Workshop Overview

I try to offer a new workshop every year to give my regular workshop participants some variety, as well as new challenges.

For 2024, this new workshop will be in two different locations.  We will spend 3 1/2 days and 3 nights along the Southern Oregon coast in Bandon Beach, OR (Aug 1-4), and then drive up some 7,000 feet (hitting at least one waterfall along the way) to Crater Lake National Park (Aug 4-7), where we will stay 3 nights in national park lodging.

During this action packed week, we will shoot sunsets and sunrises amidst the sea stacks along the Pacific Ocean, as well as some Milky Way photography as weather allows, and at least one of Oregon's famous lighthouses.  Similarly, we will shoot sunrises and sunsets from the rim of Crater Lake, capture a couple of beautiful Oregon waterfalls, and avail ourselves of the very dark night skies (Class 1 Bortle!)in Crater Lake for some astrophotography. 

Colin is an award-winning photographer who has spent the past several years exploring the red rock Canyonlands of Southern Utah and the mountains of Colorado.  He has been leading workshops and tours across the country for several years as the founder of Rock Light Photo Tours.  He is a certified and insured photography travel guide in Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands and Rocky Mountain national parks. 

- Determining proper exposure - Capturing great images in challenging lighting conditions 

- Analyzing a scene for compositional options 

- Using filters to improve artistic results 

- Capturing the Milky Way with your digital camera
- Techniques and gadgets for better Milky Way photography
- Making your sunrise & sunset images pop

- Using long exposures to capture waterfalls and the ocean waves and tides

- Adobe Lightroom workflow for getting the most from your images
- Post processing for Milky Way photography
- Creating composite night images with layer masking

- Stitching panoramic images
- Converting color digital photos into black and white images

Skills Needed:
All skill levels are welcome.  Participants who have a good working knowledge of their cameras, and basic understanding of digital workflow and knowledge or exposure to Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom will get the most from this workshop. 

Physical Demands:
Though locations visited during this workshop are readily accessible, the hilly terrain requires some moderate hiking (typically less than 3 miles round trip). Participants MUST be in good physical shape and able to climb and descend moderate to steep inclines. They should wear sturdy boots and use caution on slippery and rocky slopes.  As this workshop involves astrophotography, we will sometimes be shooting late at night, sometimes into the wee hours of morning.  The ability to nap to catch up on sleep during the middle of the day (or on a rain day), is a plus!  I will try not to run everyone too ragged.

Group Size:
Maximum 8 photographers.  Note: This workshop usually sells out quickly!

Registration fee:  $1425 per person, plus room fees for our 3 nights in Crater Lake (ranging from $570-$900 for 3 nights/room)
Deposit to reserve a date: $600-$750 depending on housing options

Dates and Times
Workshop begins Thursday, Aug 1st at 4pm, and ends Wednesday, Aug 7th, at 11am.

At least one rental property in Bandon will be available the night of July 31st if you wish to arrive early.

Non-photographer/tag-along rate: $700 - for a spouse/partner/friend who wants to come along, eat meals with the group, and travel to some of our shooting locations.  Note there is a double occupancy rate for the lodging options at the vacation rental properties in Bandon.

Where to Meet
Participants will gather and be based at the Sunset & Surf rental house across the street from Face Rock State Scenic Area.   Directions and details will be sent well in advance of the workshop.

This is a bit complicated, since there are two different locations for this workshop.

Crater Lake is in the middle of nowhere (did I mention Bortle 1 skies?).  As such, there's really not a lodging option that is not in the park within a hour of most of our shooting locations, which leaves us with two national park lodging options.  I have gone ahead and reserved several options both in the Crater Lake Lodge (right on the rim), and in Mazama Cabins (about 15 minutes away, but cheaper).  These are really hard to come by, as they release dates 365 dys in advance, and most rooms for our dates are already booked.

Crater Lake Housing Options:  (Aug 4-7)

    Registration Fee + king bed lodge bedroom (up to 2 people) = $2325 

    Registration Fee + 2 queen lodge bedroom (up to 2 people) = $2325 

    Registration Fee + 2 queen cabins bedroom (up to 2 people) = $1995 

All Crater Lake rooms have private bathrooms.  The lodge is right on the rim.  The cabins are in Mazama village (about 7mi/15 min from the rim)

Note - the packages available to reserve the workshop include one of the above options, but NOT housing for Bandon Beach (you'll be asked about that later).  There is an option for no accommodations, which is for people sharing a room with someone who has booked a room already.  If you want to stick around Crater Lake longer, please let me know when you book, and I can try to extend your room, but no guarantees, as most of these rooms are not available.

Bandon Beach - Aug 1-4 (plus an option for the night of July 31) 

We will be in two vacation rental properties in Bandon Beach and Bandon, Oregon.  Both will have easy access to the beach, and will be less than 2 miles from old town Bandon.  One of the two properties will be the home base for the workshop All Sunset & Surf @ Face Rock), giving us a place to  gather for classroom sessions, a kitchen to use for meals, and a chance  to mingle with and learn from your fellow photographers.  Prices shown do not include local taxes.  

    Private bedroom (King bed, pvt bath : $175/night -$195/night dbl occ. - 1 of 3  avail)

    Private Bedroom (King bed, shared bath: $150/night - $175/nt dbl occ. - 0 of 1 avail)

    Private bedroom (Queen bed, shared bath: $140/night - 0 of 1 avail)

    Private bedroom (full bed, shared bath: $120/night - 1 of 1 avail)

Please be sure to request one of the lodging options above when booking if desired.  Payment taken separately.  contact colin@Lightandphoto.com with questions. 

Yes - it is OK to book your own hotel/motel nearby if you prefer.

  What to bring:

• ·         A digital SLR or mirrorless camera capable of manual exposure settings.  
• ·         Plan to bring all of your lenses, from 14mm to 200mm(full frame equiv.) or even longer if you want to shoot some shore birds, as the variety of daytime locations will put all your gear to work! (beaches, sea stacks clifftop coastal views, tide pools, waterfalls, sand dunes, epic sunrises and sunsets)  A wide angle lens (somewhere in the 14mm to 35mm range) capable of an aperture of f/2.8 or lower is best for capturing the Milky Way.  Consider renting a lens if you don’t own one.
• ·         A sturdy tripod 
• ·         Circlular polarizer filters and ND filters.  A circular polarizer filter can be a useful tool for controlling glare and reflections for the wet sand on the coast and Crater Lake. ND filters and grad ND filters are great for making waterfalls silky, darkening brights skies, and coastal loveliness.  NOTE: Colin is a rep for NiSi Filters, which makes an excellent circular polarizer filter, and he can get you a 15% discount off retail prices.  https://nisiopticsusa.com/shop/nisi-circular-filters/round-cpl-circular-polarizer-filter/ti-enhanced-cpl/
• ·         Hiking boots or other sturdy shoes: while the hikes to locations we will visit will be fairly short (typically less than 1-3 miles round trip) a good set of sturdy hiking boots is good for protecting the ankles on rocky trails and slippery rocks. Hiking poles are useful for navigating tricky slopes.
•           Shoes for shooting on the coast - the Pacific Ocean is not warm, but plan on getting your feet wet.  I plan to bring a pair of sandals I can get wet, waterproof high-rise hiking boots, and a pair of low rise shoes as well.
• ·         Lots of clothing layers – Oregon weather can be finicky, and temps can be chilly at night and early in the morning, especially in the fog, and much warmer during the day.  Crater Lake is at 7,000', so plan for everything from 40s to 80s.  Both Bandon houses have washers & dryers, so you don't need to pack 7-8 days of clothes.  A good rain layer is going to be essential.
• ·         A headlamp, preferably with a red light setting, to participate in optional night photo sessions.  A dimmable headlamp is a bonus.
• ·         A laptop computer, ideally loaded with Adobe Lightroom Classic, or whatever other programs you use to process images to best take advantage of the Lightroom workflow instructional session.  Cables and devices necessary to download your images from camera to laptop.

August 1 -4 

3 Days and 3 nights on the Oregon Coast based in Bandon Beach.  We will shoot sunrises, sunsets, seascapes, the Milky Way, and coastal fog, weather permitting.  Our home base will be right across the street from the Face Rock Weyside, where we will be able to walk directly down to one of the most spectacular beaches (photographically speaking) on the entire West Coast!  We will explore and photograph up and down the coast, perhaps including a nearby waterfall, picturesque harbors, and at least one of Oregon's famed lighthouses.

August 4-7

We will stay in the national park lodging right on the rim of the deepest lake in the U.S. - Crater Lake National Park!  Sunrises, sunsets, waterfalls, and astrophotography in a Class 1 Bortle site!