Mini Waterfall Workshops with Mike Osborne

Announcing two "Waterfalls of Yosemite Valley" Workshops with the local photographer Mike Osborne. First workshop is April 29 & 30, second is May 20 & 21. Both are scheduled to take full advantage of spring conditions with the spectacular landscape of Yosemite Valley for inspiration.

These one and a half day workshops will allow you to visit many of the best viewpoints to photograph the Valley's fabled waterfalls. In addition to sharing photographic tips and expertise, each session will cover the factors that make each waterfall individual as well as spectacular: its geology, watershed, water cycle & volume, and the contributions of glaciation and erosion to its current presentation. We will also briefly examine how the manifestations of global climate change have been affecting the waterfalls in recent years.

The primary goal of this workshop is to send participants home with wonderful images of Yosemite. Because there is so much to see in a short day and a half, this workshop will not include any indoor class time. Students will be out shooting the entire day and a half covering standard workshop topics such as exposure, aperture & shutter speed considerations, composition, etc. in the field.

Mike has actively photographed nature in Yosemite and other wild places for over thirty-five years. His images have been used in promotional programs and literature supporting the Yosemite Fund and the Yosemite Association. He is the author of the book Granite, Water & Light , an interpretive and photographic paean to the waterfalls of Yosemite Valley. Mike also recently participated in a five-year project visually celebrating the Yosemite Wilderness with four other photographers. Sponsored by the Yosemite Fund, a book of their images called First Light: Five Photographers Explore the Yosemite Wilderness was also published in 2009.

Lodging for both workshops is reserved at The Yosemite View Lodge just outside the park in El Portal. Please see our website for more information.

Upcoming Spring Wildflower Paint Out Event for Sierra Foothill Conservancy

Celebrating The Land With Art! March 13 at the McKenzie Reserve

An exciting event featuring the Sierra foothills is taking shape. It's called "The Foothills en Plein Air". “En Plein Air” is a French term that means in the open air. When combined with painting it means artists paint directly from the landscape, as it appears at that moment.

Sierra Foothill Conservancy is inviting a selection of local and nationally-known artists to paint the foothill lands protected by the Sierra Foothill Conservancy. Artists' perspectives have historically been significant in public awareness and support for various movements and regions. For example, John Muir's writings and Ansel Adams' photographs demonstrate how an artist is able to create intimate expressions that connect with the public and remain in our consciousness.

As artists paint our local foothills en plein air, they will capture the fleeting light and colors that make this work unique and exciting. Sierra Foothill Conservancy's 17,000 acres of protected land includes a variety of habitat types: seasonal creeks, unique geologic formations, oak studded rolling hills and savannas, oak woodlands, working ranches, open meadows, and dense conifer forests.

The Foothill Invitational Exhibition will take place in Fresno (location TBA) and the Embarcadero Invitational Exhibition at the spacious San Francisco office atrium of EDAW/AECOM. Both events are tentatively scheduled for August of 2010, specific dates to be determined. Proceeds from sales at these events will benefit Sierra Foothill Conservancy.

You have an upcoming opportunity to observe the artists at work on Sierra Foothill Conservancy landscapes and enjoy a picnic amongst the blooming wildflowers of the McKenzie Reserve in the foothills outside Fresno California.Watch paintings emerge during these Paint Out Events and see those same landscapes on display at one of the exhibitions.

Next Public Paint Out Event is March 13 at the McKenzie Reserve! For more information please see the Sierra Foothill Conservancy website.


See photos of our first paint out at Trabucco Ranch held on November 14, 2009

Happy Birthday Ansel Adams!

"At one with the power of the American landscape, and renowned for the patient skill and timeless beauty of his work, photographer Ansel Adams has been a visionary in his efforts to preserve this country's wild and scenic areas, both on film and on Earth. Drawn to the beauty of nature's monuments, he is regarded by environmentalists as a monument himself, and by photographers as a national institution. It is through his foresight and fortitude that so much of America has been saved for future Americans."

President James E. Carter
Presenting Ansel Adams with the Presidential Medal of Freedom

Celebrate Ansel Adams Birthday with 10% off
Ansel Adams Yosemite Photographs, Archival Replicas, Posters and Matted Reproductions

Yosemite Renaissance XXV Awards Reception Friday, February 26, 2010

Happy 25th Anniversary!
Yosemite Renaissance XXV: An Exhibition of Contemporary Art of Yosemite and the Sierra

Celebrating its 25th season, the Yosemite Renaissance is an annual competition/exhibition which is intended to encourage diverse artistic interpretations of Yosemite. Its goals are to bring together the works of serious contemporary artists that do not simply duplicate traditional representations; to establish a continuum with past generations of Yosemite artists; and to help re-establish visual art as a major interpretive medium of the landscape and a stimulus to the protection of the environment. Historically, the arts have played a very important role in the establishment of our State and National Parks. It is the hope that they can be just as important in future efforts to preserve and protect that heritage.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, February 27 and will run through Sunday, May 2, 2010. The public is invited to the Awards Reception on Friday, February 26, 2010, from 5:30 to 7:30. A list of the exhibiting artists is available on the Yosemite Renaissance website.

The Yosemite Renaissance is a non-profit organization for the arts of Yosemite, supported in part by funds and services from the Mariposa County Board of Supervisors, Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts, the National Park Service and The Ansel Adams Gallery.

Winter/Spring Travel Deals to Yosemite

Travel Zoo, a leading publisher of travel deals, evaluates and tests thousands of published offers to find those with true value.

Their top destination for travel deals this week is Yosemite. Now is a great time to make your plans to visit.

Golden Hour- The Color of Light by Keith Walklet

Photographers speak fondly of the golden hour of light just after sunrise and just prior to sunset, a brief window of time that features lower contrast, warmer hues and pronounced shadows that typically add drama to the scene, and are easier to capture on transparency film or digitally. Hence, conventional wisdom dictates that the most compelling color landscape images are typically made within the first two and last two hours of the day.

In the summer months when there can be nearly 16 hours of daylight in Yosemite, the time between the first and last two hours of the day can seem like an eternity. Not so November through March, when one hardly has an opportunity to put the camera away. And that’s just midday.

Have you ever stared in disbelief at the color of light in image of a Yosemite sunset? Have you noticed how many of those images depict autumn, winter and early spring scenes?

Here’s the secret: The color of the light in Yosemite gets warmer in the cooler months.......

Read more of Keith's article here!

New Ansel Adams Exhibit Opens at the Phoenix Art Museum

Ansel Adams: Discoveries

Ansel Adams: Discoveries offers new insights into the photographer’s greatest works by bringing the vast holdings of the Center’s Ansel Adams Archive to light. The exhibition—featuring 120 photographs and dozens of archival documents including video footage, original correspondence, photographic equipment, proof prints, alternate views, negatives, and portraits of the photographer—allows for a richer understanding of Adams’ beloved photographs.

Exhibit runs through June 6, 2010. See the Phoenix Art Museum website for more information.