember the most. I really enjoyed the interaction.

I wasn’t exactly sure what reception we would get in Greenland. I learned that the Inuit are a very proud and open people. They were very respectful. We were in a taxi and the driver said, “We respect everyone who respects us.”

September 2025 Photo of the Month by Eric Lacey

EXIF Data:

Camera: Canon R5

Lens: 100-500mm at 100mm

Aperture: f10

Shutter: 1/1250

ISO: 400

About Photographing in Greenland

Greenland was never on my bucket list…..until I saw the photos that you and Tom got on your last trip.

The icebergs were phenomenal. The shapes of the iceberg were surprising and beautiful. We got one night of sunset, as opposed to dimer light. Most of my favorite photos came in the sunset. It was an unforgettable trip for us.

The landscape is beautiful but kind of sparse. The tundra is different for those of us who do not get up North regularly.

After showing my photos to other people, they all want to go there now. It is only 3.5 hours from Newark to get to Nuuk.

Fall colors in the tundra near Ilulissat

Eric’ s Tips for Photographing Icebergs

My #1 tip is to shoot wide. I did not own a super wide lens. I bought one two days before going on the trip. I did not think I would use it that much.

In the past I have been disappointed because it makes everything look so small. With the icebergs they are so big, and you can get so close that it works great. I am usually a big scene landscape photographer and use the 24mm range all of the time.

2) Shoot in high speed. Because we were on a moving boat we were shooting very fast. The foreground ice chunks in the scene would move by very quickly. I shot regularly at 10 frames per second. This helped me to position the foreground elements in my final selection.

3) Look for foreground icebergs with a submerged portion. The water is so clear that you can see the definition in the underwater icebergs. Tom brought up a photo during the image review with a beautiful submerged iceberg. This became one of my focuses for the rest of the trip.

4) Not about icebergs, but engage every child you see when walking by.

On Eric’s Horizon:

South Georgia, Antarctica, Falklands

South Africa

Peru

Utah Landscapes

Japan