Landscapes, Travel, Wildlife and People
We just returned from the rain forest of Costa Rica after two successful photo tours. We had a wonderful experience amongst the monkeys, macaws and three-toed sloths. We will be heading back in 2024. , If you would like to join us, click here and ask to be on the interest list.
Click on this link to see the trip report images and read about our adventures in Costa Rica
Thanks for reading our posts!
Tom and Cree
We had such a wonderful time in Botswana and Zimbabwe last November that we are going back in November 2022. Click here to see the report.
Interested in joining us for this workshop in 2022? We have two spaces that have opened for November 11-22, 2022, click here to learn more.
News flash: we are leaving to scout Route 66 in Oklahoma this week. Our scouting trip to Louisiana in December was wonderful and we have space on our Louisiana Bayous and Birds Workshop in 2024, learn more. Finally, we have space available for our Fairbanks Northern Lights Workshop on February 27-March 5 and would be happy to take you on this bucket list trip, learn more.
We hope that 2022 is off to a great start for all of you!
Tom and Cree
We just finished two wonderful workshops in New Mexico at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge and White Sands National Park. Click here to see the report
Interested in joining us for this workshop in 2023? We just added another session for November 29-December 3 in 2023, click here to learn more.
News flash: we will be scouting several new trips in January including Louisiana Swamps, Route 66 in Oklahoma and Big Bend National Park. Let us know if you would like to be on the Interest List for any of these trips.
Thanks for reading our posts!
Happy Holidays!
Tom and Cree
Tom and Cree Bol like to celebrate the great images created by their photo community by selecting a Photograph of the Month. For November we chose an image of a Sandhill Crane at the Bosque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge created by Riley Brissey . We hope you enjoy Riley’s images as much as we do!
The Story …
This was day one in Bosque. That evening we had crazy clouds. The whole time we were there cranes were flying in from the left and the right. They never stopped.
Most of the people were photographing birds in flight. I felt like I should be doing the same. I kept looking at the reflections in the water and was thinking how beautiful it was. I wanted to get something in there too.
I started focusing on the water. I was sitting in the grass beside the road, looking for a cool pose or something really neat that would be worthy of putting on the wall.
This crane was a bit further away, probably 12 yards from me. I saw it walking towards the golden light of the reflected clouds and knew I needed to get ready. I was also watching several other cranes and their position. This was the one that was right where I wanted it.
I lowered my exposure to keep the red channel from blowing out. Tom had mentioned this earlier. Because it was a moving subject I kept my shutter speed relatively high for the light conditions. I always like to shoot birds at wide open apertures and I just let the auto ISO do its thing…..
EXIF Data:
Nikon D850 with a Nikon 500mm PF lens
F5.6, 1/1000 sec, ISO 2000, exposure comp of -1
Manual mode with auto ISO
About photographing on at Bosque Del Apache in New Mexico
It is a very interesting place. The way the refuge managers have handled the drought is great. They adapted to the conditions this year and still kept it a beautiful place to photograph. They gave the cranes new places to feed and roost.
If you go there any other time of the year, it would not look nearly as beautiful. I came back to Washington after the sunshine in Bosque and it was cloudy and forecast to rain for the next week and a half.
Riley’s tips for photographing Sandhill Cranes:
All these things I managed to catch came down to being observant. Blink and you miss it.
On the first morning, I missed the mating dance of two cranes in good light. I was looking to the right and completely missed it.
Keep an eye out all of the time. Put the camera down and look around. There’s only so much you can see from the viewfinder.
Be really attentive and observant of the moment.
On Riley’s Horizon
Lake Tekapo in New Zealand. I am a huge Lord of the Rings fan
Iceland
Backpacking in Germany
Ready for a bucket list photo adventure in the United States? We have a few spaces open for our Northern Light in Fairbanks Workshop. Click here for more info.
Or check out our 2023 and 2024 Workshops
Thanks for reading our posts and congratulations to Riley!
Tom and Cree
We hit the Colorado elk rut at prime time to photograph elk behavior. We saw males fighting, bugling and tossing vegetation on their antlers, all in hopes of attracting females. Check out our trip report by clicking on this link: Trip Report Link
With our 2022 schedule starting to fill we just added 3 new workshops including Hummingbirds in Ecuador and a Creative Portrait Lighting Workshop in Fort Collins coming up soon.
Thanks for reading our posts!
Tom and Cree
Tom and Cree celebrate the great images created by their community of photographers by selecting a Photograph of the Month. For August we selected a brown bear image created by Teri Manchen on our Brown Bear Safari . We hope you enjoy Teri’s images as much as we do!
The Story …
At first the mother bear was really far away. She started coming closer to us and I was excited to get the shot. I wished her cubs were in the image too. The were down at the end of a cove and then they walked right past us.
I was happy with the bear and the fish. The fish was on the ground and it was hard to tell if it was still alive. I liked how it lined up with the bear perfectly.
I was not afraid of the bear. I had done the same trip two years ago and had the same experience of getting close to grizzly bears. I was pretty calm. I just wanted to get the shot.
The last time I went to Katmai, I used aperture priority as my preferred shooting mode. This time I shot in manual mode to make sure my shutter speeds were high enough. This was also the first time I used auto ISO on Tom’s recommendation. It was exciting and it really works. Now I will use it a lot.
EXIF Data:
Nikon D5 with 200-500 Nikon zoom lens at 480mm
Manual mode with auto ISO F11, 1/2000 sec
Teri’s tips for photographing brown bears:
Don’t be scared. You will get closer to the bears than you imagine. The first time I photographed brown bears was at Silver Salmon Creek. I was a tad afraid. We were in a buggy and a blond bear started chasing the cart. I was in the very back of the buggy closest to the bear. That experience was a bit nerve wracking. Now I realize that I can be close to bears and not worry when I’m photographing.
About Katmai National Park
I loved every part of Katmai National Park. You can’t imagine that you can walk so closely alongside the bears. It’s unreal. I liked looking for bears and finding them around almost bend of a creek.
The day when we saw 22 bears in one 360 view was amazing. We also had wonderful weather. We never had to put on our raincoats.
On Teri’s Horizon
Botswana
Ouray, Colorado for fall color
Death Valley
Galapagos
New Zealand
Bucket list: Antarctica
There is one space left on a bear workshop for 2022 . Click here to read more . Our 2022 schedule is getting full, but we have openings for 2023. For our full schedule Click Here
We plan to post a new Ecuador Hummingbirds Workshop soon. Join the interest list
Thanks for reading our posts!
Late summer bears in Alaska did not disappoint! The sockeye run was very strong and the bears showed up day after day. Check out our trip report by clicking on this link: https://spark.adobe.com/page/JE3SROgYgSxqU/
There are a few spaces open for workshops in 2022. Check out the updated schedule by clicking here
Thanks for reading our posts!
Tom and Cree
Tom and Cree celebrate the great images being created by their community of photographers each month by selecting a Photograph of the Month. For July we selected an image of a Broad-billed Hummingbird created by Suzanne McCann on our Arizona Hummingbirds Workshop. We hope you enjoy Suzanne’s images as much as we do!
The Story …
The story behind this image is twofold. I went down to Madera Canyon not with the intent to simply take pretty pictures. I wanted to create folded notecards or photographs for the wall.
This drove the choice of background, white, because I can fit it into a lot of different wall spaces. During the pandemic I did my best to learn PhotoShop. The white background makes it easier to change out birds and flowers
The hummingbirds themselves were also a driving force for my images. Hummingbirds are spirit symbols in the cultures where hummingbirds are indigenous. Cultures have different interpretations of hummingbirds but they all point to what is good in the world: joy, freedom, prosperity, good luck, a sign from the heavens….a lot of different things, but all uplifting.
When I created the cards it was with the intent to show joy.
The Photo of the Month was originally a bird in one picture and a flower in another. I wanted to combine them into one photograph for a little girl’s room – my grand niece. I chose a gentle background with light pink to set the tone.
I also wanted to create an image that would tell a story for her future. Hummingbirds can fly forward and backward. They can stop on a dime and fly in one place until a situation gets better. They have endurance and determination. Their focus is on the good stuff – the nectar. They skip the thorns and the leaves and go to what is nourishing. Finally, they can be fiercely protective and be a warrior if needed. I wanted to show a girl that while there is pink and pretty and froth, there are also attributes of hummingbirds which are good life lessons
EXIF Data: Nikon D850 with 500mm PF len
Manual mode with flash F16, 1/200 sec, ISO 100
Suzanne’s tips for creating hummingbird images:
They move so fast. Don’t be frustrated if you cannot get tack sharp birds in every photo.
I found it easier to focus using a remote trigger. My reflexes are not as quick as they used to be.
Also, go in with a plan. Figure out what you want to do with the photos ahead of time. Then you can decided what will yield the best results while shooting. For me that was choosing to use white backgrounds. Unlike photographing bears, with hummingbird images you can literally change the background color either before taking the image or afterwards with PhotoShop.
About Madera Canyon
The New York Times describes Madera Canyon as a Sky Island. It is incredibly special and just a short distance from Tucson. It is home to a wide variety of birds including hummingbirds. Just go a mile up the road and you will find different species.
You can be photographing hummingbirds and a wild turkey will come up to you to see what you are doing. Or a coatimundi.
Santa Rita Lodge is geared towards attracting birds and animals. They provide spaces for you to enjoy them. And for photographers to set things up.
On Suzanne’s Horizon
Bosque del Apache
Yellowstone in Winter
Arizona Hummingbirds in Madera Canyon
Hummingbirds in Ecuador
There are a few spaces left on our Arizona Hummingbirds Workshop in 2023. Click here to read more
Our 2021 schedule is full, but we have openings for 2022 and 2023, For our full schedule Click Here
We just returned from two terrific workshops in Arizona to photograph hummingbirds. Check out the highlights by clicking on the link below:
Click here to see the trip report: https://spark.adobe.com/page/Lo9tKtBwMJJ1B/
We still have a few spots open for workshops in 2022. Check out the updated schedule by clicking here
Thanks for reading our posts!
Tom and Cree
Tom and Cree celebrate the great images being created by their community of photographers each month by selecting a Photograph of the Month. For June we selected an image of a coastal brown bear created by Rodger Israel on our Brown Bear Safari Workshop. We hope you enjoy Rodger’s images as much as we do!
The Story …
This is from the meadow at Lily Pond along the Katmai coast. We were sitting around on old logs, all hunkered together.
The bear decided to take a walk around us to check us out. I just waited for him to line up with the mountains to take the shot.
It was important to have the right lens with me. Everyone thinks of photographing bears with long glass. When the bear started approaching us I realized he was too close for the longer lenses. I switched over to shorter glass to get the environmental shot of the bear.
It was as close as I wanted to get to a bear. I would not have wanted to get closer.
EXIF Data: Nikon D850 with a 24-120mm F4 at 120mm
F8, 1/1250 sec, ISO 450
Rodger’s tips for photographing coastal brown bears:
Wear your waders and don’t carry too much stuff.
About Katmai National Park
It is the ultimate bear experience. You can get close to the bears in their natural habitat. We were the only people there and the weather was nicer than I expected.
Katmai National Park is a wonderful combination of bears and scenery.
On Rodger’s Horizon
Northern Lights in Fairbanks
Greenland
Australia and Tasmania
Tanzania
Faroe Islands
We have two bear workshops coming up in 2022. Check out our schedule : Click Here