Pack your gear and let’s get creative in the Palouse!
Endless rolling hills. Adventure with a few photo buddies. Making great art out in the field and in the studio. Join me this June for a fantastic experience photographing in the gorgeous Palouse region. We’ll spend ample time out in the field sharpening your compositional skills and you’ll also learn to make awesome gallery-quality prints during the heat of the day!
Shoot
We'll be out and about photographing sunrises and sunsets in this beautiful region.
Process
Today's photography requires work in the computer. I'll teach you my efficient workflow.
Create
We'll finish it off with learning how to make top-quality prints you can be proud of.
Monday, June 13
Meet and Greet, 2:00 p.m. We’ll briefly gather to discuss the events of the next few days then it’s off to our first location for sunset. We’ll stop and shoot along the way. There should easily be time to check in to your hotel too. If you’re running late, no worries, I’ll keep you updated with our whereabouts so you can catch up!
Tuesday and Wednesday, June 14 & 15
Sunrise Shoot: Sunrise is at 4:54 a.m. We’ll have discussed our plan of action by last evening. We’ll aim to keep driving to 30 minutes or less 🙂
By 9:00 a.m. Breakfast on your own. I’ll need to head back to the house and set up the printer for the workshop.
11:00 a.m. Let the learning begin. We start with about an hour or two of lecture/discussion then we dive deep into printing. We will break for lunch sometime mid day. We’ll wrap up printing sometime by 4:30 p.m. so we can get a supper before the evening shoot.
5:30 p.m. We’ll head out for sunset which is about 8:43 p.m. If we go to Steptoe Butte please note there is a $10 parking/access fee per vehicle. If you have a State Park pass please consider volunteering to drive.
Thursday, June 16
Sleep In: Sunrise is on your own if you want to do it.
9:00 a.m. Start printing, the last day! We’ll be printing nearly all day today. We’ll break for lunch at about noon or so. If you’re out shooting this morning and you show up a bit late that’s OK 🙂
4:30 p.m. Wrap up all printing so we can head out for one last shoot.
5:00 p.m. Head out to our last sunset shoot.
Friday, June 17
Sunrise Shoot: For those who still have energy, we’ll head out one more time to capture the sun’s first rays.
8:00 a.m. Wrap it up. We can go grab breakfast and then we’ll part ways afterward.
PRINTING: This workshop is equal parts shooting and learning how to print fine quality pieces of art. We’ll spend many hours looking at all the nuanced steps we need to take in order to get excellent, predictable and beautiful prints from your photography. I do promise to teach you the techniques and tips I’ve learned from over 12 years of fine-art printing. But with the limited time we have available I don’t promise to be able to dial everything in to perfection. We’ll get you down the right path though 🙂
Camera stuff: I’ve been shooting professionally for over 22 years. I have experience with Canon and Nikon cameras the most, but if you shoot Sony, Fuji, Pentax, Olympus or any other, we’ll be fine. I might just have to spend a few extra seconds getting used to the different button layout or menu system 
Shooting and post-processing: My go-to motto is to “get it right in camera,” as much as possible. With that said, I do try to keep post processing to a minimum, but sometimes you just have to go all out. We’ll be talking about the scene as we are shooting and I’ll help you understand how to shoot a scene according to what your end goal is. This may slow us down a bit. And to me, that’s just fine. When we’re in the studio though the only thing that will hinder us with your work is time and imagination 🙂
Composition: It’s good to analyze images and understand what works and what doesn’t. We’ll do this both as we’re shooting and afterwards.
Venue: I am renting an Airbnb in Pullman, WA. I’ll send you the specific info once you register and as we get closer to the event.
Lodging: Please select any hotel that best suits your needs in or near Pullman, WA.
Transportation: Please plan to provide or arrange your own transportation.
Once on site you can ride with me, I can take up to three people total.
Flights to Spokane are common and Pullman also has a small airport. You could also fly into Walla Walla and rent a car there if you wanted. Let me know if you’re interested in car pooling, I can put you in touch with other attendees.
Location Specific Information: I’ll send you a PDF document before the workshop starts. It’ll have a list of location ideas and descriptions and their GPS coordinates. We won’t get to all of these spots for our shooting though. If you plan to explore on your own before or after the workshop this will be a valuable document
Small Group: With a limit of 5 attendees you’re virtually guaranteed some quality time with me and the other attendees. We will get to know each other pretty well given how much time we’ll be spending together.
Physical Requirements: All locations are accessible by passenger vehicle. Steptoe Butte does have some opportunities to go “off-trail” but it’s fairly easy going and you can always stay right next to the road or parking lot areas. There will not be any significant climbing or strenuous hiking.
Computer Requirements: You’ll need to bring a computer with a professional image editing application such as Photoshop, Lightroom, CaptureOne, OnOne or others. I am most versed in the Mac operating system with Lightroom and Photoshop. But the principles will certainly apply to other software applications.
Paper and Ink Supply: The workshop fee includes plenty of paper and ink for you to print and practice with many different types of paper. Feel free to bring a picture or three that you just gotta get printed. But we’ll focus on shooting new images and processing those for making fine prints.
Lodging: I will be staying at an Airbnb in the Pullman, WA or Moscow, ID area. I’ll send you the address once you register. This is also the location where the learning will happen:) Lodging is not included in the workshop fee.
Food & Drink: Meals, snacks, drinks, they’re all on your own. I’m a fan of cheap fast food restaurants as it gets us back to shooting or printing more quickly. However, Pullman and Moscow have several great restaurants that we’ll be a able to go to as well.
Entrance Fees: Please have funds available for entrance fees. So far as I know, Steptoe Butte is the only place that has a $10/day/vehicle fee. If there’s group interest, we can also head to Palouse Falls for an evening. That’s also $10/day/vehicle, but it is a bit of a drive.
Transportation: Please make arrangements for transportation. I’ll keep the group abreast of those willing to drive during this workshop so you may not need to rent a car. I can take up to three people with me in my Buick, but otherwise we’ll have to rely on other transportation provided by participants.
Insurance: Please secure your own travel insurance. What if I have to cancel the trip for some reason? That would stink, but there will be some fees that simply can’t be recouped (such as your airfare) and travel insurance will keep that from being a big issue.
Airfare and other “getting there” transportation: You’ll have to fly or otherwise transport yourself to Pullman, WA. I can pick you up if you fly there or Walla Walla, WA.
Miscellaneous: If it’s not on the “included” list above, assume it’s not included in the workshop fee.
Last updated 10-19-21
Money: Getting cash from an ATM won’t be a problem… so long as you have money in your account
Camera Gear: As we’ll be “car shooting,” and by that I mean we’ll travel to our destinations in vehicles, feel free to bring all the gear you think you’ll need. However, I always encourage my participants to “go light” or to choose to focus on a certain type of photography. Bring the long lens to isolate subjects from Steptoe and other vantage points.
Pack Light: I’ll be limiting myself to one ThinkTankPhoto Urban Access 15 backpack (or equivalent sized bag) for all my camera gear while out shooting. All your other stuff can remain in the room as needed. Incidentally, if you use that link for any ThinkTank gear you’ll get free shipping and a free gift at checkout.
Medications and safety/health: Pullman/Moscow and the Palouse region is generally safe. But like any town in rural US regions, we have our share of petty crime and what not. As we’ll be traveling together I don’t foresee any trouble. Please be thoughtful about your gear at restaurants, trails and such. We don’t want someone walking off with your precious lenses.
Weather: It’s going to be HOT during the day but that’s when we’ll be printing. Evening shoots will be rather warm to hot and it’s not likely that we’ll have storms. In the event of a deluge of rain we’ll stay inside and do more printing.
Anything else: If you have other questions please do let me know. I’ll get them in here as I’m sure others will have them as well. Don’t be shy!
Non-photographer tag-alongs: Feel free to bring your non-photographer friends or spouse. Pullman certainly has something for them as well. However, let’s try and keep shooting time just to our group.
Last updated: 10-19-21
Workshop includes:
- Guiding and Instruction
- Post-Processing Instruction
- All Paper and Ink for Printing
- Access to my Master Photo Printing online course!
Additional Information
I’ll create a private Facebook group for communication and photo sharing and review. You’re encouraged to post images after the shoot for review by me and others that have attended. I’ll plan to leave the group open for several months after the tour but we’ll hope to see all review requests submitted within six weeks after the workshop. After that you’re still encouraged to submit images for review, I may not get to them in a timely fashion though
As we get closer to the workshop please feel free to ask about any equipment or other prep that we can all help out with.
I will be staying at an Airbnb in either Pullman, WA. There are plenty of lodging options in the Moscow/Pullman area. The Airbnb will be our central hub of activity though. Lodging is not included in the workshop fee.
As needed, I’ll be happy to clean your camera for you on site. I’ll bring everything with me to do a full cleaning including the sensor.
There’s just a few stipulations/restrictions that apply to this workshop. They are…
- Workshop fees are non-refundable unless I’m able to find a replacement in time. I will refund your workshop fees minus a cancellation fee of $50 if a replacement is found. Should you need to cancel and we do find a replacement, I’ll handle everything. I’ll charge them the participation fee and refund you the appropriate amount. I hope it’s not needed, but if you can’t make it, let’s work together to find a replacement for you.
- Workshop fees only cover instruction and print materials as mentioned above. Other costs such as transportation, entrance fees, transfer fees, airfare or other fees to get to Pullman are not covered in the workshop fee.
- Food, drinks and other incidental items are not included.
- I reserve the right to cancel the workshop and fully refund any fees paid due to unforeseen circumstances. Please be sure you buy insurance. My total liability will only be refunding the fees paid. Unforeseen circumstances include but are not limited to a death in the family, war, act of terror, extreme weather or other natural disaster or other serious issue.
- Registration Deadline: Final registration must be completed by April 7, 2022.
- Release of Liability. You’ll be asked to sign a form onsite. But also, by purchasing you agree to release me and my heirs, relatives, business associates and others from any liability for any personal injury, death, loss of valuables and safety risks, or any other malady that may strike due to your involvement in this workshop. You agree that you’re aware of the risks travel presents and you’re taking these risks upon yourself. You agree to be fully financially independent. Insurance for any reason, both medical and travel, is your responsibility to secure. Attendees are not vetted before the journey. We will get to know each other via a Facebook group beforehand, but that’s not a substitute for true vetting and getting to really know a person. You understand the risks involved and while I will do all I can to aid and assist with issues that may arise, you agree to hold me and my aforementioned associates harmless due to any interpersonal interactions with fellow attendees and/or anyone we encounter along the way. If you are unwilling to agree to any of these terms listed here please don’t sign up for the workshop.
- I reserve the right to add to and/or modify or subtract anything on this description page as necessary and without warning. I will notify you if there’s a need to make a change and you’ve already made payment.
- I will provide one 13×19 printer and all necessary inks and paper for the purposes of this workshop. Limit 5 attendees.
- If you or a loved one (anyone that is close to you, that you’ve been in contact with) tests positive for COVID-19 within 10 days prior to this event I’ll invite you to stay home and you can put the fees paid towards a future workshop or other event I host. If your positive test is 11+ days prior to the workshop contact me and we’ll keep an eye on the situation. I absolutely want you to be here but ultimately, your safety and the safety of the other participants is the top priority and I don’t really want you to feel any pressure about this. Please work with me and we’ll come to a solution.
- If you register and then feel the need to cancel due to continued precautionary measures and travel restrictions give me a call. I can transfer your fees paid to another future workshop or we’ll find other solutions.
Last updated 10-19-21
We’ll be paying close attention to local guidelines. However, with a limit of 5 participants, we’ll fly “under the radar” of most if not all group restrictions.
Your vaccination status doesn’t matter to me. Everyone is equally welcome.
Also, “contact” with another person is defined as being within six feet of someone for more than 15 minutes. As we’ll be spending loads of time together indoors we’ll basically be like family. So at the time of this writing, masks are considered optional.
If things get to the point where we have to make changes I’ll be working with you so we get the full value of the workshop no matter the changes we ultimately need to make.
I do have faith that all will be fine and summer 2022 will be a great time to get together and have some image-making fun.
Please reach out via the email form on this page if you have any questions. Thanks!
Links you’ll need for this workshop.
Want to calibrate your screen? Download X-Rite’s i1Profiler software. Be sure to get version 3.1.1. Both Mac and PC options are available at this link. I’ll have my calibrator on site to calibrate the screen of anyone in attendance.
Download the Canon PixmaPro 10 printer driver here for Mac and Windows 10.
We will reference this Canson Infinity Paper profiles page during the workshop. We’ll discuss downloading them and installing them properly as part of the workshop.