June 24-28, 2021 Olympic Peninsula Workshop Announced!

I received good news this morning. The NP service has agreed to issue me a permit for a last minute Olympic National Park Workshop June 24-28, 2021. I checked with local hotels and there are openings. I am going to stick to the same itinerary as my recent May trip with some possible additions. My guides said that the snow may be melted by the 23rd in some of the locations we were not able to get to in May so I am hopeful for that.

I know that many of you have had your international trips cancelled. I need at least 5 people to make this trip a go. TO SIGN UP CLICK HERE. unless you have a credit you would like to use—then email me. If the trip does not fill all money collected will be promptly refunded.

Join Denise Ippolito and local naturalist Roy Kropp for a five day photo adventure through three distinct ecosystems; Rain forests, coastal beaches and glaciated peaks. We will experience forests covered in moss and ferns, Big leaf maples, Douglas firs and Sitka spruce. Roosevelt Elk frequent the rain forests and are visible from the trails. Waterfalls and cascades galore. On the coast we will photograph sunsets, ocean sea stacks, and tide pools.

Participants will learn to “embrace the chaos” as many of the scenes can feel overwhelming at first. Learning to recognize and extract a good composition will be paramount for this trip. Another great lesson on this workshop will be to “fear no light” — learning how to see light in the forest and use it to your advantage takes a bit of getting use to.

Our schedule will need to be flexible and may include locations such as: Sol Duc Falls, The Hoh Rain Forest, Ruby Beach, Rialto Beach and Lake Crescent, Hurricane Ridge, Salt Creek, Madison Falls, Upper Dungeness, Marymere Falls, Moments in Time Trail and more.

Participants should be physically fit and able to walk at least two miles at one time, most trails are level and easy with some being a little but more rugged but still very doable. We will not be walking at a fast pace since photography is our goal-not hiking. Photoshop and image sharing sessions via a Zoom session after the workshop-unless we encounter rain.

A detailed PDF file will be sent upon registration. Please check your schedules carefully before signing up, I have rearranged my schedule to conduct this workshop and will not be able to issue refunds or credits for cancellations. Thank you for understanding.

Meet & Greet 7:00pm at our hotel on June 23. (address and details given at sign-up).

Our bases for this trip are: Port Angeles and Forks, Washington. Participants should plan to fly in and out of Seattle Washington and drive to Port Angeles, Washington. It is best to plan your flights home in the late afternoon of the 28th.

*Please note meals, lodging, park fees and transportation are not included in the price of the workshop.

*For the health and safety of all participants, proof of vaccination or a negative PCR viral COVID-19 test result within 72 hours of departure is required.

The Green Machine

Deer Fern

Sword Fern Curlicues

Western Sword Fern- a quick grab shot.

I have always loved pattern shots and that may explain my love for blurs. The repeating lines really appeal to me. Maybe that is why ferns are so fascinating to me. All during my workshop I kept hearing the words “the green machine”. I imagine that the ferns of the forests along with the mosses are two of the main green ingredients that make exploring the Peninsula so grand. I have been told that fall in ONP is also spectacular with splashes of red and orange.

When creating a pattern shot like the Pacific Oak Fern & Deer Fern images above, I make sure that my sensor is parallel to the ferns so that I have maximum depth of fields. I used a wide open aperture to capture the sword fern curlicues.

Olympic National Park Workshop Trip Report

I recently returned home from a much-needed forest bathing extravaganza. Joining me on the trip out to Washington State was good friend and photographer Jim Fennessy. Our first day consisted of meeting up with old friends Marian and Michel Bodart and their two most adorable dogs. Marian and her husband edit some of my eBooks and I get along so well with Marian it almost doesn’t feel like work. She is generous in self and spirit and I couldn’t imagine a day in Washington without her. She invited Jim and me to a special fox photo session. I posted some of my images in my previous post and will try to share more as time allows.

Now onto the workshop report. Joining me as local guides were Roy Kropp and Jim Hagen. Roy is a biologist and considers himself more of a naturalist than a guide. BUT they were both fantastic guides as they know Olympic National Park and they both hike and photograph it on an almost daily basis. Check them out on Facebook. Did I mention how much fun they are? Putting the two together almost always spells a good time.

I had a genuinely nice group of photographers, I enjoyed working with all of them. We had great weather (not one rainy day-whoohoo!). Because we had such nice weather, I opted to do a Zoom program on Sunday for our Photoshop/image review which allowed us more time in the field.

As many of you know lots of my international workshops have been postponed so I am working on a few domestic workshops, maybe even a fall Olympic National Park workshop and will announce them once I know for certain which ones are not going to happen.

Here is a sampling of the photos I captured during my time on the Olympic Peninsula, WA. I absolutely love it there and wish I lived closer. It is an inspiring place. The shots don’t jump up and hit you -you need to work for each shot and that makes a great challenge. Lots of reviewing and sharing in the field. Fun, fun, fun!

I have a blog post coming up with a few more of my favorite photos from the workshop- ferns and more ferns…

I’m considering another trip to ONP in the fall if anyone is interested. My guides say that it is fabulous that time of year.

The Hoh Rainforest

I love trees so much and a dense stand always catches my eye.

Nikon D850 (I borrowed Jim’s camera, since I brought just the IR with me on the hike). I had to handhold at 1/10 second so it is not as tack sharp as I would like. This shot was captured on a hike the day after the workshop -the road was really bad going up to this trailhead this year and also it is a very long hike so we took it off the program. Upper Dungeness.

Embrace the chaos… These are not mosses but rather lichen. Mosses are plants and Lichens are complex organisms. It’s good to have a biologist handy! I’m Lichen this one-haha.

A high-key tree shot. I liked the depth that was created with the leaves in front of the trees.

We called this Silver Tip!

Look up!

Lots of chaos bu the sweep of the branches and the unique color caught my eye.

Slow shutter speed to make the leaves soft with an impressionism feel.

Marymere Falls. I blended two images together for this one.

When we arrived at Lake Crescent the fog was so dense that we could not see the other side.

Sunset at Ruby Beach.

Hurricane Ridge

Sunrise at Hurricane Ridge

Silver Vixen and Kit

I spent a day with friends photographing Red Fox in the Pacific Northwest before meeting up with my group for my Olympic National Park Workshop. I only had one photoshoot with the fox but it was a most enjoyable day. A special thanks to my friend Marian for the invite. I will be posting a trip report on my ONP workshop soon, but I wanted to share this experience with you first.

Our morning started out just before sunrise. We watched as two Red Fox played in the distance and before long the light came up and a den filled with the cutest black fox with white tipped tails along with one adorable tan fox became active. All the kits played and waited patiently for the two females in charge of the den to return with food. Both vixens came back with mouths filled with 2-3 voles.

The kits were anxious to grab the meal and run off with their portion. Some caching their meat and others playing with it for some time. Mom was still nursing, and the kits were very well cared for. There was a special bond between the rambunctious tan kit featured above and the silver vixen. I decided to concentrate my efforts on them as they were inseparable and the love between them undeniable.

I’ll share more of my fox images soon but first I need to get caught up on sleep, emails and spreadsheets…

The Nesting Spot

Years ago, a pair of Robins built their nest right inside my porch about 3 feet from my front door on top of a pillar. I first noticed all kinds of nesting material and bird excrement before seeing the actual nest. It was partially built so we gave the family room to grow. For weeks we gingerly opened and closed the door to leave. We would not let our dog out through the front door and quiet was the word of the month! I felt like I was walking on eggshells-forgive the pun, I couldn’t help it.

Soon the chicks hatched, the new family was loud and proud. One day when I came home, I saw a dead chick (very underdeveloped) on my front porch. It was a sad thing to see.  I made sure that when all the other Robins fledged, I put something up to block future nests.

It was hard to find something that would fit the space and not look sloppy. I couldn’t find a small owl statue so I settled on an eight-inch gargoyle, they are pretty scary. I bought one for my front porch and one for my upstairs deck (just in case). For years, the Robins and other birds found alternate accommodations, and all was well in the Ippolito household.

One night we had a bad storm with whipping winds that were almost tornado-like. Lots of rain and knocked down trees and branches everywhere. My downstairs gargoyle did not survive the storm – it was busted into small pieces on the ground.  Not having anything else I crumpled up a large white plastic bag and put it in the spot.

Ya, that didn’t work for very long. By early spring I saw the makings of a new nest…here we go again. This time it is a House Finch. She has at least three hatchlings -- who by the way are growing quickly. I can always tell when it’s feeding time as the noise is amplified on my porch. I am careful not to go in and out of the front door as much as possible and I am giving them their space, but I have already bought a new Bluebird statue for the “nesting spot”.