Abstract Photography Series — Going Beyond the Literal
Abstract photography is a style that emphasizes shapes, colors, textures, patterns, and form over recognizable subjects. Rather than documenting reality as it is, it interprets and transforms it—often rendering the subject ambiguous or entirely unrecognizable.
Over the past two years, we’ve explored this space through two highly regarded series:
- Abstracts: Finding Unique Beauty in the Natural World (April 2024)
- Vision & Craft of Macro & Intimate Landscapes (May 2025)
Now, it’s time to go deeper.
This series is not about replicating images others have made. It’s about developing your own way of seeing—and creating photographs that are both personal and impactful.
Abstract photography invites us to move beyond subject matter and into visual language. Throughout this series, we’ll work with:
- Images with no clear or obvious subject
- Emphasis on lines, curves, symmetry, and repetition
- The creative use of light and shadow
- Unusual perspectives and extreme close-ups
- Motion, blur, and distortion as expressive tools
A new way of seeing the landscape
We’re bringing back four of our most highly reviewed instructors, each presenting entirely new material, to help you rethink how you approach the natural world.
From plants and flowers to aerial perspectives and infrared work, this series will guide you toward a more interpretive, expressive, and personal connection with the landscape—going far beyond traditional documentary photography.
LIVE Schedule:
5/6 – Crafting Abstract, Poetic Closeups & Intimate Landscapes — Charles Needle
5/13 – Creative Contrarianism: Daring to be Different — Beth Buelow
5/21 – Finding Abstraction and Mystery in Plants and Flowers — Sarah Marino
5/27 – Abstract Landscape: Aerial, Infrared, and Telephoto— Matt Payne
Each LIVE presentation will be hosted at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET. Recordings will be available on-demand starting the day after each LIVE seminar, so you can watch (or rewatch) anytime.
What you’ll learn:
Drawing from some of the most accomplished abstract photographers, we’ll explore techniques including:
- Revealing hidden detail through macro and close-up work
- Using Intentional Camera Movement (ICM) as a creative tool—not just blur
- Leveraging long exposure to transform motion
- Exploring reflections and refractions to reshape reality
- Controlling depth of field to isolate form and color
- Using composition and cropping to remove context and invite interpretation
This is an invitation to see differently, to move beyond what a landscape is, and into what it can become through your vision.
Are you an annual or monthly member? You’ll gain access to all these sessions the day after they’re streamed live!
Nature Photography Classes offer a unique opportunity to hear from and interact with people that rarely speak with audiences and are considered some of the best photography educators in the world. Â
Charles Needle teaches "Crafting Abstract, Poetic Closeups & Intimate Landscapes"
Crafting Abstract, Poetic Closeups & Intimate Landscapes
LIVE May 6, 2026 at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on May 7th.
Join award-winning Colorado-based fine nature photographer, Charles Needle, for an in-depth session on learning how to see more deeply and craft abstract, poetic closeups and intimate landscapes using nothing more than your camera.
Charles will begin this presentation by offering some practical tips and exercises to help you see beyond what's in front of your lens. He will then illustrate four distinct ways you can make abstract, expressive closeups that go beyond documentation: 1) using a telephoto lens to “shoot through,” 2) using a closeup lens/diopter in conjunction with a macro lens to enter a magical abstract universe, 3) using a Lensbaby and other tools to embrace blur, and 4) using a wide-angle lens to get super close and show a subject in its environment.
The session will conclude with a comprehensive look at using intentional camera movement (ICM) and multiple-exposures to transform ordinary scenes into abstract, painterly visual masterpieces (including ways to accomplish this look with an iPhone).
Join us with an open mind, ready to unlock your creative potential and see the world around you with fresh eyes.
Is there anything else you would like to share with Nic?
Bio:
Charles Needle is an award-winning, Colorado-based fine art photographer, author, speaker and workshop leader with a unique eye for design and artistic interpretation. His popular “Art of Nature” creative macro workshops have attracted students nationwide.
In 2024, Charles made the shortlist for the Close-up Photographer of the Year international contest. And in 2018, 2021 and 2026, he earned honorable mentions in the Macro and Visual FX categories of the prestigious Annual International Mobile Photography Awards Contest.
Charles was also a top 250 finalist in the International Share the View Photography Competition in 2023, 2024 and 2025. And he was a semi-finalist in the 2014 Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards photo contest.
In 2011, Charles was selected as a finalist, among 15,000 entries worldwide, in the International Garden Photographer of the Year photography contest, sponsored by The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (London, England). (This exhibition traveled throughout the United Kingdom.)
A popular conference and camera club speaker for more than two decades, Charles has authored three cutting-edge instructional books: Tiny Worlds: Creative Macro Photography Skills (Amherst Media, January 2015), Impressionistic Photography: A Field Guide to Using Your Camera as a Paintbrush (March 2014), and Creative Macro Photography: Professional Tips & Techniques (2011).
An accomplished speaker, photography juror and teacher with international workshops in the United Kingdom (private gardens of Southern England), Monet's Garden (Giverny, France for 20 years in a row, with exclusive private access), Keukenhof Gardens (Holland) and The Butchart Gardens (Canada), Charles is a North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) Showcase Award winner for 19 years in a row, and placed in the Top Ten and Top 26 image categories three of those years.
Charles’ photographs have selected for publication in Nature’s Best, Outdoor Photographer magazine, Nature Photographer magazine, Inner Reflections Engagement Calendar, The Garden Club of America Bulletin Magazine, The Chicago Tribune, SELF Magazine and are in private and public collections nationwide and abroad.
Beth Buelow teaches "Creative Contrarianism: Daring to be Different"
Creative Contrarianism: Daring to be Different
LIVE May 13, 2026 at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on May 14th.
There are lots of reasons to embrace abstraction in our photography. It offers tremendous creative freedom. It allows us to make images anywhere. Breaking the "rules" can bring back a sense of play and fun. But—and it's a pretty big BUT—there’s a barrier that can hold us back. When we’re venturing into any level of abstraction, we’re going to encounter the tension inherent with being different in a world that prefers the familiar (even though we hear over and over, "think differently!"). Through an examination of the mental and creative consequences of going against the grain, we'll explore what it means to be a creative contrarian and what we can do to make peace with the stand out/fit in tension.
Bio:
Beth Buelow is a Michigan-based artist, coach, and educator specializing in abstract and minimalist photography. Beth's creative philosophy is simple: If you’re not amazed, you’re not paying attention. Inspired by Walt Whitman’s words, "I am large, I contain multitudes," Beth's photography reflects a multifaceted approach, both in subject matter and aesthetic. If there’s one constant, it’s her playful, often unexpected perspective on nature, architecture, and everyday objects. She is the host of the PIXELS podcast, runs creativity mastermind groups and photography retreats, and teaches and mentors with a focus on abstract approaches. In addition to photography, she loves creating cyanotypes, Zentangles, and alcohol ink art.
Sarah Marino teaches "Finding Abstraction and Mystery in Plants and Flowers"
Sarah Marino
Finding the Abstraction and Mystery in Plants & Flowers
LIVE May 21, 2026 at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on May 22nd.
In this session, Sarah will explore photographing plants and flowers with abstraction in mind. We will cover the full continuum from using subtle abstract qualities to develop a composition in which the subject is still obvious to more mysterious presentations that will invite the viewer to more deeply consider what they are seeing. Sarah will review a full range of techniques including framing for abstract effects, alternative approaches to focusing, creatively using shadow and light, in-camera multiple exposures, camera movements, and combining these techniques, all while out in the field. Sarah will also discuss the importance of conceptual ideas like provoking curiosity for the viewer, infusing mystery into a scene, and the importance of removing context, leaving you with a toolkit full of ideas and inspiration to try new things next time you are outside.
Bio:Â
Sarah Marino is a nature photographer, nature enthusiast, and writer based in rural southwestern Colorado in the United States. Sarah values open-mindedness, adaptability, and a dedication to the craft of photography in her creative practice, taking a slow and quiet approach focused on exploration, connecting with nature, and seeing opportunity in any landscape.
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Matt Payne teaches "Abstract Landscape: Aerial, Infrared, and Telephoto"
Matt Payne
Abstract Landscape: Aerial, Infrared, and Telephoto
LIVE May 27, 2026 at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and available on-demand beginning on May 28th.
Most landscape photographers spend their careers working at eye level, chasing golden light and familiar compositions. This presentation explores three approaches that break from that default: aerial photography, infrared, and telephoto abstraction. Each method strips away the literal and reveals something less obvious in the landscape, whether that's pattern, color, compression, or form. We'll look at the technical foundations of each discipline, the creative thinking behind them, and how shifting your perspective, literally and optically, can open up entirely new ways of seeing the places you already photograph.
Bio:
Matt Payne is a nature and landscape photographer based in Durango, Colorado. Raised in the state, he spent his early years mountaineering through Colorado's backcountry, eventually completing all 100 of Colorado's highest peaks. That time in the mountains shifted from summit-chasing to image-making, and photography became his way of honoring the landscapes that shaped him. He hosts the podcast F-Stop Collaborate and Listen, co-founded Nature First Photography, and is the co-creator of the Natural Landscape Photography Awards, an international competition dedicated to realistic and ethical nature photography. His work is grounded in a commitment to truthful representation and conservation.
