Learn Photography, Learn Plants
My lecture and workshop schedule is shaping up to be busy this year. I hope you’ll be able to join me for one or more of them.
I’ll be teaching photography classes for people with digital SLRs, pocket cameras, and iPhones. My native plant lectures include the dry area in central Washington and the region within walking distance of high tide.
I love to teach and my students consistently report how much fun they have and how much they learn in my classes.
Here’s the lineup.
Wednesday, March 27, 7 pm
How to Take Great Photos of the Wildflowers You Love
Wenatchee Chapter, Washington Native Plant Society
Wenatchee Valley Museum, 127 S. Mission, Wenatchee
Free and open to the public
In this illustrated lecture I’ll teach you about working with different lighting conditions, show the effect of light modifiers, and demonstrate a handful of very useful and easy composition techniques.
Friday, April 19, 7:00 pm
Yakima Valley Wildflowers
Yakima Valley Community College
Kendall Hall Auditorium, YVCC Campus
Free and open to the public
The area around Yakima in south-central Washington bursts into bloom with a profusion of wildflowers each spring. Hillsides are colored golden with balsamroot, pink with phlox, and dotted with white serviceberries. Looking even closer you’ll find wild onions, violets, milkvetch, lupines, paintbrush, and hundreds more species. I’ll share a selection of favorite flowers from the region, and give hints about where to find and enjoy them.
Saturday, April 20, 8:30 am – 5 pm
Pocket Camera Wildflower Photography
Yakima Area Arboretum
$80, Arboretum Members $70
We’ll begin with the illustrated lecture on light and composition and then move out into the arboretum for several hours of hands-on practice photographing flowers and trees. I work with each student individually to help you become a better photographer. At the end of the workshop we’ll download images we’ve created to our computers, select a few favorites and then share them on the big screen while I provide a gentle critique.
Registration and other details
Tuesdays, April 30, May7, May 14, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Take Great Photos with Your iPhone!
Whatcom Community College
$69
You always have your iPhone with you, so why not learn to use the camera feature to its fullest potential? Just in time for spring events, blooming gardens, and family vacations, I’ll share tips and tricks to improve your usual point and click photos. I’ll also introduce you to some of my favorite iPhone photo apps like SnapSeed and Camera+.
Registration and other details
Saturday, May 18, 9 am – 5 pm
Pocket Camera Flower Photography
University of Washington Herbarium, Seattle
$89, Burke Museum Members $75
This is the same program as I’m teaching in Yakima (see above), except the field photography location is the University of Washington Medicinal Herb Garden.
Registration and other details
Tuesday, June 18, 7 – 9 pm
Pacific Coast Wildflowers
WAKE: Whatcom Association of Kayak Enthusiasts
Bellingham Public Library, lower level
Free and open to the public
Explore the selection of wildflowers, trees, and shrubs you’ll encounter when you make landfall after paddling on the Salish Sea or the outer Pacific Coast. There are a series of habitats, beginning just above high tide, each with different plant communities, that extend inland from the shore. Learn what you might encounter on a day paddle or from your campsite on an overnight journey.
Friday-Sunday, June 21-23
Mastering Wildflower Photography
Siskiyou Field Institute
Selma, Oregon
$150
We’ll begin with the basics of lighting and composition, but in this DSLR-oriented course I’ll spend more time working with you on lens choice, controlling depth of field, and taking charge of your camera’s many features. There will be plenty of time in the field where you’ll work on you photo skills while I provide hands-on instruction. You’ll learn from an evening critique how to make your images even better. We’ll spend some time with geotagging and with using software tools to manage your photo collection and apply basic post-processing image enhancement techniques.
Saturday, August 3, 10 am – noon
Garden Photography
Northwest Perennial Alliance
In a private Seattle-area garden
For NPA members only
In this short garden photography workshop you’ll learn how to improve your compositions and work with mid-day light to achieve beautiful results in less than perfect conditions. I’ll work with each student individually after demonstrating concepts with my pocket camera and showing the results on my iPad screen.
Registration and details are not yet on the NPA website
Friday-Sunday, August 9-11
Digital Wildflower Photography with a Pocket Camera
North Cascades Institute
North Cascades Environmental Learning Center, Diablo, Washington
$255-$510, depending on lodging choice
As always, we’ll cover lighting and composition in an illustrated lecture. I’ll spend time with each student to master the many controls on your camera and help you lean which settings are important and which ones to ignore. We’ll spend a full day in the field making images. I’ll be at your side as much as you need me to help with individual compositions and lighting problems. We’ll download, edit, and share images during an evening critique. On the final day we’ll return to the field to apply what you learned in the first two days, cementing your knowledge so you can put it all to work when you’re back home and on your own.
Mark, thank you so much for your work to create the Washington Wildflowers app. Just purchased it and will tell friends about it! I applaud your work in conservation and presenting our beautiful state through your photography.