Southern Maine Coastal Summer Birds Photography Workshop

This bird-centered photography workshop is for advanced beginners through
experienced photographers. The 1-day course will provide in-the-field instruction, some
classroom time for a photo-editing tutorial, and opportunities designed to help you
capture exciting bird images. The focus will be on migrating shorebirds, but we should
also have opportunities to work with other groups as well, including terns, swallows, and
warblers, among others.

Instructor Bio

Loren Merrill is a wildlife photographer and science writer with a doctorate in wildlife
ecology and animal behavior. Loren’s approach to photography is heavily influenced by
his background in natural history, ecology, and animal behavior, and his goal is to
capture images that help communicate stories of the natural world to others. While he
has conducted research and pursued photography on four continents, Loren’s ties to
Maine run deep: he grew up searching for snakes, turtles, and birds in the Midcoast
area, and his first field job was for the Audubon Society’s Project Puffin in 1995. Loren is
a dedicated instructor receiving a number of teaching and mentoring awards while in
academia, and he works with each participant to help them achieve their goals. 
Decades spent in the presence of wild animals have provided Loren with unique
insights into their behavior, and he is able to parlay that knowledge into being better
prepared to understand and anticipate his subjects’ action. To paraphrase Louis
Pasteur, wildlife photography favors the prepared mind.

Workshop Description

Our subjects for these workshops will be birds found in Southern Maine’s coastal zone
during the late summer. This includes an array of shorebirds, terns, gulls, and migrating
passerines. We will be shooting at a few different beaches, and— depending on
weather and avian activity levels— we will likely visit a few terrestrial areas to work with
warblers, vireos, thrushes, and other woodland birds. This will allow us to work on
shooting under different environmental conditions and with very different subjects:
shorebirds foraging on the beach, birds-in-flight, terns diving for fish, songbirds in a
multi-dimensional environment, etc.

Late August is an excellent time to be photographing birds in Maine: the number of
individuals is at its peak as adults and this year’s young begin heading south.

The objective for this workshop is to provide you with opportunities to capture some
compelling images of birds in their natural environments. This workshop will be more
of a photo-safari, in which Loren will take participants to some of his favorite locations for photographing birds in Southern Maine. We will spend a little bit of time midday
going over photo-editing techniques in between our time in the field.

We will meet early Sunday morning (at 7:30am) at a field location TBA and will go from
there. There will be breaks for meals and snacks, which participants should bring with
them (although folks will have time to grab lunch if they don’t want to bring one). We will
have informal group discussions during snacks and lunch about the challenges and
break-throughs people have experienced during the day. The workshop will wrap up
around 4pm.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a lot of experience or expensive gear to take this workshop?

This workshop is geared towards those with some level of experience and familiarity
with their camera. You should be able to adjust the white balance, ISO, shutter speed,
and aperture settings in your camera. I will work with each participant to help them
maximize their camera’s capabilities.

What about transportation?

Participants are responsible for their own transportation, and we encourage carpooling.

What about lodging?

Maine is a popular place, and many hotels and B&B’s fill up fast. We ask that you stay close to our predetermined meet-up locations (somewhere in the Biddeford/ Saco/
Scarborough area).

What should I wear?

The most recommended piece of gear is a pair of sturdy shoes, ideally waterproof or
water resistant. We may walk across uneven, hard, wet surfaces, so hiking shoes with
good tread are very helpful. We also like to layer, which usually means a base layer of
synthetic, fast-wicking material, a warm fleece or soft shell, and a down jacket for cool
mornings. In addition, I like to lie down in the sand when shooting shorebirds at the
beach, so I recommend water-resistant/proof pants and top, and/or a light-weight,
portable water-proof ground pad. Other suggested items are found below:

• Insect and tick repellant
• Sunscreen
• Waterproof outerwear
• Sun hat

Should I be concerned about ticks?

Yes. All outdoor activities in New England carry the risk of picking up these nasty hitchhikers. Please use bug repellent that you can apply to your skin, or even better, permethrin, which you apply to clothes you plan on wearing in the field. Also, give yourself an extensive review when you get home at night to check for ticks.

What happens if the weather doesn’t cooperate?

Please keep an open mind when it comes to your expectations about what “good
conditions" are. Weather in August in Maine can be unpredictable; it can be sunny,
humid and in the 90s, or it can be overcast, rainy, and in the 50s. We’ll be keeping an
eye on the weather so we can be prepared for whatever it throws at us. We want to
teach you how to shoot in all conditions! Wet conditions can yield some of the most
novel, exciting wildlife images.

What does my tuition cover?

The price of the workshop includes all fieldwork, group instruction, and individual tutoring. It does not include travel insurance, meals, transportation, or lodging.

Should I bring a laptop?

Yes. We recommend you bring your laptop and a card reader so that we can edit photos
during our midday break. If you have photo-editing software on your computer (e.g.,
Lightroom) you’ll be able to work on editing some images during that session.

What camera equipment do you recommend I bring?

• DSLR or mirrorless camera
• Lenses equal to or greater than 300mm are recommended (this can include zoom lenses)
  • I’ll be shooting with a 300mm prime lens with a 2x converter
• A sturdy tripod and head
• Portable stool if you don’t want to lie down on the beach
• Waterproof camera bag
• Extra camera batteries
• Extra memory card if your card is under 50GB

Cancellations

The payment is 50% refundable in the event you have to cancel, as long as the cancellation is made 21 days before the trip. After that time, your payment is non-refundable. Alternately, 100% of your payment will be refunded if a replacement can be found prior to the trip.