Our First Retreat - A Great Success!

The retreat gang and our Wall of Expression









How much better can it get? That's what Mark and I kept asking ourselves. Six days of sharing the goodwill and creativity of an Adirondack retreat. Beautiful images, poignant moments, lots of laughs, solitude. So many memories...

The Nature of Possibility Retreat that just ended at The Woods Inn was the first of its kind for API. It far exceeded our expectations. We were so excited to participate with eleven accomplished photographers in the goal of exploring ourselves and our relationship to nature through images, writings, conversation. We feel that we have truly found a format that goes beyond the typical workshop, into the realm of personal creativity and exploration.

Thanks to The Woods Inn for providing an absolutely perfect environment for immersing ourselves in the Adirondacks and the creative life!

We are so excited to see how we can improve and extend the concept next year. We think that every accomplished photographer should have an opportunity to experience what we did over these past six days...

Call for Entries - Indian Lake Community Photo Festival

It’s time again for the Community Photo Festival at Indian Lake theater! This year's theme is LIFE IN MOTION. The festival will curated by Adirondack photographer Nancie Battaglia. Participants may submit up to 5 photographs. Please send all submissions by email to photo@indianlaketheater.org by September 27th. The festival will be held at the Indian Lake Theater on October 11th at 7:30 pm.

See the event poster here.

Hello Lake Placid!

What a great time we had at API's first workshop in the Olympic Village! The Adirondack Photography Weekend in partnership with Adirondack Life magazine was held August 27-29 at Northwoods Inn. The weekend was a great success, capped-off by near-perfect weather conditions for the duration.

photo by participant Peter Johngren

API instructors Mark Bowie, Joe LeFevre, John Radigan and staff assistant John DiGiacomo were joined by Adirondack Life staff members Betsy Folwell, Annie Stoltie and Kelly Hofschneider, for a very fun and informative weekend of photography field trips, presentations and Q&A. Northwoods Inn proved the perfect venue for this event, which we hope will become an annual affair.

Don't miss out on this one next year! We can't wait to do it again...

Adirondack Waters Sublime!

A pastel sunrise over Shaw Pond before we were chased away by a thunderstorm… high clouds creating a soft box over the rocks and spray of Buttermilk Falls… puffy clouds colored pastel blue and pink by the setting sun, reflected in Lake Abanakee, later evolving into a crimson stream over Lake Adirondack. And there were fluffy afternoon clouds mirrored in Lake Durant… and boldly lit sunset clouds reflected in a nearby pond, where, the following morning a patrolling beaver slapped his tail in annoyance at us... and an unforgettable 1:30am image of the Big Dipper reflected in one of Durant’s quiet bays. The scenery and the ever-changing summer light combined to make these Adirondack waters especially enchanting.

API staff instructor Mark Bowie led lively, interactive sessions with tips and strategies specific to photographing the diversity of Adirondack waters. He also covered digital workflow in Lightroom and Photoshop, and techniques for creating multiple exposure images, including panoramas and high dynamic range images. With so many photogenic waters nearby, a knowledgeable guide, and receptive and talented students… it was a fabulous workshop of creative image making.

Our First Light of Midnight Workshop

Photo by Sue Schwer

As the late night images materialized on the projection screen, participants gasped, “This is fun!", "This is nuts!", "This is neat!”. It became the catchphrase of the Photographing the Night Landscape workshop led by night shooting specialist Mark Bowie in Inlet. Surely, participants go home excited about their images from each of our workshops, but here they were absolutely astounded at the beauty and mystique of what they captured in the dark of night. Mark led sessions on capturing long exposures with only natural light, as well as painting with artificial lights: from streetlights, head lamps, mini flashlights, one million candlepower flashlights, on-camera flash, speedlights, and flash extenders. The depth and breadth of Mark’s coverage of nighttime photography exposed them to the many opportunities of capturing the natural landscape in the context of the heavenly skies. If you haven’t photographed much at night, consider joining Mark for our next night workshop. You’ll see: It’s fun! It’s nuts! It’s neat!

Watch for Mark’s new e-book, The Light of Midnight: A Guide to Photographing the Landscape at Night, available soon through our website as a downloadable .pdf file.

API Director's Exhibit Opens in Blue Mt. Lake

Natural Resonance, API director John Radigan's first exhibit of all-new work in several years, opened today at Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts in Blue Mt. Lake, NY. The exhibit consists of twenty-two prints from John's recent Adirondack work. The exhibit runs through Saturday, August 21, with a reception taking place from 6-8 pm on the final day. See the arts center's website for gallery hours and other info.

API has partnered with the arts center on several programs in the past, and we are a proud sponsor of the upcoming juried photo exhibit, Diversity Through Many Lenses, which will take place August 25 through October 10.

What A Weekend In Ithaca!

Photo by Rick Tyrseck

From Mark Bowie and Joe LeFevre after their workshop Spring Waterfalls of the Finger Lakes:

"Spring in the Finger Lakes region, where over 200 waterfalls swollen by recent rains plunged through deep gorges and over rocky ledges. We based ourselves out of Ithaca, centrally located to many of the region’s most spectacular waterfalls. We visited Taughannock Falls, the highest in New York State, and Watkins Glen State Park, whose numerous cascades sluice through dramatic gorges. In Havana Glen we photographed Eagle Creek Falls as it leaps over a rock precipice into a bowl-shaped basin adorned with greenery. We also visited Hector Falls, She-Qua-Ga Falls, Aunt Sarah's Falls, and, in Robert H. Treman State Park, the magnificent Lucifer Falls. The resulting images reveal that each is its own microcosm, with a distinctive personality."

Joe and Mark led lively, interactive sessions with tips and strategies specific to photographing waterfalls. They also covered digital workflow in Lightroom and Photoshop, and techniques for creating panoramas and high dynamic range images. Premiere photo locations, knowledgeable guides, and receptive and talented participants… these key ingredients came together for a fabulous weekend of image making.