Landscape, Nature And Travel Photography

I’ve finalized dates for photo tours and workshops in Monterey, Death Valley and Yosemite National Park for the later half of 2009. I’ll be adding more details about these shortly on my Photo Tours page. Mark your calendar, revisit my site often for updates and don’t hesitate to contact me directly if you’d like to sign up.

Sea Otter Photo Tour – Monterey, California
Saturday November 7th, 2009 (8am to 12:30pm)
Limited to 8 Participants
Price:  $349

Death Valley – Death Valley National Park, California
Friday October 16th – Sunday October 18th, 2009
Limited to 4 Participants
Price:  $799

Yosemite Valley – Yosemite National Park, California
Friday December 4th – December 6th, 2009
Limited to 6 Participants
Price:  $599

Sea Otter Photo Tour – Monterey, California
Saturday January 23rd, 2010 (8am to 12:30pm)
Limited to 8 Participants
Price:  $349

For additional information, contact Jim at – workshops@jmg-galleries.com

Technorati Tags: Photography, Photo Tour, Workshop, Yosemite, Death Valley, Sea Otter, Monterey, California

Earlier this month I had the great fortune to attend the Epson Print Academy for the 2nd time in roughly two years time. The first time I attended I took part in Track 2, the more advanced of the two tracks offered, with Jeff Schewe, John Paul Caponigro, Mac Holbert and Greg Gorman. This year I again took part in Track 2 led by Jeff Schewe, Mac Holbert and Andrew Rodney. I wasn’t sure how much I’d pick up that was new the second time around, but I was happy to gain some great new perspectives and tips with the most recent Adobe software.

Organization
First the Epson Print Academy is one of the best organized events I’ve attended. The great organization enables access to view prints both pre-made & framed and those made during the workshop, peruse vendors, talk to instructors, access documentation on software & printers and network with other participants. The day long event is packed with information and to help you not miss a beat lunch is provided. 

Vendors & Discounts
Epson did a great job in San Francisco pulling together (3) three local camera stores to set up shop and provide substantial discounts to their products. In addition the local Epson reseller Meridian Cyber Solution had great discounts on Epson printers (no tax and up to a $500 rebate on printers).  OnOne software, Lexar and others were on hand as well. The breaks were tough to endure as the deals provided were very tempting. I ended up buying a couple pieces of software but held off on a bigger ticket purchase… for now.

Topics of Discussion for Track 2

• Color Management - Andrew Rodney
• Printing with Lightroom - Jeff Schewe
• Printing with Photoshop CS4 - Andrew Rodney
• Art of Digital B&W – Jeff Schewe
• Fine Art Printing & Workflow – Mac Holbert
• Q&A with an Adobe Lightroom Software Engineer
• General Q&A
  Note: Speakers may vary in your city. 

What I Learned

While I still use Photoshop CS3 some of the time I have become growingly dependent on Lightroom 2.x, yet I found the concepts applied were easily translatable to those using CS3 and CS2. Your mileage may vary on this depending on your knowledge and comfort level with Photoshop. Both tips on Photoshop CS4 and Lightroom 2.x were provided through out the seminar. The discussions were never dry and the friendly yet sarcastic exchanges between instructors discussing Photoshop and Lightroom made the discussions all the more entertaining. If you’re unaware Jeff Schewe is a real ham, but one of the most knowledgeable people you’ll come across. The post-processing and workflow tips were incredibly valuable. Having attended once before I had some information re-enforced, but learned a lot more building on my existing knowledge. I learned several small tips… too numerous to list, but my favorite speaker of the day was Mac Holbert. Mac is credited with inventing Inkjet Printing and is one of the most knowledgeable people you’ll ever meet when it comes to printing and printing workflow. While attending the Epson Print Academy last time John Paul Caponigro was my favorite speaker as his workflow approach helped me optimize my own. While I was disappointed he was not an instructor during this session I ended up learning tons more from Mac. I should clarify in that I learned new approaches to similar challenges previously addressed by John. Mac just has a different approach and it was eye opening.

You’d think I’d have enough of the Epson events, but if I had the chance I’d attend the next one scheduled in San Francisco. Every time I attend I learn something new and while my time is extremely precious these days the value of what I learn far out weighs the time commitment needed to lock up one of my days.

Check the Epson Print Academy schedule to find when they’re swinging through your area. The admission price is a steal for what you’ll take away from the event.

Technorati Tags: Epson Print Academy, review, digital printing, digital photography, workflow, post-processing, Epson

Participants Gallery From Past Trips

My next Sea Otter Photo Tour is just under 30 days away and there are only a few spots left. We had a blast last time and with the chance of seeing pups this time around those in attendance are likely to have an even more memorable time. Photographed way in the back of the photo on the left is Eliya Selhub who had such a great time he’s making it out a 2nd time and had this to say about our time photographing Sea Otters in Monterey:

“Fantastic day of shooting. Jim and Rebecca provided a lot of helpful tips along the way, and I came away with some of the best wildlife photos I’ve ever taken.”

If you’re interested in learning more and attending sign up on my Photo Tours page. If you’re just curious to see the photos from those that made the last Sea Otter Photo Tour check the participants gallery.

By the way if you’re suffering from lens envy with the photo above and its intimidating you from attending… a moderate telephoto lens is more than enough and larger telephoto lenses can easily be rented for the weekend from a camera store for less than you’d imagine. Don’t let lens envy get in the way of having a great time with us.

Click to Enlarge

Technorati Tags: sea otter, Monterey, California, photo tour, photo, photography, nature, wildlife, stock photo, Enhydra lutris

This past weekends Sea Otter Photo Tour in Monterey, California was a lot of fun! Those in attendance had access to photograph Sea Otters and the other wildlife in the area that few get to experience. Each photographer had a dedicated space on a chartered boat that enabled them room to maneuver with out any visual obstructions. The three hours of uninterrupted wildlife photography with the ability to call on the expertise of myself, Rebecca Jackrel and the other experienced participants made for both an exhilerating and productive outing for all.

For your enjoyment here are 16 sample photos from all who were in attendance, but before I forget if you missed out on this outing stay tuned another just like it will be held later this winter.

Group Photo

Click to Enlarge

Read more…

This fall I will be leading (2) two California Sea Otter photography tours near Monterey, California and you’re invited!

From the comfort of a pontoon boat those in attendance will have the ability to photograph the natural behaviors of California Sea Otters and potentially other species including Harbor Seals, California Sea Lions, Cormorants, Pelicans, Grebes, Surf Scoters and many other shore birds. Each tour will be limited to 5-8 people to ensure everyone has the opportunity to get great photos and interaction with my assistant and I.

Learn more about the September 7th, 2008 and September 14th, 2008 California Sea Otter Photo Tour. See you there!

California Sea Otter (Enhydra lutris)

Technorati Tags: California Sea Otter,  Enhydra lutris, photography, wildlife, tour, workshop