Escape the blustery winter months for a time and join myself and Gavriel Jecan for an intimate and exotic tour to Myanmar this December! From visiting the still-standing colonial downtown of Yangon, to a hot air balloon tour over historical Bagan, this tour of an exotic location is the opportunity of a lifetime for those seeking adventure in a unique and infrequently visited location. Myanmar is a location lost in time, and this is an exciting opportunity to witness the evolution of a country.
Time is running out to sign up for the few spots remaining for this small scale tour! Sign up now, and leave those wintry December blues behind and travel with me in search of sunshine and adventure in the east!
This past August, I had the honor of spending time with some very skilled and adventurous photographers on my Abstract Astoria workshop
I’m pleased to share some of the images our group photographed at this underutilized location. Thank you to the following participants for submitting their images:
Walter Duvall
Ondrea Hidley
Robert French
Steven Palmer
Patrick Plaia
Rona Zevin
Astoria, Oregon, as many may not know, was the first permanent U.S. settlement on the Pacific coast. Being located on the west coast, there are only a handful of great locations to photograph where history and time have sculpted the local aesthetic. Ancient pilings, rusty fixtures, and time-worn buildings flush with weathered detail that some may find unappealing make for deeply interesting abstracts. It’s location close to the elements of the pacific ocean only enhance these features, creating a cornucopia of visual detail that the discerning artist and photographer can’t help but appreciate. Astoria is a treasure trove of visual elements that too few photographers take advantage of.
This isn’t to say Astoria is not gorgeous; in contrast to these rusty and rustic elements, Astoria is a beautiful city, accommodating travelers with fantastic lodging and excellent dining, and I highly recommend paying it a visit!
A few spots still remain for our Palouse workshop coming up August 25th through the 28th! Capture the rolling landscapes and the old-world feel of this beautiful location. Wheat-topped hills and sporadic old barns compose a landscape seemingly frozen in time. The purity of the landscape, untouched by the modern irrigation systems that generally detract from otherwise beautiful farmland vistas, will allow you to capture truly unique images you won’t find anywhere else.
Visit the events page for more information, and to sign up for this visit to the Palouse!
Last week I took a trip down the coast to Oregon for my Abstract Astoria workshop. I got some great new shots and also revisited a few from the past to get some updates. I’m anxious to add some of these shots to my ever-evolving Photography as Art presentation (shameless plug – the next one is happening in about a month in L.A. with a few spots still available!). I hope you enjoy the gallery!
The Summer Olympics open this evening in Rio, and as a world traveler fortunate enough to have been to so many incredible places all over the globe, it’s always incredible to see nations set aside differences and come together to compete.
As the week comes to a close and the Games begin, I’m grateful to bring you some wonderful images captured on our recent workshop in Katmai National Park, Alaska. 2016 has been an incredible year for shooting, with locations I’ve visited in the past providing me with unprecedented opportunities to capture them. The denizens Katmai must have felt the competitive vibe in the air, as the wildlife in the area was at it’s best.
The bears in the park were active, expressive, and down-right ready for the spotlight as our group captured them going about their business – their every day tasks mundane to them, but a spectacle to us. Enjoy the photos as we celebrate the opening of the Olympic Games and 100 years of the National Parks Service!
Oregon is home to one of the most scenic and beautiful coastlines in America. Two spots remain to travel with Art, where you will not only explore the location but also your creativity as he describes new ways to visualize and compose your images from a conceptual perspective that will make your captures unique and personal. On top of experiencing this stunning locale, you will take away techniques that will enhance and personalize your photographic endeavors to come.
Take a virtual journey and check out a selection my new imagery taken between April 1st and June 30th. Locations include Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park & the Atacama Desert, Argentina’s Los Glaciares National Park, the Bolivian Altiplano, the Galapagos, birding in Texas, Washington’s temperate rainforest, and Tanzania. It’s been a busy schedule to keep, but these locations and workshops have provided wonderful opportunities to shoot along with the chance to get to know some new faces. I’m looking forward to what the rest of 2016 brings!
My two workshops on the Olympic Peninsula went off without a hitch. We got some good results in the Quinault rain forest working with the team from Leica. On the second workshop we got absolutely poured on in the Hoh, but that’s why it looks the way it does! Everyone was in great spirits and learned to photograph while holding umbrellas. Then in cleared and the weather gods treated us to a gorgeous afternoon on the Olympic National Park beaches.
1) Check the Olympic National Park off your bucket list. Do you have a National Parks passport? Maybe it’s time to get one and start visiting the sites of “America’s Best Idea.” The park system is marking its 100th anniversary this year.
2) Check a workshop with Art Wolfe off your bucket list. A UNESCO world heritage site combined with a world renowned photographer, who also happens to be a great teacher and inspiration? Check!
3) The trees. The temperate rainforest has a living standing biomass which may be the highest anywhere in the world. And it is stunningly gorgeous.
4) The coast. The rocky headlands, beaches, tidepools nurturing a living rainbow of colors and textures, offshore sea stacks of the park’s 73-mile wilderness coastline is a rare treasure.
5) Assistants. I am accompanied by terrific assistants to assure that your photographic experience is as rich as your surroundings. The Quinault retreat is manned by my workshop coordinator Libby as well as two experts in Leica cameras, who will have equipment on hand for you to use; Libby, Bill, Yuri, and Anthony will be working the Olympic Peninsula workshop.
6) Friendship. I don’t know how many friendships have formed as a result of these workshops in particular.
7) Vampires. They’re sexy.
8) Water. Water defines Olympic National Park. There’s a reason why the trees are massive and the moss lush; why the rivers are highways of life; why the glaciers are there to sculpt the massive peaks.
9) Wildlife. We may get lucky and see the huge Roosevelt elk that make the Olympics home.
10) Adventuresome learning. I work hard to make sure everyone comes away from these multiday workshops feeling better about and more enriched by their photography skills.
