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World-class instruction, incredible Adirondack beauty...
Spring Waterfalls at Ricketts Glen
May 30 - June 2
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
with Mark Bowie and Joe LeFevre
Overview
After running a spring workshop in Ricketts Glen State Park in north-central Pennsylvania two years ago, we are heading back this spring for some more great waterfall photography. And for good reason — Ricketts Glen State Park is home to possibly the most beautiful collection of waterfalls in the eastern United States! There are 22 named falls — from 10 to 90+ feet high — wild and free-flowing through rock clefts, along two branches of Kitchen Creek. The creek descends some 1,000 feet over three miles. The highest waterfall is 94-foot Ganoga Falls. However, it’s the sheer variety of falls, in such concentration, that makes this place so special. What’s between them adds to the allure: slabs of beautiful red rock strewn haphazardly in the creek bed; lime-green beech leaves framing the cascades. Shooting access is ideal; the trail runs alongside the creek and waterfalls. You never know what’s around the next bend; it’s all incredibly photogenic and the possibilities are endless.After an initial orientation session on Thursday night, we will spend two full days in the field exploring and photographing the Ricketts Glen waterfalls. Individual field instruction will be provided as well as indoor instructional sessions and critiques.
Field lessons will emphasize attention to detail, with tips and techniques on:
- waterfall and stream shooting
- seeing from different vantagepoints
- reading and shooting the light
- fine tuning compositions
- determining proper exposure
- varying shutter speed for creative effect
- achieving critical focus
- working with your range of lenses
- using Live View to compose and focus
- using the LCD screen and histogram to refine compositions, check exposures and confirm focus
Joe and Mark will give indoor instructional presentations on:
- the Art of Photographing Waterfalls and Other Flowing Waters
- using exposure to create mood
- shooting color and tonal palettes for creative effect
- combining multiple exposures of the same scene
- blending panoramas, HDR’s, layer masks, and focus stacks
- digital workflow techniques using Lightroom and Photoshop
Indoor sessions will be held at the Host Inn in Wilkes Barre.
Join us as Joe and Mark help take your waterfall images to a new level!
Instructor
Program Type
Field workshop
Who Should Attend
All skill levels are welcome. Users of all types of cameras are
encouraged to attend, however digital SLR cameras are preferred for
their ability to maximize your learning possibilities during this
workshop.Description of skill levels - click here
Beginner
You are new to photography and have so many questions you're not even sure where to start. You are not comfortable with your camera. You're not sure what makes some photographs look great and others not so great. You're looking to the instructor to help bring some order to the confusion and set you on a path.
Amateur
You can find your way around the camera, but there are features you don't understand or know how to use. You don't feel that you can adequately capture what you see. You're hoping that the instructor can give you guidance on the when and how of using specific camera features, while also helping you to understand how to compose a good photograph.
Intermediate
You feel pretty comfortable with most of your camera features, although you may have questions about some of the details. You've taken some photos that you're quite pleased with. You are mostly looking to the instructor for new ideas and constructive help with your compositions.
Advanced
You know how and when to use your camera features. You are pleased with many of your images. You might be looking to work in some new locations. Or maybe you’d like to tap the energy of a group of talented people to add to your creative toolbox.
Computer Skills
No specific computer skills are necessary. Mark and Joe are glad to answer your image processing questions.
Other Considerations
Though locations visited during this workshop are readily accessible, the steep terrain requires some moderate to strenuous hiking. Participants MUST be in good physical shape and able to climb and descend steep inclines. They should wear sturdy boots and use caution on slippery and rocky slopes.
Group Size
15 max.
Registration Fees
$640 tuition
Deposit of $250 must be paid at time of registration. Deadline for
early registration discount is February 28. Click
here for information on any other discounts that may be
available.
Itinerary
Day 1
Participants gather at the Host Inn. Welcome dinner and opening presentations by Joe and Mark on Ricketts Glen State Park, with tips on waterfall photography.
Day 2,3
All day field trip to Ricketts Glen State Park. Breakfast on the road. Bag lunch in the park. After dinner, evening instruction and group critique of participants’ images. Instructional presentations by Mark and Joe on artistic waterfall photography and digital darkroom image optimization.
Day 4
Instructional session by Mark and Joe on processing waterfall photos: Image Optimization in Lightroom, Camera Raw & Photoshop. Group critique of participants’ images. Workshop Wrap-Up and Participant Slideshow.
Note - The actual itinerary may vary considerably from this due to weather and other conditions that cannot be anticipated.
