Whales - Cape Cod

We had an exceptional whale watch on July 23rd.  Having been on many whale watches, this was my first time experiencing Humpback Whales bubble feeding.  This method of feeding behavior is when the whales blow clouds or rings of bubbles around a school of fish. The bubbles then rise around the fish which are trapped inside the column of rising bubbles while the whales rise up with their mouths open and trap the fish using baleen as the filtering mechanism. “Bubble feeding”  is unique to the Humpback whales.We were also fortunate to watch a fairly recent feeding method that has been adopted by the Humpback Whales - "Kick feeding" where the whale pounds the surface of the water with its tail before diving and blowing a bubble ring.  It is believed that the tail pounding stuns the fish and makes them easier to catch.All Monica's images were captured using a Panasonic Lumix GX8 and the Lumix 35 - 100 mm f/2.8 lens    

TWiP - Your Itinerary - my chat with Host Rob Knight

It was a pleasure to meet Rob Knight at Photo Plus Expo the end of October.  Rob is the host for "Your Itinerary" on the ever expanding TWiP network.  Frederick van Johnson is sure building and building fast.  Thank you Rob for a wonderful discussion and thanks to the TWiP team for adding Your Itinerary to the mix.Here is the text from the podcast page:"Your Itinerary this week features my interview with published photographer, educator and workshop leader Shiv Verma. Shiv and I were chatting at the Photo Plus Expo in New York last month, and I thought you would be interested to hear where our conversation took us.Shiv and I both lead photography workshops, and we both strive to offer something to our clients beyond locations and instruction. Anyone can take people to beautiful places and show them around. Providing a unique experience is what makes the difference between the average photo tour and something wonderful that clients will remember for the rest of their lives.Shiv and I begin by discussing travel, photography and scouting locations, but we ended up trading tips for creating unique trips and providing great experiences for clients. Whether you’re planning a trip, looking for a photo workshop or planning a workshop yourself, I think you’ll find this week’s episode very interesting."Hope you enjoy and appreciate what TWiP is doing for the photographic community.Click Here to go to the TWiP podcast

SW Florida Workshop Update

There are a few spots open for the South West Florida Workshop.  For those planning on getting away and having some fun in the sun photographing birds and landscapes the discounted rates at the hotel require reservations before February 20th.  So make sure you book as soon as possible.  If you any problems making reservations please ask for Jennifer Campbell.Here is a link to the information flier for the workshop Florida 2012

Comments from this weekend's Macro and Close-up workshop participants

I would like to express my sincerest thanks to all the participants who attended the workshop this weekend.  Most of all thanks for your wonderful comments - I am glad you all came away with something of value from the session.Comments from the participants:Shiv is a very knowledgeable photography instructor. He presents his material so that everyone can understand the concepts. He was very thorough and open to answering students' questions. He gave out a lot of useful, practical information that was well worth the price of the course.This workshop was fantastic. I would recommend it to anyone that wants to learn about Macro or Micro Photography.Nothing beats this small group format for a workshop. It really provides a one on one feeling in addition to getting to practice what you learned with your peers. All this plus having someone there with Shiv's expertise to answer and questions, which he encourages you to ask, makes for a great learning experience. I would do this again in a heartbeat. -MattThis workshop was very informative from the presentation right through to the hands on. Shiv's skill as a workshop leader comes with his ability to articulate difficult concepts in a way for the lay person to understand. I highly recommend!!The information flowed well-the presentation was easy to follow. hands on with instructor assistance was outstanding. I would attend another seminar/workshop by Shiv any time. Bob B.Your work lead me to believe that I could learn something from you. Just didn't realize how much. You packed a lot into this workshop....well worth the price.Really enjoyed this and would do it again in a heartbeat.After attending many workshops, this is one of the best. Concepts around macro shooting are difficult to understand and your examples were clear and helped me immensely! I truly appreciate your ability to articulate a concept clearly and concisely. Thanks for a great day...inviting house, lunch and lots of things to work on!I particularly like how other participants more experienced help out those with less. I felt people were not intimated at all and were free to acknowledge their weaknesses and learn...you helped a great deal with that by announcing that no question was weak...everyone learns something.Depending on one's own level of experience...more experienced photographer will get more and those with less, get less but everyone comes away with something...a sign of success in my book. No presenter can meet everyone's needs but can make an impact even in a small way.The presentation included a lot more detail and information than I expected.

Macro and Close-up Workshop on March 11 is now full.

The March Macro and Close-up  workshop is now full.  I may consider another one in the spring.  If you are interested please let me know via email s.verma@me.com.

Macro & Close-up Photography Repeat Session - March 11, 2012

Black Eye Susan Stacked Focus Result

I will be repeating the 1 day Macro and Close-up photography workshop on Sunday March 11, 2012.  We will start at 9:30 AM and conclude at 5:00 PM.  A pizza lunch is included.In this macro photography workshop you will learn how to take beautiful macro photos like a pro. You’ll be able to take eye catching macro and close-up photos with great detail and sharpness.Click on this Macro & Closeup March 11 link for full details and a description of the program.

Looking Back at 2011

2011 was an interesting year in a lot of respects.  Most important and foremost I would like to thank all of you who participated in my photo tours, educational workshops and one-on-one lessons.  I would also like to thank all my photography clients both individuals and  corporations and my sponsors, you have all been fantastic and I look forward to your continued support in the coming years.I truly enjoyed meeting and making new friends and the process of learning from each other.  The incredible experiences in Florida, Alaska, Colorado, Cape Cod, Maine, and New Hampshire and all the one day trips in and around Massachusetts will never be forgotten.After many months of planning the 2012 schedule is about ready to be published.  Most significant are the photo tours and workshops to India in February, Florida for another great bird photograpy workshop in March,  Smokeys in the Spring  -  this starts the year.  Keep an eye out for details and more information as we post it in the workshop pages on this blog.Also planned are a number of one and two day sessions for macro, lighting, composition, Lightroom and Photoshop training.  As always, customized one-on-one programs are also available.None of this would have been possible without the incredible amount of planning and organizing by my photograpy partner and loving wife - thank you M.

Glorious Acadia Workshop Report

It sure has been a crazy week - returned from a fabulous 3 day workshop in Acadia.  Despite all the issues with the hotel closing we got rooms at a decent motel one mile from the park entrance.  Some rain the first afternoon resulted in staying indoors but the next two days were perfect.  The winds on Saturday were a force to be reckoned with.  It was impossible to keep the camera steady with constant gusts.Here are a two more images.This was shot with a 2 second exposure to tame the ocean a bit. One bit of creativity:

Mother and Child - Cape Cod Workshop

Going through some of the images from the final day of the workshop I came across this one from Coast Guard beach.  Shot during the midday hours in contrasty light the monochromatic treatment appealed to me.  I took it one step further and applied the antique plate effect from NIK Silver Efex Pro.

Macro and Close-up Photography Workshop - Update

The August 20th workshop was a small group and provided the attendees a lot of personalized attention.  The use of focus stacking was a great hit.  Next is a one-on-one all day session with one of my worship attendees from last month.  Looking forward to that.

 Rose - A 24 Image Focus Stack at f 2.8

Here is a survey comment from one of my participants:

"Shiv is an excellent instructor, knows how to make concepts understandable, and is extremely knowledgeable. No matter what level of photography you are at, he will make sure you you grasp what he is presenting. He uses simple exercises to illustrate the effects he presents so you fully see the reasoning behind his instruction."

ALASKA - Lake Clark

Have been so busy with the workshops and collecting entries for the PSA International that I have had barely any time to review and process the images from the Alaska Tour.  Blogging for each day may not be feasible so I will cover the trip in short individual blogs interspersed with all my other crazy activities.  Part one of the tour was Lake Clark a relatively small area Southwest of Anchorage.  Lake Clark is at the junction of three mountain ranges with two volcanoes Iliama and Redoubt.  The east coast has rain forests while the West is is tundra and lakes.  There are no roads to the park so we flew in from Anchorage in small planes that landed on the beach.Day one, as we approached the the lodge, high in the pines we sighted our first Bald Eagle. 

Bald Eagle - Day 1

After a quick instructional lecture we headed off to vast areas of  sedges and beach.  The later part of June is too early for salmon runs so the Coastal Brown Bear feed on sedge grass and will also go the the beach to hunt for clams.  the following are a few Coastal Brown Bears from Day 1.

Coastal Brown Bear eating sedge

Coastal Brown Bear Searching for Clams

Sow and First Year Cub Playing in Sedges

Day two to follow soon................. 

Plymouth - Macro & Close-up - Part 1

Despite poor weather I had a great turnout for Part 1 of a two part series on Macro and CLose-up photography.  65 plus attended.  Great feedback from the participants.  Part 2 (the hand on session) will be this weekend and as there is a sizable waiting list,  August 20 will be a repeat of Part 2.  Thanks to Amy  Davies and Graham Custard for organizing the program and a big thank you to all who attended.A few comments from part one as posted on the Plymouth Groups web:

• I thoroughly enjoyed this lecture, punctuated with examples and humor. It reminded me of my University days, listening to a professor, a true master and genius in his own specialty. A privilege to attend and absorb the information. But .... I have so far to travel in this macro journey !
• Great presentation; a lot of information to look over. I can't wait to go to Part II and actually do what Shiv was talking about.
• Very interesting and I learned alot
• While Shiv was clear and precise and had a lot of information to give it was way beyond anything I would venture into......but thank you for inviting him to share his EXPERT knowledge with all of us.....thank YOU Shiv.........
•  Thanks, Shiv! I appreciated all the tips that you had to offer and look forward to learning how it is all done on Saturday! Thanks once again, Amy for opening yet another wonderful venue for all of us at PDP !
• Very well organized! Looking forward to class on Saturday!
•  A very enlightening evening! If I heard Shiv correctly, I need to pack some aluminum foil, my granite counter top, and toothpicks for Saturday's shoot. I may add a camera just in case.
• Excellent presentation. Filled with tons of details about macro and photography in general. I left with a number of new insights.
• Still trying to process all of the information given out tonite, it was wonderful, intereting, entertaining, what a skilled professional!
• Excellent presentation. Hopefully will be able to participate in the 2nd part to this lecture when it is scheduled again.

Macro & Close-Up Photography Workshop - Cape Cod Art Association - July 24, 2011

The workshop at the Cape Cod Art Association was a great day despite the occasional rain that did prevent the attendees from photographing in the rain.  Rain drop covered flowers and grasses made for some beautiful images.  Will post a few images created by the attendees when the submit.Below are a few quotes from the attendees:"I thought I knew something about macro photography. This class showed me I had a lot more to learn. Having both classroom and hands on was valuable as was then looking at the work. I thoroughly enjoyed this workshop!""Close Up photography has always been a challenge for me. This course was very helpful in better understanding macro techniques and the various camera accessories that are available to further enhance the effort. I am finally able to look forward to taking close up photos with confidence and enthusiasm."