Join us as we learn how to create a sense of place in our photos!

Adrian Klein

Forest photography can be tough with scenes that often appear cluttered and chaotic at first view. Even in the most beautiful forests finding a composition from the smallest scene or lone tree to something wider can take patience and effort along with an open mind to what you might find. I will share my successes and challenges with forest and tree photography over the years. As someone who grew up surrounded by trees as a child, I find being around them not only enjoyable for photography but beneficial to our well-being.

Bio:

Adrian is fortunate to call the scenic and photogenic Pacific Northwest home. Born and raised in Oregon, he lives within 100 miles of the ocean, countless waterfalls, mountainous wilderness, and the high desert. His love of nature has nurtured his love of photography. He enjoys the experience as a photographer building connections with the places he visits, which has resulted in creating work that is meaningful to him. One of his great joys in photography is leading workshops and tours for other photographers to experience locations and grow in their art. Beyond his individual photography business, he is the founding member of the Photo Cascadia team with the purpose to learn, explore, and create.

Learn more about Adrian and his work on his website. 

Adrian will be supporting Friends of the Columbia Gorge with 5% from the registration fees donated to their mission.

Price: $22 (or as part of the entire series for only $77!)

Matt Payne

This presentation delves into the power of connecting deeply with the landscapes we photograph. By understanding the unique qualities of a place—its history, weather patterns, natural rhythms, and our own personal ties to it—we can craft images that resonate with authenticity and purpose. Drawing from years of experience capturing the most remote mountain landscapes of Colorado, I will share how a meaningful relationship with place enhances the creative process and infuses landscapes with emotion and narrative. We’ll explore techniques for planning and scouting, working with changing light and weather, and conveying the grand scale of scenes in a way that goes beyond mere technical skill. Whether you’re aiming to evoke the grandeur of a forest or the serenity of a coastal vista, connecting with the essence of a place can help create images that captivate and inspire.

Bio:

Matt Payne is a nature and landscape photographer based in Durango, Colorado, whose path has led him to a profound connection with nature that shapes both his work and lifestyle. Raised in Colorado, Matt spent much of his childhood outdoors, exploring the rugged surrounding mountains. Those early experiences instilled in him a fascination with nature and a lasting bond with the wilderness, ultimately inspiring him to capture landscapes in ways that reflect both their grandeur and fragility.

Photography was not always Matt’s primary focus. Initially, he approached these landscapes as a climber and mountaineer, eager to explore and conquer Colorado’s iconic fourteeners. Driven by a passion for the heights and the challenges they presented, Matt spent countless hours navigating these landscapes. In 2012, he completed Colorado’s 14ers, and by 2018, he had achieved his goal of climbing the state’s highest 100 mountains. Along the way, his relationship with the mountains evolved; rather than merely summiting peaks, he wanted to capture the beauty that had inspired him all along. Photography became his outlet to share these experiences and convey the immense scale, isolation, and magic of these remote places.

Matt strives to capture landscapes in ways that are both truthful and ethical. In recent years, he has become increasingly vocal about responsible editing and avoiding deceptive practices, as he believes nature’s beauty speaks for itself without exaggeration. Advocating strongly for conservation, he feels a deep responsibility to protect these landscapes and promote ethical photography practices. For Matt, respecting the land always comes first, as photographers hold significant influence in presenting nature to the world.

Through his podcast, “F-Stop Collaborate and Listen,” Matt connects with photographers and industry leaders globally. The podcast provides a space for meaningful discussions on photography, ethics, and the challenges faced in an era of rapid environmental change. It has become a way to explore a range of perspectives within the photography community, from well-established names to emerging voices. These conversations have influenced Matt’s work and fostered a broader understanding of the collective responsibility photographers share.

Beyond technique and ethics, Matt’s philosophy on landscape photography is deeply personal. For him, photography goes beyond the final image—it’s about the journey, adventure, and moments of solitude in nature. Each photograph represents a piece of that experience, serving as a way to connect with the landscape, honor it, and share its beauty to inspire others to cherish and protect it.

Matt is also the co-founder of Nature First Photography, an organization established in 2018 to raise ethical awareness in nature photography. Additionally, he is the co-creator of the Natural Landscape Photography Awards, an international competition that celebrates nature photographers dedicated to realistic photography and editing practices.

You can learn more about Matt and his work on his website.

Matt will be supporting Rocky Mountain Field Institute with 5% from the registration fees donated to their mission.

Price: $22 (or as part of the entire series for only $77!)

Wayne Suggs

Desert landscapes can be chaotic, and then sometimes absolute nothingness. What is the best way to find meaningful compositions? Previsualization or heading out with no pre-conceived photograph in your head and letting the light dictate your scene?

Bio:

Wayne Suggs, a New Mexico native, has been photographing the Southwest for almost 50 years. His love for the landscape was ingrained in him through family explorations and camping trips with his parents and siblings. For Wayne, pressing the shutter is secondary to experiencing the wild places, solitude, and being completely immersed in nature. Photography has provided him the opportunity to explore even more, to give back, and to be a voice for the environment.
Wayne has expanded his work from not only the Desert Southwest, but to South America, Antarctica, and Canada. This Spring he’ll spend time in Ireland and this summer, the African country of Zambia.
Wayne’s work can be seen in many local and national publications. He has authored five books, with his latest coffee table book, The Color of Dreams. He was the 2014 Grand Prize Winner of the New Mexico Magazine Photography Contest. He won the prestigious Oliver award for his nightwork with petroglyphs. In 2019 and 2020 he was included in the top International Landscape Photographer of the year awards. Wayne currently leads workshops for Muench Workshops. His work can be seen in galleries throughout the State of New Mexico and on his website.

Wayne will be supporting Defenders of Wildlife with 5% from the registration fees donated to their mission.

Price: $22 (or as part of the entire series for only $77!)

Francesco Gola

During this presentation, Francesco will share his entire creative process for capturing seascape images that evoke emotions. After introducing the equipment he uses and recommends, he will demonstrate how planning plays a crucial and decisive role in capturing an evocative image. Through the analysis of images taken in different situations, Francesco will explain the technical, compositional, and editing choices that allowed him to achieve the final image. Plenty of time will be dedicated to practical tips and audience questions.

Bio:

Francesco Gola is an engineer who’s fallen in love with photography. Born in Italy in 1981, as soon as he started taking pictures he fell in love with long exposures of seascapes. For him, a long exposure is a parallel universe in which to escape from the frenzy of modern life. His passion for the sea and for travels let him visit some of the most iconic locations on this planet, looking at them with different eyes.

Inspired by the romantic painters William Turner and Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky, Francesco developed a special emotional relationship with nature that is clearly expressed through his seascape photographs.

Now Francesco lives and teaches photography in Milan where he collaborates with companies, sites and magazines for the diffusion of photographic culture in Italy and in the world.

Learn more about Francesco on his website.

Francesco will be supporting Sea Shepherd with 5% from the registration fees donated to our mission.

Price: $22 (or as part of the entire series for only $77!)