Bear's Den Vacation News, Gatlinburg, TN

61st Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage - Gatlinburg, TN

 

The Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage is an annual five-day event in Great Smoky Mountains National Park consisting of a variety of wildflower, fauna, and natural history walks, motorcades, photographic tours, art classes, and indoor seminars. Most programs are outdoors in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, while indoor offerings are held in various venues throughout Gatlinburg, TN. Join us for the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in the Smokies on April 26-May 1, 2011!

On-site registration will begin Tuesday, April 25, 2011 at 5:00 PM in the Mills Conference Center, Gatlinburg TN. View the on-site registration schedule or register now online.

Nature Photography in the Great Smoky Mountains

A couple of years ago I posted an article here: Bear's Den Smoky Mountain News: Great Smoky Mountains Photography - Taking My Camera On The Road as I was getting ready to head down to the Bear's Den for a weeks vacation. 

As I begin to plan for our July trip, once again photography is on my mind!   Then I remembered this GREAT Article from the This Week In Photography (TWIP) blog . . .and thought I'd share it here.

Photo by Brian Davis

#1. Get off the couch. You can’t shoot nature photos indoors. You have to go outside. Don’t worry about waiting for the perfect moment. It will never come. Just go outside and find it. Don’t wait for it. 

#2. Dress for success. If you plan to be outside, know what the weather is going to be like when and where you go, and then plan for contingencies. Always bring a spare pair of boots and socks in the car in case your feet get wet. Always have some minimal rain gear. Dress in layers and don’t forget sunscreen.

#3. Gear up for success. Nature photography is a contemplative artform, so bring a tripod to both slow yourself down, and to get steadier shots. Bring a level to make sure your horizons are in good shape. Bring lots of memory cards and backup gear. You never know when a body will fail. Have a spare. Also bring flash and/or reflectors and defusers. 

#4. Avoid including the sky in your shots if it is gray or white. 

#5. Tell a story. Don’t just set your tripod up at the first location you find and fire away. Approach your subject from several different angles, in different light and using different lenses. 

#6. Go early and stay late. You’ve probably heard this before, but in case you haven’t, the best light is the hour around sunrise and sunset. If it looks good at 3:30 pm, it’s going to look great an hour before sunset. Wait. 

#7. LUDA - Look Up, Look Down, Look All Around. Looking around and being aware of your surroundings will help you find shots you didn’t know you were capable of getting. 

#8. Have a purpose. Don’t just go out shooting everything you see. Give yourself a project. Make sure you have a theme or a goal.

Photo by Brian Davis - Cades Cove 

#9. Watch your horizons. Make sure you avoid putting the horizon dead center in your photos. Try to place the horizon in the top or lower third of the frame. Also watch out for merges. Make sure the horizon doesn’t merge with mountain tops, tree lines or other subjects in your photo. 

#10. Look at lots of nature photos if you want to become a better nature photographer. Writers read to get better at writing and photographers study photos to get better at photography. 

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Video: Great Smoky Mountain Fall Leaf Color - October 30th

Smoky Mountain 59th Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage - April 22-26, 2009

 

As spring begins to sparkle throughout the Great Smoky Mountains, Gatlinburg blossoms into the center of all things botanical during the National Park’s Great Smoky Mountains annual Wildflower Pilgrimage and National Park Experience.

From April 22-26, 2009, everyone from the serious botanist to the weekend gardener will have access to some of the nation’s leading botanical experts as well as Appalachian wildlife authorities.

Registration is required and ENDS 4/13/2009!

The Wildflower Pilgrimage offers more than 150 programs including an array of instructional walks and guided hiking tours tailored to meet individual walking ability, along with demonstrations and guest lecturers.

Tours showcase the abundant varieties of wildflowers, plants, ferns, mosses, trees and shrubs, as well as birds, bears, boars, bats, salamanders and insects, all native to the Great Smoky Mountains. Seminar classes include workshops and sessions by leading experts such as Margie Hunter and Tom Peterson, PhD.

Other classes include a study of herb lore of the Appalachian Mountains and an armchair tour of Cades Cove. Most educational sessions take place in the W.L. Mills Conference Center in downtown Gatlinburg.

In addition to art and craft exhibits, the 2009 Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage juried art competition highlights the beauty of the botanicals of the Smokies and the talent of the artists who focus on the flowering plants. Educational programs and entertainment in the evenings will round out the week’s events in Gatlinburg.

For more and to download a registration brochure and program schedule, visit www.springwildflowerpilgrimage.org . Registration is required.