with Joseph Rossbach & Eric Bennett

The Badlands of the San Rafael Swell is one of my favorite areas to photograph in the world. With their folding layers, surreal colors, and beautiful designs, they are an artistic playground for any nature photographer. Whether you are photographing with a telephoto lens on a tripod, or flying overhead with a drone, there are endless perspectives and possibilities for making captivating images on any scale. In this five day workshop, Joseph and I will be showing you some of our favorite areas to photograph and sharing our knowledge and creative approach to help you bring your personal vision to life. 

For this workshop in the Badlands just outside of Hanksville, UT, you will need to drive yourself around. However, we highly encourage carpooling in order to lessen our impact and save on fuel and make it easier to find parking in smaller areas. On the first day, we will meet in the afternoon for opening presentations then head out to photograph the sunset. Days 2-4 will allow us to photograph both in the morning for sunrise and in the evening through sunset with some time during the day to rest and recharge. On day five, the workshop will conclude after photographing sunrise in time to check out from the hotel. Following the workshop, we will meet together over zoom for a group image review where Joseph and I will provide you with some feedback and editing suggestions for a few of your photographs taken during the workshop. 

 Since Eric and I are both very familiar with this area, we have plenty of must-see locations on the itinerary. However, we will remain flexible in order to make last minute decisions based on lighting and weather conditions in order to be in whichever spot we feel would be best. On some days, we will be photographing right next to our vehicles, and on others, we may hike out a little in order to get better perspectives. There will be very little elevation gain and our longest hike will likely be no more than 3 miles roundtrip. We also encourage you to bring your drone if you own one, although it is not necessary and there is plenty to photograph with just a DSLR and telephoto lens. 

This workshop will be suitable for any photography skill level, whether you are just getting started or have been at it for a long time. If you are a beginner with a drone, this wide open expanse is the perfect place to learn without worrying about crashing into anything. We are both well experienced in teaching basic photo theory and camera settings. But really, what we are most passionate about is teaching our unique philosophies and approaches to nature photography, which will allow you to really think outside of the box to capture unique images regardless of the weather conditions. The badlands are a great place to experiment and explore your creativity!

While the price of lodging is not included in the workshop, we will help facilitate affordable lodging in Hanksville where we have already blocked out hotel rooms for you. We will reach out with more details after you register. 

Unless you are driving out in your own vehicle, for traveling to Hanksville where the workshop will be based, the nearest airports are Salt Lake City, UT: SLC (3 hour drive) or Grand Junction, CO: GJT (2 hour drive).