Wildlife Workshop with Kiawah Island Photo Club

This week I had the great pleasure of working with the Kiawah Island Photo Club as their instructor during a private Wildlife Workshop that was held at the Center for Birds of Prey!

Under the care of Stephen Schabel (Director of Education), we had a fantastic time learning about these amazing hawks, falcons, kites, storks, kestrels, vultures, and owls. It was very rewarding for me, helping everyone figure out the best settings and techniques to capture these beautiful creatures. But the most amazing part was seeing the wonder and awe on the participant’s faces as they experienced these majestic birds up close and personal!

After a fun day together, we all set our cameras down and enjoyed an insightful behind-the-scenes tour of the operating rooms and rehabilitation facility.

Many thanks to Kimberly and Gordon from the Kiawah Island Photo Club, as well as Mandy, Stephen, and Katie from the Center for Birds of Prey for organizing this fabulous program!!!

“Tack Sharp Photos of Birds-in-Flight”

I’m super honored and very excited to have been featured in the popular blog, Travel Notes & Storytelling: https://www.travelnotesandstorytelling.com/tack-sharp-photos-of-birds-in-flight/?

Marie Goff is the talent behind this informative and entertaining blog site. It was her love of adventure and learning that led Marie to join the military. After a long career with the National Guard, she continues that love of adventure and learning through her travels and her writing.

“I travel, take pictures, and write stories, to learn and inspire others. Near or far, every destination is unique, exhilarating, and fresh. I strive to capture these in every story, especially highlighting people and places, and current events that shape the experiences.”

Wanting to improve her photography techniques for photographing birds and other wildlife, Marie joined my workshop at the Center for Birds of Prey this past fall: https://www.thecenterforbirdsofprey.org/visit/special_events/instructor-led-photography-workshop/. We all had a fantastic time learning tips and tricks to improve our capture-rate of these beautiful creatures. Marie’s blog post shares about her experience, her success, and what she learned.

I hope you’ll visit her blog and subscribe to her email list. Enjoy!

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Wildlife Workshop at Center for Birds of Prey

I had the pleasure of leading another fun workshop at The Center for Birds of Prey last weekend! 🙂 Many thanks to Mandy Feavel for all her hard work putting it together. And what a treat to work with the amazing educators, Jessie Curry and Natalie Hendrickson, again!!!

https://www.thecenterforbirdsofprey.org/visit/special_events/instructor-led-photography-workshop/

“Join expert photographer, Chris Smith of Chris & Cami Photography, for an in-depth workshop focusing on the photographic study of birds of prey, both in motion and while perching.”

A special thank you also goes to THINK TANK PHOTO and RetouchUp for their support with some generous door prizes. And a HUGE shout out to all the attendees. You guys were AWESOME!!!

I’ve included a bunch of the behind-the-scenes shots from the day. Please feel free to share, tag yourselves, and enjoy these images of you in action!

Avian, Avian Conservation Center, Bird, Birds of Prey, Center for Birds of Prey, Charleston Center for Birds of Prey, Charleston Nature Photographer, Charleston Wildlife Photographer, Chris & Cami Photography, D5, D500, Eagle, Falcon, Feather, Flight, Hawk, Kestrel, Kite, Mt. Pleasant Nature Photographer, Mt. Pleasant Wildlife Photographer, Nikkor, Nikon, Nikon Love, Nikon Pro, Nikon USA, Owl, Wing

Wildlife Photography Workshop at Center for Birds of Prey

This past weekend, I had the honor of leading the second annual Wildlife Photography Workshop at the Center for Birds of Prey: http://www.thecenterforbirdsofprey.org/visit/special_events/instructor-led-photography-workshop/.

We had an AMAZING time photographing these amazing creatures, learning new techniques, acquiring new skills to use in the field, and simply having a BLAST!!!

Many thanks to Kara, Natalie, and the rest of the team for all their hard work and preparation in pulling this event off! And a huge shout out to all the wonderful attendees!!!

If you missed it this year, I hope you’ll join me next fall for #3. 🙂

Photography Day at the Center for Birds of Prey

Last month I had the privilege of being a part of a limited number of photographers that were granted access to photograph some beautiful birds at the Center for Birds of Prey. What an INCREDIBLE experience it was to be up close and personal with these majestic creatures!!! This was not my first time. But it’s an experience that never gets old, and always holds new and exciting challenges!

This time, I went with a light-weight and portable setup. All images were shot on either a Nikon D850 or Nikon D500, using either a Nikkor 70-200 f2.8 VRII or a Nikkor 300 f4.0 PF VR lens. I didn’t use any tripods or monopods, just hand-held shots. I carried one camera on each hip using my dual Spyder Holster, which allowed me to quickly switch to the ideal focal length for the shot.

Later this fall I’ll be teaching another Wildlife Photography workshop at the center, where I’ll be sharing my tips, techniques, and settings for successfully capturing these gorgeous animals: http://www.thecenterforbirdsofprey.org/visit/special_events/instructor-led-photography-workshop/. I hope you’ll and come out to join me!

Many thanks to my good friend and fellow photographer, Ferris Kaplan, for the behind-the-scenes shots of me in action!

Charleston Center for Birds of Prey

Beautiful weather…beautiful birds…I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day at the Center for Birds of Prey!

I’ve been attending their Photography Day events for several years now. These events sell out fast, and never disappoint!

Most of these were shot with the new Nikkor 300mm f4 PF on either a Nikon D500 or a Nikon D4.

Kudos to the staff and volunteers at the Center for Birds of Prey for putting on such an AMAZING opportunity for us photographers to get up close and personal with these incredible creature.