South West Landscapes Photography Retreat
Instructors: Seng Mah and Ty Stedman
Level: Intermediate
Dates: 13 – 15 October 2017
Cost*: $598 (instruction/guidance only. Visit to Ngilgi Cave included in this price. If you are visiting the South West, you will need to organise your own accommodation)
Location: Dunsborough
Maximum participants: 10
If you have a love for landscapes and the great outdoors, come and join us for a weekend of exploration, discovery, shooting and image-making in some South West’s most beautiful locations.
The landscape of the South West is a photographer’s feast of rocky coasts, hidden coves, deep forests and raging seas. This three-day workshop is all about developing your eye for landscape photography as we shoot on location and work with you to refine your approach to visualising and shooting landscapes in one of WA’s most diverse and visually epic settings.
Shooting and learning on location means that you will develop real world skills and understandings in recognising the way light shapes the landscape and how you can visualise, frame and compose your landscapes to achieve your vision. You’ll have award-winning fine art landscape photographers working with you throughout the weekend to refine your vision and to help you with your camera craft where required. You will learn both technical and creative aspects of landscape photography that will improve the way you see and shoot.
Built into this weekend is a comprehensive editing/development session which focuses on how you can bring your vision to fruition using specific post-production techniques, including the use of Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Camera Raw and luminosity masking techniques for exposure blending and control of highlights and shadows.
RETREAT PROGRAMME
Friday
We gather in Dunsborough, where we welcome all participants and provide an overview of the weekend and the locations where we will shoot.
Sunset photography at Sugarloaf Rock, one of the South West’s most iconic locations for landscape photography.
Saturday
We shoot the sunrise at Castle Rock, looking at a range of ways in which we can photograph the landscape here using both wide-angle and telephoto lenses, and carefully choosing the locations from which we shoot.
From Castle Rock, we travel to Meelup Beach to photograph this popular and pristine beach in the light of early morning.
After breakfast, we visit Ngilgi Caves, one of the most extensive cave systems in the South West, where we will venture deep into the ground to see what the subterranean environment has to offer. This will be a partly self-guided experience and a great way to experience a very different part of the South West.
After lunch, we head further south to Boranup, with its majestic Karri Trees, for some photography in the forest.
Afternoon shoot at Wydaup Rocks and Wyadup Spa, a natural ocean pool fed by sea water cascading through an ocean waterfall, followed by sunset at Injidup Beach, with views along the south west coast to Cape Naturaliste.
Sunday
Sunrise shoot at Quindalup Boat Ramp, where we will capture this iconic boat ramp and Geographe Bay in the blush of dawn and sunrise.
After breakfast, we focus on the editing/development of landscape photography using Lightroom, Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop, in a presentation led by Seng and Ty.
We wrap up the weekend with a group lunch where we bid each other goodbye before returning home with great images and new landscape photography skills.
What you will need:
- A DSLR or mirrorless camera that allows you to shoot in full Manual Exposure mode.
- Wide angle and telephoto lenses; typically, lenses that cover the range from 14mm – 200mm if you are shooting full frame, or 10mm – 200mm if you’re shooting crop frame. Micro 4/3 camera users should look at lenses in the 8mm – 100mm range.
- A strong and stable tripod that will let you adjust the position of the camera on the tripod quickly and easily.
- To get the most out of the practical segment of this workshop, you’ll need at least two types of neutral density (ND) filters for your lens of choice. We recommend filters by Hoya, Haida or Nisi.
- 5 stop (ND32)
- 10 stop (ND1000).
- A circular polariser
- A remote shutter release (we recommend a simple cable release).
- Microfibre cloth and lens cleanser (we will be shooting close to the ocean so there may be some sea spray in the air)
- Wet weather gear for your camera eg. a plastic bag to shield your camera from rain or sea spray.
The practical segments of this workshop will be run at coastal locations in the South West, so please dress accordingly for the weather (sunscreen, hat, shoes with good grip).
Accommodation:
The Dunsborough region of the South West offers a range of comfortable accommodation from which to choose: from motels (Dunsborough Central Motel), resorts (Smiths Beach Resort) and private holiday homes. Accommodation is also available in Yallingup (about 15 minutes from Dunsborough) and Busselton (about 20 minutes from Dunsborough).
The not-so-fine print:
There’s always the fine print, so please make sure you read the following to make sure you’re aware of other details pertaining to this retreat:
- You will need to organise your own travel to and from the photographic locations during the retreat (we will car pool as much as possible to reduce the number of vehicles taken to the locations).
- You will need to cover the cost of your own meals and refreshments.
- The workshop organisers reserve the right to change sessions, venue and locations during the workshop (subject to weather, access and availability).
- This is an Intermediate level workshop. It assumes that you are able to adjust your aperture, shutter speed and ISO in Manual Exposure mode on your camera, and that you have started shooting in Raw image format. If you are new to photography, we recommend that you complete our beginner’s workshop before taking this photography retreat.
Your safety:
Your safety is our concern, but it is your own responsibility, so please read the following safety points that will give you a better picture of the types of terrain we will be exploring at this retreat:
- You are fully responsible for your own safety and the safety of your equipment during the workshop, and should always observe your own health and safety first.
- Some photographic excursions will require physical travel on uneven or even wet surfaces such as trails and across rocky and sometimes slippery surfaces. You will need a good level of mobility and reasonable level of fitness in order to participate in this workshop.