Death Valley
Overview
“I thoroughly enjoyed the Death Valley Workshop and got more photos that I like than from any previous workshops. Thanks for a great workshop. I’m looking forward to more of them!” –Randy A., seven-time repeat client
At first glance, the largest National Park in the Lower 48 appears to be nothing more than a stark and desolate wasteland, desiccated by sun and wind in the rain shadow of the High Sierra and the Panamint Range. Despite its reputation as a land of extremes – the driest place in the United States, the lowest elevation in North America, and the hottest place on Earth (in summer anyway) – the careful observer will find Death Valley to be a place of elegant and haunting beauty.
This workshop will be led by master landscape photographers William Neill and Jerry Dodrill. Both instructors have photographed Death Valley extensively and know its secrets well. We will photograph at a variety of locations in the park during our morning and afternoon field sessions, with emphasis on the dunes, salt formations, water courses, and sculpted designs in the canyons. At this time of year, the days are comfortable and the nights are cool, and the weather can bring anything from sunny bluebird skies to dramatic boiling storm clouds. Death Valley serves up surprises each time we return. If a wet winter precedes the workshop, blankets of golden and purple wildflowers may cover the hills and alluvial fans along the edges of the valley.
The workshop includes eight excursions to photograph in the field, classroom lectures and ample hands-on instruction and constructive feedback on and critique of your photographs. Group meals provide an informal setting to socialize and address specific interests that may not be covered during lectures and classroom discussion. Included accommodations are in newly renovated Deluxe Rooms with free wi-fi service.
The class size is limited to a small group of ten to ensure that everyone gets the time and attention they deserve, both in the field and the classroom.
Based out of Stovepipe Wells Village Hotel, located ideally near Mesquite Flat Dunes, and with all meals, snacks and beverages included, this is a superb workshop scenario. We hope you’ll join us!
Note: Visionary Wild, LLC operates this workshop under a permit issued by the National Park Service at Death Valley National Park.
Itinerary
We will meet in the auditorium at Stovepipe Wells Village Hotel at 1pm on Monday, March 2nd. Photography sessions begin that afternoon. Each morning and evening, we’ll be out to photograph first light before breakfast and the evening light before dinner. During mid-day hours, Bill and Jerry will make presentations on photographic seeing, composition and creativity, digital workflow, and maximizing image potential. Critique sessions will follow each day before returning to the field for photography. Friday morning will be the final field session, followed by critique until we adjourn at 3:00 pm.
Instructors
William Neill
- William Neill, a resident of the Yosemite ...
Jerry Dodrill
- Jerry Dodrill has been an award-winning professional photographer and highly regarded photography teacher for more than two decades. A protégé of the late legendary adventure photographer Galen Rowell ...
Gallery
Pricing
All prices are per person.
Package includes the workshop itself, four nights’ accommodations in Deluxe Rooms with Wi-Fi at Stovepipe Wells Hotel (check-in March 2, check-out March 6), all meals, and beverages (including beer and/or fine wine with dinner). Prorated fees are available for participants who have arranged to share a room, and for those who do not require lodging (in the past, some participants have opted to bring their camper and park in the lot across the road from the hotel).
Note: If you will be attending the workshop alone, please book at the single occupancy rate. Double-occupancy bookings are for guests who already know each other, and who chose each other as roommates.
PAYMENT SCHEDULE
- 50% deposit due to confirm registration
- 50% final payment due December 2, 2025
Click here for payment, cancellation and refund policies; and other terms and conditions of participation.
Please review our terms and conditions even if you have participated in previous Visionary Wild trips so that you are aware of current policies.
Highlights
- Small group of ten participants, with a student-to-instructor ratio of 5 to 1
- Learn to see rather than look, finding new and unexpected compositions in the process
- Breaking through creative block and making great photographs in challenging situations
- Mastering a logical, efficient, and consistent workflow, from capture to final master image, that frees you to focus on creativity
- Ensuring the highest-possible final image quality
- Output and outlets for your work
- Eight field photography sessions, pre-dawn to mid-morning and mid-afternoon to twilight
- Constructive group critiques of participant work
- All-inclusive of Deluxe Room accommodation, and all meals as a group to foster camaraderie and create opportunities to chat and to address questions not raised in the field or classroom.
Accommodations
Accommodations in Deluxe Rooms at Stovepipe Wells Village Hotel, an authentically historic western-style hotel established in 1926, featuring comfortable and modern guest rooms, a spacious meeting room for our classroom sessions, a welcoming saloon, and a restaurant that does a surprisingly good job given the remote location. Our meals (all included) will be served at Stovepipe Wells or Furnace Creek restaurants depending on our fieldwork agenda.
Travel
