Come Explore America’s Most Beautiful Photo Locations And Learn Aperture

Over the course of the year-long project we’re calling the Aperture Nature Photography Workshops, we’ll be assembling a first-rate crew of working professionals to inspire both the amateur winners of our contest and our community at large. Here’s the first bunch. We’ll be adding to this list throughout the year so check back.

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Scott Stulberg is a travel and stock photographer who often journeys to distant lands looking for unique stock opportunities. He is represented by many stock agencies including Corbis and Getty Images. A contributing writer for Shutterbug, he teaches many classes in digital photography and Photoshop at UCLA Extension and the Julia Dean Photography Workshops. From Microsoft, Newsweek and the New York Times, to greeting cards, calendars and book covers, his photographs are used internationally. His photographs are in collections all over the world, including the newly opened UCLA Medical Center, with prints displayed in over 60 patient rooms.

Steve Simon is an award-winning photographer who graduated from Concordia University in Montreal with a degree in Communications/Journalism. He has participated as a guest lecturer and workshop leader at various photography and arts events in Canada, The United States, and Argentina. He has had solo shows in New York, Buenos Aires, Toronto and Montreal and his work has been featured three times at the Visa Pour L’Image Photography Festival in Perpignan, France. His work is in the permanent collections of The George Eastman House, Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Comune Di Verona. He’s also the author of several photography books.

Scott Bourne is a digital media pioneer and has been involved in photography for more than three decades. He’s the co-host and founder of This Week in Photography and the author of four photo books and three photography-related titles for Lynda.com.

Scott’s led workshops and seminars for, Palm Beach Photographic Center, Cooperative Communicators of America, WPPA, The Professional Photographers of America, Seattle Art Center, and Olympic Mountain School of Photography. He holds the designation Apple Certified Professional Trainer (T3) for Apple’s Aperture.

Over the course of the four workshops, we’ll also be joined by staff from Apple who will not only demonstrate some outstanding photographic techniques, but will also teach Aperture to all the attendees.

Photo by Scott Bourne

Today, Apple’s Hot News promoted our contest. You have about a week to get in on the current session. Be sure to upload your image today at http://photrade.com/contest/aperturenatureworkshops.

Remember, if you’re image wins you get:

1 USB Drobo - approximate value $500

$350 worth of Lensbaby gear

1 Premium subscription to lynda.com value $375

1 set of all current Peachpit Press Photo-related books - approximate value $500

1 ThinkTank 360 Photo Bag - approximate value $350

1 Apple Aperture 2.1 - approximate value $200

1 Lifetime Pro Membership to Photrade - approximate value $500

Enter today. And to learn more about photography visit TWIPPHOTO.COM.

You can win a free Drobo! All you have to do is join our new link contest. Link to http://aperturenatureworkshops.com from your blog or website, and you might just win.

At the end of the year, we’ll check our referrer logs and randomly select one link. The owner of the blog or website that posted that link wins the Drobo.*

So link away, and thanks for helping to spread the word about the Aperture Nature Photography Workshops.

*Contest open to U.S. residents, 18 years of age or older.

Photo by Scott Bourne

The contest is LIVE! There is NO entry fee. Now’s your chance to enter for one of four prize packages including a trip to Grand Tetons National Park in Wyoming and more than $2500 worth of photo - related prizes including:

1 USB Drobo - approximate value $500

$350 worth of Lensbaby gear

1 Premium subscription to lynda.com value $375

1 set of all current Peachpit Press Photo-related books - approximate value $500

1 ThinkTank 360 Photo Bag - approximate value $350

1 Apple Aperture 2.1 - approximate value $200

1 Lifetime Pro Membership to Photrade - approximate value $500

Go our contest page at Photrade before the end of this month if you want your entry to count in this first of four sessions. If you can’t get an image ready for this event, check back in a month or so and we’ll be accepting images for our next event in Yellowstone National Park.

Please read our complete contest rules located in the right side navigation bar. Contest rules are also available at Photrade.com on our contest page, but in short; one entry per person, must be 18 or older, must own the photo being submitted and must be a US resident.

Thanks and good luck.

UPDATE: Our sponsor ThinkTank Photo is giving away the photo bag of your choice in a contest that runs parallel to this one. So even if you don’t plan on entering our contest, check out their contest for a free chance to win.

Ubermind has released a new (free) plug-in for Apple Aperture called Maperture.

According to the company, it combines the power of Aperture and Google Maps and makes geotagging your photos a snap.

Feature List
Add or update global positioning system (GPS) data to your digital photos
Scales from a few images to your entire library
Elegant, responsive user-interface
Location aware photos, just a few clicks away

I tried it and it is very easy to use.

One of my favorite things about Aperture is it’s extensibility. With the adoption of Plug-ins in version 2.1, Apple has opened up Aperture - allowing third-parties to apply their magic to photos living in the Aperture environment.

Apple has created a special site for Aperture plug-ins. Take a moment to visit and you’ll see more than 70 great ways to expand Aperture.

You’ll find new ways to edit, export, and enhance your photos. There are also automation plug-ins and even some new book and web themes for you to explore.

Some of my favorites are Tiffen’s DFX plug-in and Nik’s Color Efex Pro as well as their new B&W plug-in Silver Efex Pro.

We’ll be showing off some of these plug-ins while we’re out at America’s most beautiful National Parks with the ANPW.

Apple updated it’s powerful photo editing and management software, Aperture.

Apple says the Aperture 2.1.1 “update supports general compatibility issues, improves overall stability, and addresses a number of other minor issues.”

The 48MB update can be downloaded from Apple’s Web site.

Announcing our first expedition!

September 24-27, 2008, our first group of photographers will descend on Grand Tetons National Park to make lots of great images and learn more about Apple’s Aperture.

We’ll be photographing all the great sites. Our planned itinerary* includes the famous Mormon Row Barns, Oxbow Bend, Snake River Overlook, Gros Ventre Road, Signal Mountain Overlook and Schwabacher Landing.

The team will gather in Jackson Hole, WY at our hotel on Wednesday night and work through Saturday.

While there will only be eight of us shooting on this trip, our audience will get to come along by way of podcasts, blog posts, twitter messages, friend feed posts, and extensive video coverage of the entire event.

If you have favorite places at the Tetons National Park you think we should check out let us know.

*Itinerary subject to change based on weather, road and light conditions.

Photo by Scott Bourne

While we’re still ironing out some details and specifics will be dependent upon location, a general agenda for the Aperture Nature Photography Workshops will look something like this:

The workshops begin on Wednesday night.

4-5:30 PM registration
6:00 PM welcome dinner and orientation
7:00 PM opening slide show
7:30 PM Aperture introduction
9:00 PM end of 1st day activity

Thursday/Friday

Dawn - field photography in the park (breakfast snacks)
10:00 AM back to hotel to download and clean up
11:45 AM lunch together and morning shoot debrief
12:45 PM relaxation
1:15 PM Aperture training
4:30 PM afternoon field photography in the park (dinner sandwiches)
8:00 PM optional image critiques

Saturday

Dawn - field photography in the park (breakfast snacks)
9:00 AM back to hotel to clean up
9:30 AM Aperture training
11:00 AM checkout and then meet for goodbye lunch