I am finally finished editing the images from my Block Creel Natural Area workshop. I’m working with my friends in Texas to offer the same workshop again next year as well as one dedicated to the world famous wildflowers. Sign up for email updates and you’ll be the first to know when the dates are set.

There are plenty of things to shoot besides birds at Block Creek, including various reptiles and a few mammals. Of course there are plenty of insects like butterflies and bees so you really can photograph quite a lot.

Here is my melange of images not previously uploaded. I made some digital “art” of the bees and thistle that you can see…HERE.

[View with PicLens]

Reservations are required to visit the photography locations at Block Creek, but they’re very welcoming, so don’t be shy…

Block Creek Natural Area has outstanding bird photography. Their feeders are never empty and the Black-chinned Hummingbirds are everywhere…. Seriously, you’ll get “tired” of shooting them. OK, not really, but you get the picture. Please note that I avoided the terrible pun that you could be reading now… Anyway, they are really territorial as you may know, so imagine there are 15 or more “jousting” over the 6 spots on the feeder. Captivating chaos!

The way we managed to get these flight shots was to pre-focus on a spot and wait, much like the technique described in my post about the Vermilion Flycatchers…HERE.

[View with PicLens]

I hate to keep writing this, but since the map is here for your amusement and information, I must point out that reservations are required to join the fun at Block Creek Natural Area.

And you always thought it was a flock of ducks. OK, well you were correct, but brace, flush and raft are all collective names for a group of ducks. These were the ducks that I was able to photograph on my recent photography workshop at Block Creek Natural Area. I’ll be listing details for next years workshop soon. You can send me an email if you’d like to be emailed when the trip is finalized.

The Black-bellied Whistling ducks are just gorgeous birds and yes their call is a bizarre (for a duck ) whistle. You can listen to it on the What Bird site…HERE. What Bird is my go to site for all things related to bird identification. If you don’t have their iPhone app, get it now. It is simply the best you can buy.

The “trick” with photographing Mallards, is everyone has taken a picture of that duck. So, I was trying to get something different and loved the attitude of the head on in you face shot…

[View with PicLens]

Reservations are required to photograph at the ranch.

About the Workshop

Rolling hills, carpets of wildflowers, crystal clear creeks and waterfalls, towering oak trees and abundant wildlife…sounds like some place out of a nature photographer’s dream. The dream is reality on this workshop exploring the Hill Country of Texas in Spring. We’ll be photographing on a 400 acre ranch that has been lovingly cared for by the same family for 6 generations. While it is still a working ranch, they have preserved the natural beauty of the land and kept this property undeveloped despite being an hour from Austin.

We’ve chosen the perfect week for our workshop. The hills will be bursting with colors, the birds will be back from their migration and well, spring will be in the air. This is photography unlike most places that you have been. You see on this trip we’ll be photographing on a private ranch. You won’t be locking tripods with 20 other photographers, you won’t be in gridlock traffic to photograph flowers that have been trampled by a hundred other photographers, and the wildlife is acclimated to people. The fact is that we’ll have all 400 acres of Texas’ version of Eden all to ourselves.

For those that are interested in bird photography, this is one place you’ll love. The ranch has recorded 133 species of birds on the properties. The best part is that we will be photographing the birds from blinds which have long been in use with photographic perches, feeders and water fixtures. The birds love coming here, and you’ll get beautiful portraits of them for your portfolio.

The subjects are plentiful and diverse. We will have landscapes of rolling hills, panoramic vistas, babbling creeks and waterfalls. There are fields of intensely colored wildflowers. The ranch is known for its bird photography, but there also amphibians, reptiles, insects and mammals. Need more? Ok, how about a 200 year old creek-side cottage, ancient barns and fences, vintage chuck wagon and equipment. Not enough? How about a train caboose or the sheep being sheared or, or, or… I’m out of space for this, but trust me, there is a something for everyone.

Included in the Workshop

The workshop includes 3 days (May 6-8) of photography instruction at several sites around the property. There are 2 leaders on this workshop and so you’ll have a lot of individual attention as well as the ability to focus on aspects of nature photography that most interest you. For example, if you are mostly interested in wildlife you can spend more time photographing the birds. Conversely, you can also spend extra time seeking out the nooks and crannies of the creek.

There will be classroom style sessions with image critiques, discussions about workflow and image editing, and tips and tricks for better nature photography.

Needless to say, your fees include the professional instruction of a PAW leader. All workshops have leaders, however a PAW leader is an expert on the location and has proven skills as a workshop instructor. Our instructors are there to help you make better images and fill your portfolios, not theirs. PAW leaders don’t photograph on our workshops; they teach.

The workshop fee also includes a welcome reception with food and light beverages the night of the 5th as well as all lunches during the workshop. We are also planning a special evening event session that includes dinner. Basically we are going to feed you, too!

The workshop fee does not include transportation to the workshop location or during the workshop. You will also be responsible for your own lodging.

This workshop will allow a maximum of 12 participants. A minimum of 6 participants is required for this workshop.

Schedule

Our workshop begins at 6PM on the evening of May 5th. We will gather and get acquainted over something to eat and soft drinks. There will be a short presentation and we’ll go over the basic schedule for the workshop.

We’ll photograph at the ranch sites throughout the early morning hours and then again in the evenings the 6th, 7th and 8th. Classroom and other teaching opportunities will be held during the afternoons while we wait for the light to improve for the evening session.

The workshop officially ends the evening of the May 8th, 2010.

Equipment and Gear

The average temperature this time of the year will be highs near 90°F and lows near 60°F. Although Texas is in a drought it actually does rain in May and you should be prepared for that type of weather.
Camera

• Battery charger
• A few extra batteries
• Memory cards (bring plenty!!!)
• Sensor cleaning supplies

Lenses

• 12-24mm (for the 1.5x sensor size cameras) or 17-35mm (full frame)
• 28-105mm lens or similar
• a 300mm is adequate for the wildlife a 400mm is perfect
• Polarizing filter(s)
• Lens hoods for all lenses
• Lint-free cloth to clean lenses and air blower for dust

Computer / Digital Accessories

• Laptop with charger and photo editing software (Photoshop or Lightroom preferred)
• Portable hard drive as backup.
• Card Reader
• Small jump drive (thumb drive) for transferring images for critique.
• All cables for drives, computer, card readers, storage devices, etc.

Other

• Cover for camera (for shooting in the rain)
• Tripod
• Camera manual
• Chocolate for David

Other Accessories & Clothing

• Hiking Shoes/Comfortable walking shoes
• Hat/Baseball cap
• Warm layers, jacket, hat, and gloves. Some spring mornings can get cool.
• Wet weather gear

Be sure to let Jeff know of any special needs that you may have so that we can try to accommodate them.

Transportation and Lodging

Fredericksburg is about 90 miles from the Austin airport and 70 miles from the San Antonio airport.

This workshop offers the opportunity to stay on the ranch in their various B&B style accommodations. The Somewhere In Time Guest House is a functioning year-round guest house and is country living at its finest. A historic 1890 German style rock cottage, which has been restored to its original beauty and will accommodate one couple. The Cabin on Block Creek is more rustic and will accommodate two people also. All of the accommodations on the property are quite comfortable. You also have the luxury of living on the site of the workshop.

Staying at the ranch is a great experience and highly recommended! You can contact Sharron and Larry by email (sljay@gvtc.com) or 830.438.2423. Did I mention pampering? They are good at that too!

The caboose that I mentioned earlier has actually been converted into an apartment, which is also available for booking during the workshop. You can contact David or Myrna at 830.995.2147 or by email (dkl@westernphotographycompany.com).

The alternative lodging is in Fredericksburg about a 20-30 minute drive away from the ranch.

After almost a week of traveling through the arid and hot South Texas, I arrived in Fredericksburg, Texas on my way to Block Creek Natural Area. Wow, what a difference a day makes. No more deserts, no more dust and way more relaxed. One thing that wasn’t missing was the charm and friendly nature of my hosts. As was the norm on my trip, the people were really terrific.

Block Creek Natural Area is about 400 acres of pristine Texas Hill Country that has been in the Langford family for 6 generations now. Their stewardship of the land has kept this area untouched and undeveloped. A remarkable feat considering it is only an hour drive from San Antonio!

David Langford and Larry Jay are photographers and very good ones at that. This made my all too short visit very productive. They know about light and they know about backgrounds and all of the birding setups are perfectly positioned. Not only are they in perfect position, but also they have been used for years and so all of the local birds know they are perfect too!

There is more to Block Creek than just birds. Although I do need to point out that this is one of the few places that can boast a reliable ability to photograph Green Kingfishers!  The landscape is stunning with meandering creeks, waterfalls, massive oaks, giant boulders and rock face. Did I mention the wildflowers? Oh yeah, some of the most famous displays of native wildflowers bloom in the hill country. Imagine acres and acres aglow with a carpet of wildflowers and then imagine them being even better than you can imagine and you might be close.

You can be sure that you will be reading more about the ranch as PAW will be offering a Spring in the Texas Hill Country Workshop in 2010.

Here is a sampling of the birds that I was able to photograph in couple of hours one morning…Imagine your portfolio after 3 or 4 days of Block Creek Natural Area!

[View with PicLens]

Theses images and more from Block Creek Natural Area are available for purchase here.

Part 1 of my Great Texas Bird Photography Trip

It was a Texas twister of a trip with 10 ranches on the itinerary. I did have help and lot of it from John and Audrey Martin as well as Gail Hoffman from Images for Conservation. None of this would have worked out or would have even been attempted without their kind efforts.

Martin Refuge

One of the places that I have always wanted to photograph was the Rio Grand Valley. The valley is an oasis for bird photography with a large variety of birds and many species that are only found in that part of the US.  The grand dame of the Valley’s bird photography is Martin Refuge: The Javelina.

The Javelina is 300 acres of thick brush near McAllen TX. The Martins have added professionally designed photo blinds, water features and feeders in order to attract birds, mammals and reptiles to a perfect proximity for your camera. Many of the 7 blinds are sunken which gives you a perfect eye level view of your subject, which is of course a key to any great wildlife photograph.

This was my very first time using blinds to photograph birds. I must say I may be ruined to the good old stalk and shoot method. It was amazing to have all of the birds come right to me while I sat in comfy chair camouflaged and ready. Of course, creature comforts were fine, but at 102° it was still hot sweaty work and I loved it. I spent about 6 hours photographing at the Javelina and during that time I saw approximately 40 species of birds. Out of those 15 or so were new species for me. Needless to say it was a big treat. Some of them were quite exotic like the ubiquitous Green Jay.

And others although not so bold, were equally great to find, like this Olive Sparrow.

As any of you know that regularly photograph birds things come in waves. During the in between time, I took this shot of a couple of Yellowjackets. Patty Raney the guide and professional photographer for Javelina will attest it took a lot of silicone to get this one and she even joined in the fun trying to grab these shots…

John and Audrey were tremendous hosts and I owe them a big thank you for all of their help. Really nice people were a trend started at the Javelina that continued throughout the trip. I cannot wait to get back and spend more time photographing and just having fun with John and Audrey. You can also watch the PAW website for workshops in South Texas and the Hill Country in 2010.

I give the Martin Refuge: The Javelina unreserved recommendations. You can contact them at 956-381-1264 or martinrefuge@aol.com. Their website has all of the details. www.martinrefuge.com.

You can see all of my images and order prints from Martin Refuge on my website.