A Busy Year – So Far!
Wow! I just realized that this is my first blog entry for 2023! It has been busy, even though I haven’t written much about this year’s activities.
We started off this year with a series of photography classes in Charleston, WV. Our first one was “Your Digital Camera,” a good kickoff for folks who may have received a new adjustable camera for Christmas. Over the next few months, we followed up with “Winter Photography – Get Off The Couch;” “Digital Photography Techniques,” a three-evening class offering an improved understanding of the camera’s controls, how lenses work, photo critiques, composition, and more; “Introduction to Film Photography;” “Beyond the Rule of Thirds – Advanced Photo Composition;” “Crash Course on iPhone Photography;” “Introduction to Close-Up/Macro Photography;” and wrapping up in July with our “Flash Photography and How To Use It,” which was two nights and included a full evening of hands-on practice with various flash units. We are hoping to offer some of these classes as Zoom classes later this fall and during the winter, so please check back on our website “Classes” page.
Our workshop schedule was a little lighter in the first half of 2023, with a spring offering of our “Waterfall Workshop at Ricketts Glen, PA.” Our primary venue was Ricketts Glen State Park and a hike down into the canyon where we photographed several of the Park’s 21 named waterfalls.
We have recently returned from our “Southern Shores of Maryland,” which we visited several years ago. Locations during this workshop included Historical St. Mary’s City, the first capitol of Maryland; the Calvert Marine Museum; Goldpetal Farms Sunflower Maze, and several additional venues.
In early September, we will work with Cedar Lakes Conference Center in Ripley, WV, once again to offer our week-long “Digital Photography Workshop.” We’ve been teaching this one for a few years now and have been pleased to include several students from West Virginia, as well as from many other states.
On the heels of Cedar Lakes will be our “Great Alaska Grizzly Adventure!” Amanda and I have been working on this event since 2019! Once we had our dates and fee firm, this workshop sold out in Ten Days! In late September, we will be in the heart of the Alaska wilderness along with 10 Workshoppers! Each day for a week, we will fly from our lodge at Lake Iliamna via bush plane to locations to photograph grizzly bears, also known as coastal brown bears.
We are currently accepting registration for three different workshops. Our fall workshop is scheduled for October, and is our “Bridges of Ashtabula County, OH,” event. With a backdrop of stunning fall color, we will visit the 19 covered bridges in the area, along with a few additional venues. Our “Early Bird” discount fee of $560.00 is now in effect but will end on August 21.
Next is the follow-up to this year’s Alaska trip, our SECOND “Great Alaska Grizzly Adventure!” We will return in September 2024, but must have your $1000 deposit no later than THIS September 1, 2023.
The third workshop accepting registration currently is our first one in 2024. This is our “Florida Keys Winter Dreams” photo workshop! From a starting point in Miami, we will spend a week in January exploring and photographing the Florida Keys. Amanda and I have already scouted for this trip, and we have plenty of locations for you, and maybe even a couple of surprises, too! Our discount fee will close on November 16, and is just $4990.00 for the week; this includes six nights of lodging, local transportation, admission to our selected venues, and photography instruction.
Now that I’ve shared all this news, maybe you can see why I haven’t written a blog for 2023 until now. We also taught some private classes and a private workshop! I’ll try to do better.
RG