One week from today I’ll be arriving in Death Valley National Park for the 2010 Death Valley Photography Workshop that runs from February 20-23. This will be the second time Jack Graham and I have teamed up for this exciting workshop. And we have a great one planned.
Death Valley is filled with photographic opportunities. February in Death Valley is really extraordinary, especially this year. It’s an El Nino year which for California means we’re getting higher than average rain fall. And Death Valley is getting its fair share – relatively speaking that is. Already Death Valley has received its average annual rainfall with more storms on the way.
A friend who was in Death Valley a couple of weekends ago reported that Cotton Balls Basin was already filling with water. Cotton Balls Basin is the large salt pan north of Furnace Creek and near the Harmony Borax Works. Oh, and I learned where it got its strange name. Cotton Balls is another term for borax. In the old days they mined borax there. Cotton Balls Basin is where we got the unbelievable Death Valley Reflection photographs last year.
If the water is still there this year we’ll be out there for sunrise.
Speaking of sunrise, we will be shooting sunrises and sunsets of course. For sunrises we will photograph that fantastic period before the sun comes up when the earth is awash in the cool, soft dawn light. After the sun sets we’ll continue to shoot the beautiful twilight light. And we’ll take full advantage of the wonderful warm light and long shadows of the golden hour, the hour after sunrise and before sunset.
But in the middle of the day, when the light is simply not there, we’ll devote our time to photo reviews and instruction. Every participant will have an opportunity to share the photos they are taking with Jack, me and the other participants for some instant feedback. And we’ll be covering some great photography topics.
I’ll be talking about the photo foundation – exposure and focus. I’ll also do a presentation on composition as well as one on the important subject of HDR. Jack will talk about his 20 tips to be a great photographer, his workflow and close up or macro photography. And in the field, Jack and I will be working closely with the students to help them get the most out of each location. You can see in addition to great photography this workshop is packed with photographic learning opportunities.
So, like I said at the start, we have an exciting workshop planned for next week. If you want to get in on the fun but missed the Death Valley workshop, Jack and I will be leading more. You can find Jack’s photography workshop schedule on his website. And my workshops are listed on my site.
But as far as Death Valley is concerned, we’ll definitely be back next February.