Florida East Coast Bird Photography Workshop with Denise

March 26, 2024

Florida East Coast Bird Photography Workshop - March 10-15th, 2025

Join multi-award winning photographer Denise Ippolito for five days of bird photography on the Florida East Coast. There are tons of great birding spots in Florida and we will hit quite a few of them, Exact locations will of course be determined by the birds—after all they are in charge!

Daily schedule will be an early morning shoot followed by a break with informal image review and Photoshop/ Lightroom sessions as time permits, then head back out for a late afternoon shoot. A detailed file will be sent with hotel, gear and clothing recommendations.

Our target subjects include but are not limited to: Roseate spoonbills, Great egret, Osprey, Wood stork, Black skimmer, GBH, Little blue heron, American white pelican, Barred owl, Ibis, Sandhill crane, Peregrine falcon, Wood duck and so much more…

Price: $1899.00

Dates: March 10-15th, 2025

Limit 10

Daily Schedule

March 10th -. We will have a Meet & Greet at our hotel at 12:00 noon (the hotel and other pertinent information will be supplied in the additional information sheet once you sign up and we get our entire group together). Followed by an afternoon shooting session.

March 11, 12, 13, 14 - Our daily schedule will be as follows Early morning photo session followed by an informal Photoshop and image review session as time permits, break then an afternoon photo session.

March 15th- we will have a morning photo session then we will say our good byes.

Itinerary subject to change due to local conditions, weather and the birds….

Included- photography instruction, Photoshop/Lightroom and Image Review Sessions.

Not included- transportation, meals, lodging. Any entrance fees where required.

To Sign up CLICK HERE.

This workshop can easily be combined with my Charleston South Carolina workshop-March 17-22, 2025

The Story Behind the Shot #3

March 26, 2024

In this new series, I am going to give some behind the scenes details for one image at a time. I’ll go over some of my settings, what I did in the field, why I composed it the way I did, or any other bit of information that I feel is relevant to the image. I will not be posting this series on Facebook, it is meant to be a bonus article for my subscribers.

During our 2023 Mara safari, we were fortunate to have spent some time with a beautiful cheetah named Nashipae with her 4 cubs. Nashipae was/is a very good mother. She made her fearless cubs walk miles and miles so that she could hunt. They still all had their mantles and their legs were quite short, yet they kept up as best they could. Except for one time when they stopped at a puddle for a drink and mom came over with a big smack in the face…tough love, but she knew that her cubs had a huge target on their backs, and she could not afford to let them play or rest. Fewer than one in ten cheetah cubs will survive during their first few months. Lions are one of the main predators that will kill the cubs and the Mara is swarming with lions.

On one of our photo shoots, we watched as she nearly walked her unsuspecting cubs right into the claws of a sleeping male lion. Knowing that the cheetah cubs were in danger and the species is in trouble, the Maasai guides formed a line with their trucks in an effort to keep the lion from seeing the cubs. Luckily for her the wind was in her favor, she could smell the lion, but he could not smell her. She changed her course, and I don’t think anyone was more relieved than me. It was a tense time for sure.

On this morning, she came into contact with a powerful leopard, our vehicle was the first at the scene. We weren’t 100% sure what was or would happen when we got there. At first, I thought that they might fight and roll around till the death but instead they had a stand-off. Our guide said that in a situation like that they usually don’t want to risk injury but if they had fought, the leopard would have won—even though the female cheetah would have fought with everything she had. The leopard probably knew that because she had cubs she would not be as easy to attack. Still, it was a gripping encounter. This is a backlit shot of Nashipae with two of her cubs that she went back for because they were lagging behind.

Just to give you an idea of how brave this cheetah mom was, she circled back to the leopard to give it the “what for” several times. It is during encounters like this that your heart breaks. Knowing the history of both cats made it so hard as I didn’t want any harm to come to either of them. But my fingers and toes were crossed for the cheetahs.

My camera was the Sony a1, Sony 200-600mm lens, and my settings were f/6.3 (widest I could go with that lens), ISO 1600, 1/800. sec. manual mode, evaluative metering, natural light, backlit, white balance set to shade (this gives a warmer look to morning shots—usually but not always).

Utah Road Trip-January 12-17th, 2025

March 22, 2024

For this road trip I’d like to further explore the area of southeast Utah, more specifically Factory Butte and surrounding areas. Last year I visited the butte area and thought the entire trip was amazing. I also thought that there was so much more to explore, but I didn’t have the chance. I am going back again for my third visit and taking 8 clients.

Price $1899

Dates January 12-17th - 5 nights (we leave on the 17th)

During this road trip we will drive to many of the BLM areas and parks in the area. Everyone will be responsible for driving their own car, park fees, meals and lodging. Before each shoot, I will go over gear selection, area specifics, drive times, directions, etc. Everyone will follow me to each shooting location unless you decide to venture out on your own. There is so much to explore in this area. Drones are welcomed at a lot of our shooting areas, but not absolutely necessary if you don’t have one.

The Utah Badlands feature some of the most distinctive rock formations in the world. From towering spires to intricate hoodoos, these natural wonders are a testament to millions of years of geological history. This area is also unique in that there are so many completely different areas of interest within driving range. With the myriad of formations and patterns, the photographic opportunities are endless. We will go out for sunrise and sunset daily, capturing pockets of light and color whenever possible. Our goal is to photograph and see as much of the area as possible during our 5 night adventure.

MEET & GREET (January 12th) AT 2:00pm.

TO SIGN UP FOR THIS TRIP CLICK HERE.

The Story Behind the Shot #2

March 21, 2024

On an afternoon shoot in the Maasai Mara we came across four young lions (some female, some male) looking at a Monitor Lizard. It was right in front of them but it was not moving. The lions were all looking at it and you could tell they didn’t know what to make of it. I assumed they would capture it the moment it started moving. Most cats can’t resist a chase. However, it started to rain and the lizard started to run. As suspected the lions went for it but when they got close the lizard whacked them with his tail. They retreated and this behavior repeated. Then it became a total downpour, visibility was difficult; the lizard managed to slip away… I was amazed that the group of lions let it get away. I guess it isn’t a known food source for them and they were young and perplexed. I also think they were slightly afraid of the unknown. It reminded me of my dog when I showed it one of those battery operated dogs for the first time. My dog Roxy jumped into my arms and tried to get on my head! She was so afraid of it.

My camera settings were: Sony A1, Sony 200-600mm lens. ISO 3200, 1/640sec @f/8, AWB, Natural light, @200mm. What you can deduce from my settings and the image is that I was working in low light. During this photo shoot I adjusted my shutter speed continuously until I liked the way the rain rendered. If my shutter speed was too fast-the rain looked like tiny dots and you couldn’t see it too much. If my shutter was too slow, the rain looked like streaks and my lions looked blurred. I liked this speed as it looked like snow and softened the entire scene.

To compose it I waited until they were both looking in one direction. They didn’t need to be engaged with me, but they needed to be facing into the scene. It would have been great if I had the tail of the lizard in the left corner of the frame but by this time, the lizard was under grasses and looking for its escape route.

To process the picture, I boosted the clarity a touch and kept the color tones as close to what I saw at the time. Without the heavy rain, the background would have been miserable, with lots of distractions.

Charleston South Carolina - March 17-22, 2025

March 19, 2024

Charleston, South Carolina - March 17-22 , 2025

$1899.00 / Limit 10
Join Denise Ippolito for this low country adventure where we will highlight some of Charleston’s best known photo locations as well as a few hidden gems. During this trip we will need to be flexible in order to make the most of our time. Some highlights may include: Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Botany Bay, Historic Downtown Charleston and Rainbow Row, Folly Beach and/or Sullivan's Island, The Ravenel Bridge and Shem Creek. This is a great place to work on infrared as well .

There will be an informal Meet & Greet at our hotel in Charleston at 2:00pm on March 17th followed by an afternoon shoot. I will present a mini-slide program and go over logistics, gear and explain some of the photo opportunities that we have in store for you. You will not want to miss this.

Daily schedule includes a morning photo shoot and an afternoon and/or evening photo shoot depending on local conditions. We will have at least one Photoshop/Lightroom session during the photo tour. Plus a few image review sessions, this is a great way to see what your fellow photographer is capturing (it is not mandatory that you participate in image review sessions but highly recommended).

Participants should plan your trip home after the morning shoot of the last day (March 22nd—approximately 12:00 noon).
*Note – There will be some walking involved and all participants must be able to walk at least 1 mile on even ground without distress. Please wear comfortable shoes. All schedule times and itinerary are subject to change depending on local conditions and weather. A detailed information sheet will be sent to you upon sign up.

Included Meet & Greet slide program and gathering, Image review sessions, Lightroom/Photoshop session,

Not Included- all meals, lodging, transportation (car pooling is encouraged), any additional access fees

TO SIGN UP CLICK HERE.