Recharging Creativity

June 30, 2024

I love creative photography; including in-camera blurs, multiple exposures, high-key imagery, soft focus, etc… I have put together a second creative workshop titled “Recharging Your Creativity” dedicated to in-camera and post-processing techniques to re-charge some of that creative energy inside of you.

November is a good time for me so I will be conducting this workshop in Charleston SC, the weather will be moderate at that time of year and there are plenty of trees, water and other elements that lend themselves nicely to creative photography. So consider taking a break from the norm and recharge some of your creativity. Post-processing will be a big part of this workshop as capturing is only the beginning… This workshop is not to be confused with my March Charleston workshop, which is geared more towards photographing iconic Charleston locations. Even though we will not have access to all of the subjects shown in the imagery above, the techniques will still be covered in this course.

Dates: November 3-7, 2025

Location: Charleston area (exact location, times and hotel will be sent in a file at sign up)

Cost: $1500.

Limit 10 with a minimum of 8.

Does not include any lodging, transportation, admission fees (if any) or meals. this is the tuition cost.

Schedule

November 3rd - Meet & Greet at 12:00noon followed by a 3 hour afternoon photo shoot

November 4th - 3 hour morning photo shoot followed by a lunch break then a 2 hour afternoon Photoshop session.

November 5th - 3 hour morning photo shoot followed by a lunch break then a 2 hour afternoon Photoshop session.

November 6th - 3 hour morning photo shoot followed by a lunch break then a 2 hour afternoon Photoshop session.

November 7th - 3 hour morning photo session. end of workshop

*This is an intense workshop filled with a lot of creative ideas and challenges. Open to all levels of photography but must have working knowledge of your camera and be able to change the shutter speed, ISO, aperture and exposure compensation. Photoshop sessions are complete with notes and are geared towards anyone with knowledge of layers and masks.

At the end of this workshop each participant will be asked to share their favorite image from the workshop. I will do a blog post with each of the chosen images, giving credit to the maker.

Some of the techniques covered in this course:

In-camera blurs, including the myriad of ways to capture and process them.

Composites, layering and stacking

High-key imagery -capture and processing

Multiple Exposures and the many ways to create them both in-camera and/or in post-processing.

Photoshop Blurs

Photoshop post-processing- fun techniques.

The 2024 Audubon Photo Awards: The Top 100 X 2 X 2

June 28, 2024

Huge congratulations to Michele McCormick and Jacqueline Burke. Michele McCormick joined Paul McKenzie and me in Japan for our annual “Japan in Winter Photo Tour;” to say I am thrilled that Michele walked away with 2 top 100 winners is an understatement. I am elated! So well deserved too.

Jacqui Burke joined A Creative Adventure tour leader Donna Bourdon in the Falkland Islands for one of our annual “Falkland Photo Tours.” Jacqui walked away with 2 top 100 images as well! I am beyond words, but I am truly thrilled for both women. The winning images are featured below, please join me in congratulating both amazing photographers! I’d also like to congratulate everyone that had a recognized image, it is a very big accomplishment.

From Audubon’s site:

Each year of the Audubon Photography Awards is exciting, but this one is especially celebratory: 2024 marks the 125th anniversary of Audubon magazine—and the 15th installment of our annual photo competition. Around 2,300 entrants from across the United States and Canada submitted more than 8,500 photographs and videos of birds feeding, fighting, mating, and making their way in the world. After anonymous review, our expert judges selected just 14 fabulous winners and honorable mentions.

Red-crowned Cranes by Michele McCormick

Location: Hokkaido, Japan
Camera: Sony Alpha 1 with a Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS lens; 1/2000 second at f/7.1; ISO 200
Behind the Shot: I was at the Tsurui-Ito Crane Sanctuary with high hopes of photographing cranes in the snow. Making wonderful images of these Red-crowned Cranes in the dead of winter meant standing outside for hours to catch an interesting moment. Alas, my California winter gear didn’t cut the mustard in temperatures below zero. On the first day, I had to retreat. Fortunately, I was able to rent gear and maintain my vigil in relative comfort the next day. These amazing birds gather in clusters, and while it was fascinating to watch them, making an image in which any individual bird or pair was isolated required constant attention and lightning reflexes.

Long-tailed Tit by Michele McCormick

Location: Hokkaido, Japan
Camera: Sony Alpha 1 with a Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS lens; 1/400 second at f/8; ISO 3200
Behind the Shot: I was with a group at Lake Kushiro, and one of our members noticed this Long-tailed Tit frequently returning to lick an icicle hanging from a maple tree. I set up my tripod and maintained focus on the icicle for more than an hour. Catching the right timing, positioning of the bird, and lighting was a challenge. Every visit was just a split second, and the bird came in at a different angle each time. Intervals between visits were inconsistent and unpredictable—plus I was standing on ice and my tripod kept shifting off the key point. At last, I felt I had a good image. I wanted to keep trying to be sure, but the sun warmed the icicle and it fell to the ground. The opportunity was over.

ABOUT MICHELE:

For Michele McCormick, now based in Sacramento, California, photography is a lifelong journey that began more than four decades ago. It started with college studies emphasizing photography, and led Michele into early adventures in freelance writing and editorial photography for publications around the world. Then life took a different path, and she pursued a professional career in which photography took a back seat.

In 2010, Michele returned to her early passion for photography, and entered the world of digital photography with energy and enthusiasm.

PS- she is a movie star!

To see more of Michele’s images check out her website HERE.

Southern Rockhopper Penguin by Jacqueline Burke

Location: Saunders Island, Falkland Islands
Camera: Olympus OM-1 with an OM SYSTEM M. Zuiko 150-400mm f/4.5 TC 1.25 IS PRO lens; 1/2500 second at f/7.1; ISO 1600
Behind the Shot: At the site called “The Rookery,” fresh water flows down from a spring high in the cliffs and cascades over a ledge. In the afternoon, Rockhopper Penguins returning from a day of fishing like to rinse the salt water from their bodies at the “rockhopper shower” before making the arduous uphill climb to their nests. The rockhopper colony at this site is very large, and the shower was often crowded with penguins who would fight for a chance to stand under it. I was beginning to think that I would not obtain any useable photos when at last, a single penguin approached the shower at an angle where I could take a nice photo.

Gentoo Penguin by Jacqueline Burke

Location: Bleaker Island, Falkland Islands
Camera: OM SYSTEM OM-1 with an OM SYSTEM M. Zuiko 150-400mm f/4.5 TC 1.25 IS PRO lens; 1/13 second at f/5; ISO 320
Behind the Shot: We got up very early to see Gentoo Penguins leave their nests and enter the sea to fish. It was very cold and extremely windy, and I had a hard time changing the settings on my camera with my numb fingers. Before the trip, I envisioned using a slow shutter speed to obtain a photo of a stationary penguin surrounded by soft surf. I tried many times to get the image I wanted, but the penguins dove too quickly into the sea. Finally, this individual stopped before entering the surf, allowing me to capture it standing still while the sea went soft. I used my camera’s live neutral density feature, which allowed me to reduce the exposure by as much as six stops, to get the photo I wanted.

ABOUT JACQUELINE:

Jacqueline grew up in the Pocono Mountains and graduated from Stroudsburg High School. She obtained her Bachelor of Science Degree summa cum laude from Muhlenberg College in 1983. Jacqui graduated with honors from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 1987. For the first three years of her career, she practiced small animal medicine and surgery as a full time veterinary associate. In 1990 Jacqui began to offer her services as a relief and permanent part time veterinarian, and has continued to do so up to the present time.

Jacqueline is an avid traveler, I can hardly keep up with her latest adventures. Her love for photography has led to many award winning images.

To see more of Jacqui’s work check out her Facebook page HERE.

Grimsey Island Puffin Trip Report

June 3, 2024

Donna and I drove from the airport in Keflavik Iceland to our hotel before taking the ferry over to Grimsey Island where we spent a week photographing puffins and seabirds. Grimsey is a small Icelandic island, 40 kilometers off the north coast of the main island of Iceland. During our time on the island, we spent most days scouting and familiarizing ourselves with the island. We located many of the “photo hot spots” and found just about every bird species on the island. We also met a few of the locals that make this remote island their home and they could not be a nicer group. About 70 people live on the island and only about 20 of them live there year round.

Since we were literally at the Arctic circle, we had been chasing the light as it came and went between the fog. On clear nights we stayed up to watch the sun slowly dip on the horizon. We had some success during our attempts at the midnight sun with puffins in the foreground. My favorite from those photo shoots is my opening image.

Razorbill just after midnight - too bad his bill is not completely inside the sun.

One of the things I loved the most about Grimsey is the ability to go out exploring on our own without any limitations. Of course you always need to respect the birds and their habitat, but it is a true natural gem similar in many ways to photographing on the Falkland Islands.

In addition to the plethora of birds, there are goat, sheep, and horses that roam the island (pretty much free range) and the sightings have been lots of fun. I am posting a shot of the big Billy Goat that we saw and a lamb silhouette. I think Donna got some nice horse pics.

A trip to photograph puffins absolutely has to include flight shots and there is no better place than Grimsey to photograph them. Because we were doing a scouting trip for our upcoming 2025 trip (sold out) we visited in May but you really want to be here in July when our workshop is scheduled to get the krill in the mouth of the puffins as they come back to their burrows. A big shout out to my Sony a1 camera and my Sony 200-600mm lens - without either one, it would have been much harder to capture these.

Atlantic puffin-my favorite from the trip.

Black-tailed godwit against the scenic mountains, cropped to a pano.

As far as the food goes, it has been pretty darn good. There is only one restaurant with a limited menu but if you like fresh fish the preparation of the fish of the day has been outstanding. There is also a soup of the day option as well as fried chicken, hamburgers, edamame, grilled ham and cheese sandwiches along with a few more selections. There is also a small store on the island that has a variety of food items.

During our workshop we will have a big breakfast as our main meal and take a bagged lunch out into the field. For our dinners we will visit the local restaurant and I can highly recommend the Icelandic white ale called Einstok, it is so delicious, it reminds me of a Belgium beer with hints of coriander and orange. Of course Donna has been getting double Glenfiddich on the rocks…

It was another fun filled photographic adventure that I will remember fondly. I’m really looking forward to next year’s trip. I have just confirmed a 2026 workshop - sign up HERE.

*All images in this post were created using the Sony a1 and Sony 200-600mm lens, handheld, natural light, single frame images.

Late evening golden light on the puffins

On our last day we had a slight sprinkle

Falkland Islands Photo Tour ~ 2025 Announced!

May 19, 2024

Falkland Islands Photo Tour -

Dates: November 22- December 6, 2025

Join multi-award winning photographer Denise Ippolito for a two week Falkland Islands photo tour. This adventure will take place at one of the most natural, photo-rich environments on earth. During this photo workshop we will visit several of the Falkland Islands via small aircraft. “The Neck”, known as the crown jewel of the Falklands, will be one of our featured locations. There is a small colony of King Penguins, Gentoo, Magellanic and Rockhopper penguins as well as a large colony of Black-browed Albatross. During our time in the Falklands, we will also take a day trip or two out to a huge colony of King Penguins. On our list of stops will be Sea Lion; Sea Lion Island is the only location in the Falklands where killer whale pods routinely patrol. In addition to these whale pods it is the best place to see and photograph Elephant Seal and Sea Lions. Next on our top locations will be Bleaker Island, notably, the best place in the Falklands to capture Gentoo penguins shooting out of the surf. Also, at Bleaker we will spend time at one of the largest Imperial Cormorant (aka Blue-eyed Shag) colonies with over 8,000 nesting pair.

*Some tour leaders boast loads of different islands but that just means you spend time packing-unpacking, waiting for flights and traveling, I have minimized this, in an effort to maximize our photo time in-the-field at the very best locations that the Falklands has to offer.

SATURDAY 22 NOVEMBER 2025 – Arrive and transfer to our hotel

SUNDAY 23 NOVEMBER – Fly to Saunders Island for 4 nights at the Neck

THURSDAY 27 NOVEMBER – Fly to Sea Lion Island for 4 nights

MONDAY 01 DECEMBER – Fly to Bleaker Island for 3 nights- we will have a private vehicle to use on the island.

THURSDAY 04 DECEMBER – Trip to Volunteer Point from Stanley Airport

FRIDAY 05 DECMEBER – Volunteer Point Day Trip

SATURDAY 06 DECEMBER – Transfer to Mount Pleasant Airport

Falkland Islands Photo Tour -

Dates: November 22- December 6, 2025

Limited to 7 participants- 3 spots open

Trip price: $9995.pp based on double occupancy. Singe supplements are only available for a portion of this trip and are limited.

Includes: All inter-island flights, all lodging, all meals, and all transfers.

Does not include: Flight to Stanley MNP, any hotel nights in Santiago, alcoholic beverages. evacuation travel insurance, I highly recommend trip insurance. Tips and all items of a personal nature and any extra baggage charges for inter-island flights, internet cards, departure tax of £26 per person.

*Note: You should plan to arrive in Santiago, Chile at least one day before the workshop starts.

*Credit cards are widely accepted on the islands so is the US dollar, but you should bring some pounds with you. A detailed information file will be sent at sign up.

Deposit Information:
A non-refundable deposit of $2,000 due at sign up to hold your spot. Final payments are due November 30, 2024 via check or wire transfer only, fees on both ends are the responsibility of the participant. No credit cards accepted for any payment except deposit-thank you. Full payments are always welcomed via check or wire transfer made payable to: Denise Ippolito LLC. All participants must purchase or have evacuation insurance. I use Global Rescue.

Please be sure to check your calendar carefully and to check out my Workshop Policy Page.

**Everyone will be weighed as well as there gear bag once we begin the journey via internal flights. This is necessary for the pilots to arrange our weight according to his best calculations.

Weight restrictions for gear/baggage per person- The allowance is 20kg per person and any overage or excess baggage/gear will be charged @ £1.59 per kilo for each flight (there are several). Cameras and binoculars can be strapped around your neck.

** Our accommodations on most of the islands is very nice, similar to a hotel. However, at the “Neck” there is only one shipping container that has been transformed into an accommodation housing 8 people-with a kitchen/living room combo, 2 bedrooms with 4 bunkbeds. One bathroom. It is in a very remote location, that happens to be in one of the very best wildlife locations on earth. During our 4 nights at the “Neck” we will have prepared meals brought in from a hotel in Stanley and we can also prepare some of our own meals.

*This itinerary is subject to change due to local conditions and availability, price subject to change slightly due to fuel costs, etc. though it usually does not.

TO SIGN UP FOR THIS TRIP-CLICK HERE.

Reeds with nice light, a vertical panning motion with a slight twisting applied. Bosque del Apache, NM.

An Excerpt From "A Guide to Creative Blurs"

May 14, 2024

Creating a pleasing blur can be difficult if you have not practiced your technique. Blurs are a form of art and are very subjective. Some people absolutely hate them and others adore them. I am one of the folks that loves them.

Below is an excerpt form my eBook “A Guide to Creative Blurs”. This is my second eBook on the subject of capturing in-camera blurs. It is available only through A Creative Adventure HERE. In addition to capturing in-camera blurs, I cover some Photoshop blurs and effects as well.

I used a slight circular movement to create this blur of a field of dahlias.

A few factors that influence the degree of blurring. You will have more control over some than others.

· The shutter speed: the slower the shutter speed, the greater the degree of blurring. I consider 1/30 second the start of blurring shutter speed. In other words, if you reduce your shutter speed to 1/30 of a second and if there is camera or subject movement, there is a good chance that you will have some degree of blurring in your image.

· The speed that the camera is moved: the faster the camera is moved, the greater the degree of blurring.

· The speed that the subject is moving: the faster the subject is moving, the greater the degree of blurring. (Note: as long as the camera is held still during the exposure, so if you are panning with your subject, that will affect the degree of blur on your subject.)

· The angle relative to the camera’s sensor in which the subject is moving: the closer to parallel to the camera’s sensor the subject is moving, the greater the degree of blurring. In other words, if the subject, let’s say a bird, is flying parallel to the camera’s sensor, it will appear more blurred than a bird flying straight at you.

· The distance to the subject: the closer the subject is to you, the greater the degree of blurring.

Another thing to consider is that the background can also affect the degree in which we perceive an image to be blurred. If the background is a solid blue sky, there will be nothing in the background to show the motion or movement of the blur.

This blur was captured in Bosque many years ago at one of the crane pools. I loved the dark top area and the grasses in the foreground.

This is an older image of an in-camera blur that I applied a painterly effect to.

The sunflower image shown above was captured at a sunflower field in Provence France. There is something wonderful about a field of flowers. The sheer number of flowers to choose from can be overwhelming—but in a good way. I shot some images of the entire field but wanted to go a bit beyond the usual shot.

I like the Multiple Exposure feature that some cameras have, however, my Sony a1 does not have multiple exposures. So, the work around I used, is to take two separate images and merge them in Photoshop. The first shot I captured was an in-camera motion blur @1/8 seconds, handheld, natural light. The second image I captured was framed very similarly but for this one I took a very sharp image using a tripod with a reflector. In Photoshop, I overlaid the sharp image on top of the soft pleasing blur. I used a layer mask and the blend modes in Photoshop to apply sharpness in selective areas. The blur shot could have stood on its own, but by adding some sharpness to it in selective areas, I felt the photo had more impact.

*The above sunflower description is from my eBook- “Connecting with Nature”.