Visible, highly active and often colorful and songful, birds bring much joy and inspiration to people’s lives. Birding, or birdwatching, is now perhaps the most popular pastime in the United States.
Simple and inexpensive, learning to identify birds or just enjoying their behaviors and interactions is fun and enriching. Learning how important they are to the ecosystem that supports all life deepens our connection to them and our appreciation of their role on the earth.Photographing birds can add another dimension of pleasure to the activity, and sharing your images with family and friends spreads the enjoyment–and perhaps will stimulate them to pay more attention to the bird life and activity around their homes.
Want to learn how to shoot them–with your camera!–? If you already photograph birds, would you like to improve your techniques and get better results? Are you curious about places to go for bird photography? Trying to decide what gear to buy? Perplexed and puzzled by picture processing? The Yosemite Area Audubon Society will offer the opportunity for local residents to get answers to these questions in May.
Save the dates: If you want to capture those fleeting moments when birds pause within your camera’s viewfinder, join noted bird photographer Ashok Khosla, president of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society, and his team of experienced bird photographers to get the personalized training that will improve the pictures of your birding experiences.
Khosla, whose work has been extensively published, leads nature photography tours and teaches nature photography at the University of Alaska. This workshop, “Bird Photography in the Field,” will improve the drama of your photos and bring home more keepers.
The class has three parts–an evening class to discuss bird photography techniques, a morning session in the field, and an afternoon session learning how to post-process your digital images. All levels of photographic skills are welcome to join, as are digiscopers.
An introductory session, “Learning How to Shoot in the Field,” will open the workshop Wednesday, May 8, from 7 to 10 p.m.
“Shooting in the Field” will follow on Saturday, May 11, from 7 a.m. to 12 noon, and after a no-host lunch, there will be a session on “Learning How to Process Your Digital Pictures using Adobe Lightroom,” from 1 to 5 p.m.
The location of the workshop, in either Mariposa or Oakhurst, is yet to be determined. The location will be posted on the YAAS website, www.yosemiteaudubon.org, and announced through the media when that decision is made.
Class size is limited to 15 participants. The cost will be $65 for YAAS members and $80 for non-members, which will include membership in the YAAS. For more information, call (209) 742-5579 or visit www.yosemiteaudubon.org. For questions about the class, contact Ashok at ashok@seeingbirds.com.
Khosla will also present “Landscapes, Memories, and Love – Arctic Adventure by Ashok Khosla” at the May 9 YAAS program in Oakhurst. The presentation is scheduled for 7 p.m at the Oakhurst Methodist Church.
