2019 Iceland 11-day Midnight Sun MAY

Photographers flock to Iceland in the summer to experience what is known as "Midnight Sun", which starts at around 10pm each night and wraps up around 4am. This type of light is wonderfully diffused and almost boring to the naked eye, yet incredibly powerful when brought out in post-processing. This workshop will navigate the entire main island to capture most of the photographic wonders. The photography schedule will be maximized around two types of ideal photographic light: 1) slow sunsets for dramatic backlight, 2) the famous "midnight sun" for defused magic light. Planned targets include waterfalls, coastal sea stacks, canyons, geysir activity, an ice lagoon, an ice beach, mountains, and architecture.

DESCRIPTION:

Date: MAY 8-20, 2019

Cost: $6300/person; $1300 non-refundable deposit required - can be transferred
Capacity: 6 STUDENTS (registration is closed for this workshop)
Note: a minimum of 3 students is needed for this workshop to happen.

Workshop cost includes:
- Lodging* and breakfast meals during the workshop dates
- On-island transportation, and park entrance fees during the workshop dates
- All on and off-field photographic instruction and coaching

* Cost assumes a single occupancy rate. Lower double occupancy rates can be arranged by request and any subsequent savings will be refunded after the conclusion of the workshop.

Workshop cost does not include (international) travel cost to get to Iceland, return shuttle to Keflavik airport, meals outside of breakfast.

Please read before submitting a deposit.

The workshop fee is $6300. A $1300 NON-REFUNDABLE deposit is required to secure your seat. On Dec 9, 2018, 50% of the remaining balance will be due. The remaining balance is due in full on or before Feb 17, 2019.

Due to the high cost of cancellation and limited seating, refunds are given according to this schedule:
- 100% refundable (not including deposit) if cancelled 160 days or greater ahead of the event start date
- 50% refundable (not including deposit) if cancelled within 159-131 days ahead of the event start date
- No refund if cancellation occurs less than 130 days ahead of the event start date. A seat is transferrable if a cancellation results in no refund.
- No refunds for events cancelled by inclement weather.

THIS WORKSHOP REQUIRES A MINIMUM OF 3 STUDENTS. IF THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH COMMITMENTS BY DEC 16, THE WORKSHOP WILL BE CANCELLED AND ALL DEPOSITS AND PAYMENTS WILL BE REFUNDED. THIS IS THE ONLY CONDITION FOR A REFUNDED DEPOSIT. DO NOT MAKE ANY FLIGHT OR TIME OFF ARRANGEMENTS UNTIL THIS WORKSHOP IS CONFIRMED AFTER DEC 16.

WORKSHOP CONTENT:

COMPOSITION

How do you make your photographs look less like snapshots and more like fine art? The following composition topics will be taught in-class and reinforced on the field including how to:

- pre-visualize a composition
- scout a location
- identify favorable foreground and background elements
- arrange the elements to the rule-of-thirds guidelines
- find and support visual direction

CAPTURE

How do you make sure you are capturing useful information while on the field in order to create a masterpiece after you leave? The following capture topics will be taught on the field:
- simplifying capture workflow so that you can spend more energy on composition
- capturing optimal exposure for post-processing
- hyperfocusing; maximizing focus at the optimal aperture
- determining shutter speed to achieve your visualized composition
- basic camera settings and best practices

POST-PROCESSING

Composing and capturing a photo is only halfway to your masterpiece...post-processing is the other half and represents a big chunk of what defines your unique artistic style. Post-processing takes a longer time to master, but is something anyone can get started on right away. As long as a photo was captured optimally (see the "CAPTURE" section), the image can always be revisited again for processing as one gains more experience. The student will be exposed to various methods in order to have a reference of what is possible. The student can then pursue it further with more coursework. Each student can choose any method to practice during the workshop according to their comfort level.

Post-processing topics will include:

- survey of different methods: pros and cons
- basic Lightroom (Camera Raw) adjustment
- introduction to Photoshop adjustments and luminosity masks
- using post-processing to achieve the composition that you pre-visualized

PREREQUISITES (Strongly recommended for a maximimum experience):

1) Ability to operate a camera comfortably in MANUAL mode
2) Familiarity with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop
3) Your own camera gear including a DSLR, an ultra-wide zoom lens, and a sturdy tripod
4) A notebook PC with Adobe CC (Lightroom and Photoshop) installed. Do not use Photoshop Elements or any "light" version of Photoshop.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:

1) Every participant must be in reasonably good physical shape and able to hike 2-3 miles a day on uneven terrain while carrying their own gear.
2) Due to the nature of the photography schedule, every participant must be okay with not getting continuous sleep. We will aim for 8 hours of sleep per day, but it will be broken up.
3) Due to vehicle cargo limitations, every participant must pack light: 1 backpack of gear, and 1 22" carry-on suitcase for everything else. NO LARGE SUITCASES. Ken will advise you on how to pack light if needed.
4) Every participant must sign a liability and model release waiver prior to the first session.

WEATHER

Photo sessions are planned for most weather types including light rain. Any photographic session that is completely rained-out will be replaced with more classroom time or post-processing workgroups. Students are encouraged to bring their earlier work (RAW images) for post-processing demos and practice in the event that not enough images are captured from the workshop sessions.