Lightroom Simplified, my video series

If you struggle to understand the Develop module in Lightroom and want to learn a simple approach to the digital darkroom, giving you more time to be out there with your camera, you’re going to appreciate the video series I just created: Lightroom Simplified. 

Lightroom Simplified is a 3.5 hour video course in 13 episodes and covers my complete workflow in the Develop module of Lightroom. If you’ve traveled with me you know that what I love most is being out there, in the field, with my cameras, not fussing for hours over post-production. This approach is simple and efficient and covers my processes for both color and black & white images. It also includes a short bonus video that discusses organization and Lightroom Mobile. 

Lightroom Simplified can be both downloaded and streamed, and will give you the confidence to use the tools of Adobe Lightroom efficiently so you can get back to doing what you love: making photographs.

I’ve teamed up with Craft & Vision to get this into your hands. It will normally be $50 but it’s on sale for $40 for the first week.

Lightroom Simplified Video Tutorials

Fine Art Photo Processing Sessions! New Dates Added

I have been doing 1-on-1 sessions for quite a few years now, and the best feedback I have received from past participants is a willingness to spend more time in my studio past 1 day, without breaking the bank. Well, here is my plan for the rest of 2015 with this feedback in mind.

The Dates

• April 6-8
• July 14-16
• August 25-27

The Plan

I am going to host a series of 3-day Fine Art Photo Processing Sessions in my studio in Houston. Each session will be limited to only 2 or 3 people each. We will work diligently on the processing of creating the absolute best quality images and prints possible. We will work on color images. We will work on images for black and white. And we will create proof prints and large prints alike. And you will go home with a large number of prints.

What Is Included

These 3-day sessions will include mid-day meals, all materials including ink and paper, and all you need to do is show up. I do prefer you show up with your own computer, as we will optimize your machine for the best color possible, which you will enjoy when you are back in your own environment. I have a *ton* of printing equipment from 13” printers all the way up to 44”. I am likely to have your exact printer model if you are using Epson, Canon or HP printers.

The Cost

These sessions are $1,850 each. I normally charge $950 per day, and since we will work in small groups I am able to reduce the price significantly.

Other Information

Here are just some of the topics we will cover:

• Color management (how to definitively know your display and printer are properly calibrated and profiled)
• Lightroom processing and workflow. This is my workflow, not a class on Lightroom functionality.
• The use of Nik Software plugins
• Soft proofing and how to correct your printing workflow if it needs correcting.
• Black and white image processing and how to create dynamic B&W prints
• What to look for in a good print and how to correct
• Paper choices
• Print sharpening
• Upsizing and sharpening files for large format output
• Editing images for a portfolio

How To Signup

Just email me at info@andybiggs.com and I can send you an invoice and additional details such as hotel recommendations. That’s it! I hope you will join me for some exciting times in my studio.

Antarctica and South Georgia Island - Space Available

In the past few weeks we have had a few spaces become available on our incredible Antarctica and South Georgia Island expedition in November. We have the following spaces available at this time:

• Triple Share Cabin – 2x female berths (upper bunk, single bunk)
• Twin Public Cabin – 1x female berth + 1x male berth
• Twin Private Cabin – 1 Full Cabin Available

We are confident that these spaces will not be available for long, as the ship was previously sold out and now we have these few spaces open. You can find all of the details for this expedition here:

Antarctica and South Georgia Polar Photographic Expedition

November 3-22, 2014

South Georgia Island and Antarctic 2014 Polar Photography Expedition

 South Georgia Island and Antarctic 2014 Polar Photography Expedition

November 3-22, 2014

I am excited to publicly announce that Joshua Holko and I are opening up the booking process for our photographic expedition to South Georgia Island and Antarctica. Our expedition will last for 20 days, and we will depart Ushuaia, Argentina on the 3rd of November, 2014. Our photographic expedition has been designed to provide the definitive South Georgia Island photography experience. We will cross the Drake Passage where we will spend time photographing amazing icebergs and the spectacular Antarctic Peninsula. We will also visit Elephant Island, home to twenty two of Shackleton’s men for four months. We will enter the Scotia Sea, detouring to the remote and rarely visited mountainous South Orkney Islands. We will zodiac cruises through a maze of icebergs before landing ashore on a beach with penguins, seals and lichen encrusted boulders. This location alone promises fantastic wildlife and landscape opportunities. We will then continue across the Scotia sea, bound for South Georgia Island, where we will see and photograph the world’s largest King Penguin rookeries, majestic albatross nests, seals and a plethora of bird life. Kelp-strewn beaches are cluttered with basking elephant seals, feisty fur seals and hundreds of penguins that will prove a wildlife photographer’s dream. Stromness and Grytviken harbour’s 9,000 foot rocky peaks that rise up from the ocean will fulfill every landscape shooter’s wishes for dramatic landscape. South Georgia’s remote, untamed landscape is simply stunning. Scattered across the mighty Southern Ocean, the tiny arc of windswept islands and harbours are some of the world’s greatest wildlife sanctuaries set against world class landscapes. Famed for its abandoned whaling stations and Shackleton’s heroic journey, South Georgia is home to literally millions of fur seals and penguins, wallows of elephant seals and nesting albatross. After we finish photographing in this breathtaking area we will sail back to Ushuaia where we will dock on the 22nd of November and conclude our once in a lifetime expedition.

Joshua and I wanted to put together a dedicated photography expedition to both Antarctica and South Georgia Island that gave photographers the best possible opportunity to photograph big icebergs and amazing wildlife on the same trip. We wanted to ensure sufficient time in both Antarctica and South Georgia Island, so this is a brand new itinerary that has been planned from the ground up to really maximize the opportunities for photography. We have specifically timed our expedition early in the season in order to give us the best opportunities for plenty of icebergs as well as wildlife at South Georgia Island. The ice and snow at South Georgia island will be pristine and as yet unvisited by man after the Antarctic winter. If you can only travel to Antarctica and South Georgia Island once in your life for photography then this is most definitely the trip you want to be on.

Key Details of our Expedition

• Dates: 03 November to 22 November, 2014. 20 days / 19 nights
• Ship : Ice Hardened Expedition Class Ship ‘Polar Pioneer’ Regarded by many as the best vessel for polar photography for its ability to get really close to big ice and ample deck space for photography.
• Trip Leaders : Andy Biggs and Joshua Holko
• Dedicated to Wildlife and Landscape Photography

If you would like to join us, please send me an email to info@andybiggs.com. Places are very limited on this trip and given the unique nature of this expedition we do expect to sell out quickly. Due to early expressions of interest the Captains Suite and Mini Suites are already sold out and there are only limited twin private and twin share rooms remaining. We have the entire vessel so this trip is solely for photographers and is 100% dedicated to both landscape and wildlife photography. Places are booked strictly on a first come first served basis. A full itinerary and costs can be found on my web site.

Possible Galapagos Islands Trip in June 2014

I have numerous past travelers who would like for me to put together another Galapagos Islands trip in 2014, and if you would like to be notified of such a trip please drop me a line at info@andybiggs.com. I have guided a number of these trips in the past, and it is such a beautiful place to photograph. The Galapagos Islands should be on your bucket list of places to visit with a camera.

When I run my Galapagos Islands trips, I always charter my own private ship. I typically charter a 20-person vessel, which means we end up having two naturalists for 20 people. The Galapagos Islands National Park mandates a 16 to 1 ratio, but I think for the best photography we need to have smaller groups. My trips are casual, fun, filled with tons of photography and we are all out there to learn something and to have a good time. We get on shore at first light and we put the dining schedule as something secondary to our photography. I don’t mind if you bring tripods or monopods, either, as we are on shore before all of the other boats and there isn’t any competition for space. My trips are for 7 nights on board the ship, plus a night in Ecuador, which is the perfect amount of time to get great shots.

If you have a measurable interest, please let me know. I am looking into my favorite ships right now and would love to hear from you. My preference is to have at least 50% of the boat filled up prior to my cutting a huge check to secture the boat.

Namibia Overland Photographic Journey, April 2014

Namibia Overland Photographic Journey
March 29 - April 7, 2014
and
April 8 - 17, 2014

Deadvlei

I will be co-leading a group with Joshua Holko to the Namibia desert in Namibia, Africa. The goal of this safari is to photograph the breathtaking desert landscapes of Namibia in a different way than how I have offered my Namibia trips in the past: in an overland fashion. This will be an overland photographic journey, and we have complete flexibility to stop to take photographs at any time along the way. We wanted to put this trip together that has a good balance between flexibility, photographic opportunities and comfortable accommodations. This approach will also enable us to carry more than enough amount of camera baggage, so bring what you need!

On the South Western Coast of Africa, where the icy Atlantic ocean meets the world’s oldest desert lies a place that is known for its landscapes as much as the Serengeti is known for its abundant wildlife. The unique combination of desert, grassland and cold ocean current form a one-of-a-kind terrain found only here. For this reason landscape photographers from all over the world flock to the Namib Desert to try and capture its ethereal beauty.

In this captivating region of Namibia lies a maze of mountainous valleys that look like they were carpeted from slope to slope by ivory colored grass, criss-crossed by ancient riverbeds and dotted with a collection of photogenic acacia trees. The final unique touch is added by the large snake like dunes that rise from the grasslands like the roof of some subterranean world. These stark and compelling landscapes are something to behold with the human eye, but when it’s sweeping meadows, barren mountains and blood red dunes are captured and transformed into a two dimensional image, it becomes obvious why this place is so beautifully addictive to photographers.

Highlights

– This private overland safari covers fascinating attractions in Namibia while enjoying a relaxed pace along the way.

– We will enjoy four amazing destinations in central and southern Namibia: Sossusvlei, the Namib Rand, the deserted mining town of Kolmanskop and the ancient quiver tree forest near Keetmanshoop.

– The Namib Desert may well be the world’s oldest desert. The apricot-colored dunes at Sossusvlei are some of the most beautiful landscapes on earth. Herds gemsbok and springbok roam the area.

– In all the locations you will have the opportunity to spend quality photographic time.

– Finish on a high note in the magnificent sand dunes of Sossusvlei.

– Limited to only 10 participants.

The cost of this all-inclusive trip is U.S. $7,950 per person (but not inclusive of airfare to Windhoek, Namibia). The same rate applies for each participant regardless of whether they are doing photography and participating in the workshop, or not. This fee includes all in-country ground and air transportation as well as hotel accommodation (double occupancy) and all meals.

A 30% deposit of U.S. $2,325 (per person) will be required when you register. A second payment of $1,500 will be due on October 1, 2013 and the balance of $3,925 will be due no later than  February 1, 2014. If we have to cancel the trip for any reason you will receive a full refund of all monies paid to that date.

Please note: This trip is designed for photographers. Though non-photographer spouses are of course welcome, and alternate activities will be scheduled if possible, our primary emphasis will be traveling to the best locations for the best light, and this will often mean long days of both travel and shooting.

You should therefore only consider joining this expedition if you are a passionate photographer willing to put yourself out a bit. This is not a vacation sightseeing trip, but rather is a trip designed for those who’ll go the extra mile (or kilometer) to get the images they’ve been dreaming about.

Please contact me at info@andybiggs.com. You can see the entire day by day itinerary:

Namibia Overland Photographic Journey 2014

Kolmanskop

The Namib Rand

Desert Landscapes of Death Valley - Workshop

Desert Landscapes of Death Valley National Park

January 9-13, 2013

The Race Track, Death Valley National Park

I will be co-leading a rigorous 5-day photography workshop with my friend, Michael Gordon, in Death Valley National Park January 2013. Death Valley is a landscape photographer’s paradise, combining large sand dunes, mountains and desert scenes all in one place. If you have never photographed in Death Valley, you owe it to yourself to witness some of the most famous geological formations in the American West. January is an excellent time to photograph in Death Valley, as the combination of moderate temperatures and shorter days make for an excellent experience. Outside of the winter months, Death Valley is too hot and days are too long to be considered good times to visit. I do prefer to be in Death Valley in the winter, as the short days allow for more star trail photography, which we will spend some time doing out on the Race Track.

This workshop is primarily a field workshop, however we will have opportunities to discuss and work on post processing tips and techniques with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom as well as some of the Nik Software plugins. We will be in the field early in the morning and early in the evening to catch the dawn and dusk light with a little bit of down time in between. We will also spend a few evenings working on star trails, which will keep us out late when combined with some long drives back to our hotel. We will have discussion and assistance while out in the field each day. Advanced techniques will be constantly discussed, demonstrated and put into practice. We will all work closely together, sharing our knowledge and experience.

The workshop will begin on the afternoon of Wednesday, January 9 at 1pm, and will finish after a morning shoot on Monday, January 14th. The workshop is limited to 10 particpants only.

Desert Landscapes of Death Valley, January 9-14, 2013

Namibia's Remote Landscapes by Private Air

Are you interested in shooting the remote landscapes of Namibia with the best photographic equipment on the market? I have teamed up with Phase One and I am running a trip to Namibia alongside good friends Bill Atkinson and Kevin Raber. If you don’t already own Phase One medium format equipment, that’s totally ok, as Phase One will be providing cameras and lenses for all participants for a *very* nominal fee of $500. Here are some bullet points for the trip:

• All Phase One equipment will be provided if you don’t already own Phase One gear
• This trip is all about private airplanes, privacy and breathtaking landscapes
• This private flying safari covers fascinating attractions in Namibia while enjoying much of the stunning landscape from the air.
• We will fly to three amazing destinations in southern, central and northern Namibia: Sossusvlei, Serra Cafema and the deserted mining town of Kolmanskop.
• The Namib Desert may well be the world’s oldest desert. The apricot-colored dunes at Sossusvlei are some of the most beautiful landscapes on earth. Herds of mountain zebra, gemsbok and springbok roam the area.
• In all the parks you will have the opportunity to spend quality photographic time.
• Finish on a high note in the magnificent northern landscapes along the Serra Cafema mountain range near Angola.

For more information, please visit my informational page about this trip

Namibia’s Remote Landscapes by Private Air

The Skeleton Coast from the air

Flying above the dunes near Sossusvlei

The deserted mining town of Kolmanskop