Come Learn with Me in 2018

If it weren’t for my Google Calendar, I quite literally wouldn’t know where I need to be. If I can barely keep track of my schedule, I doubt anyone can.

Here is a roundup of the expeditions and workshops I’ll be leading this year (and in 2019). Some are new and other are tried and true. You can always check which National Geographic Expeditions trips I’ll be on as an Expert here.

Coming up March 7th-21st, I’ll be on board the National Geographic Orion for the Best of Patagonia: From Torres del Paine to Cape Horn. I had a wee taste of Patagonia before my Antarctica trip last year and I am so excited for this sure-to-be-stunning journey!

On May 12th-23rd, I return to Morocco to lead the Morocco Photography Expedition for National Geographic Expeditions. To read and see more about last year’s experience, click here. We will begin in Casablanca, visit the chaos of Marrakech, climb into the Atlas Mountains, and then explore the Sahara Desert. We end in my favorite city, Fes, to get lost in the labyrinth of the souks.

Photographer

Tiles at the Ben Youssef Madrasa in Marrakesh.

Photographer

The famous (and pungent) tanneries in Fes.

Photographer

Sunrise photography in the Sahara with of our expedition guests.

Immediately following Morocco, I’ll swap out flip-flops for hiking boots and head to Alaska for two dates on the Wild Alaska Escape on May 29th-June 3rd and June 3rd-8th. This will be my third trip to Alaska for Lindblad/National Geographic and it personally ranks as one of my favorites. Read more about the trip here.

krista-rossow-alaska-photography-brown-bears-pavlof

Brown bears at Pavlof Waterfall.

krista-rossow-alaska-photography-whales-feeding

Bubble-net feeding humpback whales in Sumner Strait.

On June 24th-29th, I’ll be returning to the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops to teach The New World of Travel Photography. We will explore the Santa Fe area and learn to make our travel images stand out from the crowd.

Photographer

Feeling festive on Santa Fe’s famous Plaza.

Last year I had the opportunity to teach with National Geographic Student Expeditions for the first time in Yellowstone National Park. This year I’ll be leading another high school student group for the Yosemite and San Francisco Photo Workshop from July 17th-28th.

Late summer will find me in Aspen, Colorado, teaching for the first time at Anderson Ranch Arts Center on August 13th-17th. Join me to explore the beauty of Aspen in my Beyond the Postcard photo workshop.

In the fall, I’ll be teaching a private workshop with Jennifer Davidson in my home state of Oregon. If you’re interested in a customized, private workshop, please contact me.

Photographer

Last fall Jennifer and I led a private workshop for our friends the “Roadrunners” in Santa Fe.

Photographer

Fall foliage in the mountains surrounding Santa Fe.

Photographer

The magical Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

If you are already daydreaming about travel in 2019, I’ll return to the Upper Amazon and be joining National Geographic Expeditions on their new European river cruises on the Duoro River and on the Danube River.

I hope my travel path crosses with yours!

Looking Back on 2015

In my (at times crazy) freelance life, I’m lucky to get to wear three hats: photographer, editor, and teacher. This past year had me busily swapping hats and it awarded me with some unforgettable experiences.

Last year I rang in the New Year overlooking the twinkling lights of Paris before heading to Spain to photograph a chilly Marbella on the Costa del Sol and then venturing to South Africa to shoot a feature story for National Geographic Traveler. February found me teaching photography in the Galápagos Islands for National Geographic Expeditions.

Fast forward to a summer spent teaching on ships on the Equator and in the Arctic Cirle and to my first workshop co-teaching with Jennifer Davidson in Austin, Texas. After returning home for the fall I put on my photo editing hat and got to work on multiple projects for National Geographic (did you see the Adelaide and Best of the World feature stories in the Dec 2015/Jan 2016 issue of National Geographic Traveler?). After Thanksgiving I headed south again to take part in the first Epic Photo Expedition in the Galápagos.

As the adage goes, pictures tell a thousand words, so I’ll let these images help tell the story of my most memorable experiences of 2015.

On Assignment: Durban Days

Scene on the Durban waterfront.

I fell in love with South Africa in 2013 and was delighted to be asked by National Geographic Traveler to head back to photograph Durban and the Kwa-Zulu Natal region for the May 2015 issue. I went on safari in a UNESCO World Heritage site, hiked into the jaw-dropping Drakensburg Mountains on the border with Lesotho, and explored the urban landscape of Durban. I ate plenty of curry and spent as much time as I could on the waterfront documenting the everyday lives of Durbanites. The photos from this assignment were also displayed in a gallery show in Durban during the INDABA travel show.

Most Obscure Destination: Jan Mayen

krista-rossow-jan-mayen-landscape

I had never heard of Jan Mayen until the day before setting foot on the island while traveling as a photo expert on the National Geographic Explorer. Located at 70°59′N 8°32′W in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, we had the opportunity to explore this Norwegian island on a rare sunny afternoon. We walked on a moonlike landscape and admired the “shy” glacier-covered Beerenberg Volcano as it would occasionally emerge from its cloud cover.

Second Most Obscure Destination: Juan Fernández Archipelago

krista-rossow-robinson-crusoe-island

Located 416 miles off of the coast of Chile is a land that inspired the novel Robinson Crusoe, the Juan Fernández Archipelago. While working on the National Geographic Explorer as a photo expert on a voyage exploring Peru and Chile, I was able to go on shore on Robinson Crusoe Island and even hike high into the foothills of this verdant, charming, and almost forgotten isle.

Most Exhilarating Experience: An Erupting Volcano

kristar-rossow-wolf-volcano-eruption

A week before I headed to the Galápagos Islands in June, I heard news of Wolf Volcano erupting. I couldn’t wait to get down to the islands to perhaps catch a glimpse. Although nowhere near the full splendor of the initial eruption, what I saw was equally awe-inspiring. One evening, as the National Geographic Endeavour navigated closer to the island and the light faded from the sky, the lava hot spots illuminated the smoke and clouds in a terrific orange color. We stayed up late into the night entranced by the glow and trying our best to photograph a low-light situation from a moving platform (this was definitely the most difficult photographic situation of the year!).

Favorite American Experience

krista-rossow-texas-rodeo

As much as I love to experience other cultures, I always have loved American culture. During the Picture Austin photo workshop I taught with Jennifer Davidson, we took our students to the Bastrop Homecoming Rodeo to capture this American tradition.

Most Memorable Wildlife Experience

krista-rossow-polar-bear-arctic

I’d never before seen a polar bear in the wild, and although this fellow came right up to the bow of our ship (we think he smelled the bacon from breakfast) during my Arctic expedition, I’m sharing this wide-angle shot of him in his native habitat. It struck me as so poignantly beautiful that these powerful creatures live solitary lives in extreme environments. It reminded me that the way we live our daily lives has repercussions further away than we might imagine.

Best Teaching Team

epic-galapagos-photo-team

Last month I was part of an incredible team brought together for the first Epic Photo Expedition in the Galápagos. From left to right: Mark Thiessen, Ralph Lee Hopkins, me, Jonathan Kingston, Jennifer Davidson, Tui De Roy, Gabe Biderman, David Brommer, and Rich Reed. I’m heading back this December for another epic; will you join? Photo courtesy of Greg Cook.

So Many Miles

krista-rossow-national-geographic-explorer

In 2015 I took 68 flights, six expeditions by ship, and added four new countries to my list. The year was filled with new faces and places with a little editing here, some shooting there, and a lot of teaching others to love photography.

2016 already promises lots of adventures starting with attending the annual National Geographic Seminar tomorrow in Washington, DC, and leaving for an Asian adventure next week.

Stay up to date with all that is happening here and through my quarterly newsletter. I hope our paths cross in this new year. Happy 2016!

Learn How to Photograph Boobies (the Blue-Footed Kind)

Krista giving feedback during a one-on-one critique with a workshop participant in Washington, DC.

Krista giving feedback during a one-on-one critique with a workshop participant in Washington, DC. Video still by Steve Pickard.

Now that I’ve got your attention, no blue-footed booby picture here yet, but read on for a chance to learn how to photograph these unique birds with me in the Galápagos Islands.

A student photographs the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise shoot on a weekend photo workshop Krista taught with Dan Westergren.

A student photographs the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise shoot on a weekend photo workshop Krista taught with Dan Westergren.

For the last few years I’ve been working as an instructor on National Geographic Expeditions’ weekend photo workshops in New Orleans and Washington, DC. I’ve not only been able to share my love for these two fabulous cities, but also share my knowledge of photography and photo editing. It is honestly a delight to be surrounded by people eager to learn and immerse themselves in photography for four days. Recently we had a videographer join one of the DC workshops led by Mark Thiessen to put together a taste of what the workshops are like. Check out the video put together by Steve Pickard.

Also, I’m so delighted to share news that I’ll be working as a National Geographic Expert with National Geographic Expeditions on their Galápagos Photo Expeditions in 2014. From June 13th through 22nd we will be photographing the diverse wildlife and gorgeous scenery of the islands and spending time back on the National Geographic Endeavor ship delving deeper into learning photography. The next week I’ll be serving as a photo instructor with Expert Annie Griffiths and in October/November with Expert Rich Reid. Check out the full schedule here.

I’m looking forward to exploring the Galápagos with students, new and old. I hope to photograph blue-footed boobies with you there!