Mary Clark — California

Course: Colorado’s Grand Landscape: Mountains and Wildflowers

The first morning of RMSP's Colorado's Grand Landscape: Mountains and Wildflowers Workshop, we were greeted by our instructors and two professional drivers. We loaded our gear and 15 students ranging in age from 17-70 into two open sided, topless, 4-wheel drive trucks and we hit the narrow, cliff-hugging backcountry trails of one of the most breathtaking places I have had the privilege of seeing through the lens of my camera!

From that first morning at Yankee Boy Basin until the last minute of the last day, this was an inspiring, jaw dropping and sometimes out-of-my-comfort zone, wild ride - both artistically and personally! The subject matter covered during the week ranged from huge mountain landscapes to fields of wildflowers, lakes and rocky mountain tops and then on to the remains of old mining towns to photograph buildings, rusted out vehicles and trains. Holding this all together were instructors Tim Cooper and Lynn Hoffman-Brouse. Tim's knowledge of how to get that great shot and then take it to a higher level using Photoshop was phenomenal. Lynn's easy way of critiquing our work and then giving a direction to go “next time” was truly teaching at its best. Lynn also knew the name of almost every wildflower we came across! I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to learn from both of these talented photographers and teachers. They inspired me to work hard in the field and see the beauty in even a rusty nail. If you love the high country and have an adventurous streak, this is the workshop for you!