On Location: National Parks
Discover fresh perspectives in U.S. National Parks and capture meaningful, personal images beyond the iconic.
Established by Lincoln, expanded by Roosevelt. Loved by the world.
Our National Parks protect 85.1 million acres of land. An area of land almost the size of Germany. 331 million people visited the parks in 2024. Yet for many of us as photographers, we do not want to see the cliche, the iconic, or the over photographed. We want to find our own unique part of the parks that we can express the beauty and what they mean to us.
For this series, I have invited 3 speakers to give 4 talks:
- We are going to start with the only photographer to have hiked and photographed with Medium Format gear all of the National Parks in America, the incredibly well published Jerry Ginsberg. Jerry will lead us through the Best of The West as he leads us on a photographic narrative of how you might find your places of connection in some of these iconic parks (LIVE June 10)
- Following Jerry we will go to Acadia National Park and spend an evening with Michele Sons as she talks about her experiences there but more impactfully and importantly what she choose and why she chose to put what she learned about Acadia into an E-book (LIVE June 18)
- Our 3rd speaker is Nye Simmons who will take us into his backyard of the Smokies. Nye teaches workshops in both the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Great Smokies and has written or co authored several books on the Blue Ridge Parkway and is the author of the Greater Smoky Mountains Photographer’s Guide. No one else knows as much about when and where to go to these intimate National Parks than Nye (LIVE June 25)
- Our series concludes with the same speaker that started us off, Jerry Ginsberg will talk about the Overlooked Parks & Monuments. This will not be the greatest hits of the West but what areas do not get the respect or interest that they deserve (LIVE July 1).
All LIVE Sessions will be held at 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ET and will be approximately 90 to 120 minutes in length, leaving plenty of time for your questions interspersed or after the presentations.
No worries if you can't make the LIVE sessions! You will gain permanent access to the sessions via your NPC My Library account, as well as YouTube and DropBox links.
Priced at $22 each or $77 for the entire series you can cost effectively dive into the creation of your own stories.
Registration for the series comes with the opportunity to ask questions live, rewatch the sessions as much as you want for as long as you want, and even download for offline viewing. They are all recorded so no need to be there live! You will have permanent access to the recordings through your NPC account, YouTube or Dropbox file download.
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 are 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
5% of all registration fees will be donated to the environmental cause or organization of the speakers choosing. Another great opportunity to give back!
The series will be moderated by Nature Photography Academy Moderator, Meredith Fontana. Â
Jerry Ginsberg teaches “The Best of the West: Photographing America’s National Parks"
Jerry Ginsberg
A combination of a slideshow with a narrative on how to best photograph our iconic National Parks and some back stories on how I got the shot.
LIVE Session will be presented on June 10th 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ETÂ
Bio:
Jerry Ginsberg is a multi-award winning photographer whose landscape, Nature and travel images have graced the covers and pages of hundreds of books, magazines, travel catalogs snd websites. He is the only person to have photographed each and every one of America's 63 National Parks with medium format cameras. Jerry has been awarded Artist Residencies in several National Parks all across America and has appeared on several ABC TV programs including Good Morning America and Nightline discussing photographing our National Parks. . His works have been exhibited from coast to coast and have received numerous awards. Jerry's photographic archive spans virtually all of both North and South America as well as portions of Europe and the Middle-East.
Learn more about Jerry on his website.Â
Jerry will be supporting Eric P Steiner Endowed Fund for Early Detection and Prevention of Pancreatic Cancer Research  with 5% from the registration feesÂ
Michele Sons teaches "DAWNLAND: Exploring the Heart of Acadia National Park"
Michele Sons
A visually immersive presentation that reveals the beauty and complexity of Acadia National Park through the lens of expressive landscape photography. Drawing from my eBook "DAWNLAND," this 75-minute journey explores both the geographical and cultural landscape of Acadia while offering practical creative approaches for photographers of all levels. Beginning with the park's unique geography, I trace the geological forces that created this distinctive landscape and discuss the indigenous Wabanaki peoples, the original "People of the Dawnland." Through stunning imagery and personal anecdotes from multiple seasons living and photographing in the park, I'll share creative techniques for capturing Acadia's essence through repeat visits, minimalist compositions, and adapting to changing conditions. Photographers will learn practical approaches to working with Acadia's diverse environments—from long exposures at Boulder Beach to intimate botanical studies at Sieur de Monts—while gaining insights into compositional exploration and developing personal creative vision. I'll conclude with some words on the process of translating my vision and my body of work into an educational eBook.
LIVE Session will be presented on June 18th 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ETÂ
Bio:
Michele Sons is a fine art landscape and nature photographer, writer, and educator based in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, with clients including National Geographic, The Wilderness Society, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Smokies Life, Eastern National, and other non-profits that serve our nation’s national parks. Her work tends toward quiet, pared-down, subtle representations of her deep reverence for the natural world. Fog, mist, and soft light are intrinsic elements present in many of her images. Michele's uniquely nomadic background, advanced degrees in environmental biology and physical geography, and a 20-year corporate career in spatial analysis provide a personal perspective that informs her creative focus on connection and expression. Michele empowers creative outdoor photographers to find meaningful connections with nature and grow in their artistry. The Art of Place is Michele’s holistic education resource for landscape and nature photographers, encompassing the entirety of the art and craft of photography. Through her eBooks, private online mentoring, and private field workshops, Michele shares her unique approach to expressive image-making. Learn how to connect with the natural world and express yourself confidently and creatively. Michele also teaches regularly at online and in-person conferences across the United States. Michele’s work has been featured extensively in the National Geographic Beautiful Landscapes calendars, she has participated in group and solo museum and gallery exhibitions both domestically and internationally, and she has collaborated with non-profits on editorial work in support of America's national parks. Her work has been featured in numerous local and regional print publications as well as highly regarded websites. Michele served as 2022 New River Gorge Creative-in-Residence at our nation’s newest national park, and is a 2023 recipient of the Inspired Creator Grant. Michele’s educational eBooks RIVERSONG: Creative, Holistic Approaches to Photographing New River Gorge, DAWNLAND: Creative, Holistic Approaches to Photographing Acadia National Park, and THE ART OF FOG: A Primer for Expressive Landscape and Nature Photography in Fog are available for purchase on her website.
You can learn more about Michele on her website.
Michele will be supporting Friends of Acadia with 5% from the registration feesÂ
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Nye Simmons teaches “Great Smoky Mountains and Blue Ridge Parkway: Grand and Intimate”
Nye Simmons
I will take you on a tour of the landscape of these two national treasures, one a National Park, the other a National Parkway. These are the two most visited units in our national park system. Join me for a virtual visit and find out why. The Smokies and the Blue Ridge Parkway preserve and celebrate the best of our Southern Appalachian ecosystems with scenic wonders and an infinite number of small details for the photographer’s enchantment.
LIVE Session will be presented on June 25th 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ETÂ
Bio:
I have been photographing for over 50 years. My roots are in large format film using 4x5, 5x7 and 617 film. I have transitioned to digital imaging, now with the FujiFilm GFX100s. I am the author or co-author of 6 books including The Greater Smoky Mountains Photographer’s Guide, Best of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Blue Ridge Parkway Celebration (a 214 page large format book), Blue Ridge Parkway, An Extraordinary Journey Among the World’s Oldest Mountains (with Jerry Greer), Tennessee Wonder and Light, the Smoky Mountains Photographer’s Guide (the original guide with Bill Campbell), and Great Smoky Mountains Wonder and Light (with Jerry Greer and Bill Lea). I was a contributing writer-photographer for the Ultimate Guide to Digital Nature Photography. I have been published in various regional and national magazines including National Geographic Adventure and National Geographic Traveler as well as Sierra Club Calendars. I live in Knoxville, TN in the shadow of the Great Smokies. In addition to publishing my books and calendars, I offer small group photography workshops and tours, both scheduled and bespoke, with an emphasis on photographic seeing and field techniques. I am on the web at www.nyesimmons.com and Instagram at @nyesimmonsphotography.
Learn more about Nye on his website.
Nye will be supporting Southern Appalachian Nature Photographers with 5% from the registration feesÂ
Jerry Ginsberg teaches “America’s Overlooked National Parks"
Jerry Ginsberg
Pointing out that, while our most well known National Parks are flooded with record crowds, many of our other natural gems are too often overlooked and lightly visited.
LIVE Session will be presented on July 1st 4:00 pm PT / 7:00 pm ETÂ
Bio:
Jerry Ginsberg is a multi-award winning photographer whose landscape, Nature and travel images have graced the covers and pages of hundreds of books, magazines, travel catalogs snd websites. He is the only person to have photographed each and every one of America's 63 National Parks with medium format cameras. Jerry has been awarded Artist Residencies in several National Parks all across America and has appeared on several ABC TV programs including Good Morning America and Nightline discussing photographing our National Parks. . His works have been exhibited from coast to coast and have received numerous awards. Jerry's photographic archive spans virtually all of both North and South America as well as portions of Europe and the Middle-East.
Learn more about Jerry on his website.Â
Jerry will be supporting Eric P Steiner Endowed Fund for Early Detection and Prevention of Pancreatic Cancer Research  with 5% from the registration feesÂ
