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Again this year we offer photographers the opportunity to hone their skills and improve their bird and nature photos. We start with a photography workshop and follow it with a trip to the Pine Island rookery where you can practice what you have learned.
Photo Workshop – 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM
This year’s photo workshop will be presented by Charles Martin, an accomplished local outdoor photographer who grew up keeping his watchful eyes on Louisiana. We will spend an afternoon with one of the most interesting Nature Photographers Louisiana has to offer: From sunrise to sunset, rain or record cold, Charlie can be found documenting everything from birds to our coastal marshes and cypress lakes.
Charlie is a life-long hunter and fisherman. As such, he has garnered a unique perspective on Louisiana’s wildlife. Now, what his eyes see, hidden deep within the swamp and marshland, is captured with a click and shared with the world.
Because his images of the river, swamp and wildlife reveal a remarkable essence of Louisiana’s beauty, his scenes have been highly coveted for national marketing efforts by such agencies as the Louisiana Department of Economic Development and the Port of South Louisiana.
His services are also frequently requested by other professional photographers and reps from around the country to guide them through the waterways of South Louisiana. From early morning dew drops that glisten like jewels on a lizard’s back, to the eye-popping glare of a curious bull frog waiting to strike a catch and the crimson sunsets that hide behind cypress trees at the end of each day, Charlie Martin’s distinctive style gives us a rare view from within our grand landscape.
The afternoon starts at 2:30 PM when Charles will provide tips and insight into his unique photographic niche, as well as the practical aspects of nature photography as we view “Deeper South: Eyes on Louisiana,” a slide program providing a rare view of our fragile ecosystem. While emphasizing bird photography, his show will include everything from general wildlife to vivid sunsets and frozen lakeshores.
Don’t miss this great outdoorsman demonstrate his love for nature with his wonderful photographs and help you to hone your skills to better capture the wonderful world that surrounds us here in South Louisiana.
And, as we often do here in Louisiana, we have a little lagniappe - Door prizes provided by Bennett’s Camera and a chance to win a one-on-one shoot with Charles Martin at some of his favorite locations.
Photo Shoot – 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
After the workshop, we head to a local rookery so you can practice techniques, staying until 8:00 PM to capture images of nesting birds, flocks of egrets and other birds returning to their roosts, and the sun setting behind the cypress trees bordering the lake.
This is the first of our two trips to Pine Island and is dedicated to photography. There is a birding trip to this location on Sunday, April 18.
Pine Island, a 3,000-acre wildlife preserve, offers a unique photographic opportunity. Just west of the Tchefuncte River between Madisonville and Ponchatoula, Pine Island is a naturalist’s dream-come-true with thousands of roosting birds, alligators, and other wildlife.
Pine Island is the legacy of a logging operation once located in Madisonville. Cypress logging ceased at Pine Island nearly a century ago. For decades the family which until recently owned the property assured that nature took precedence in the area and maintained Pine Island as a wildlife refuge. The current owner continues that tradition. Today the private property is closed to the public, but birding photographers with the Great Louisiana BirdFest are offered a rare glimpse into this premier habitat.
You will drive through pines and mixed hardwoods, ending at the 300-acre man-made lake housing one of the south’s largest rookeries. The nests are far enough from the levee that you need a long lens and possibly a tripod to get the best shots. We suggest that you bring the longest lens you have. We also suggest fine grain film so that you can crop and enlarge your shots without losing image quality. If you do not have as long a lens as you might like, the photographers, who will be assisting with advice and guidance, may let you mount your camera body (if compatible) to their lens for a little while during the trip so you can really zoom in to get an unforgettable shot.
As dusk settles over the swamp, thousands of birds, including egrets, herons, ibis, cormorants, Anhinga and more fly in for an evening’s rest. From the levee, the sight of these incoming birds is truly spectacular. The photography session will remain at the rookery until just after sunset, allowing you to capture this wonderful event on film.
Note – This is a photography trip best captured with a long telephoto lens. A point-and-shoot camera doesn’t do the site justice so be forewarned that many shots are long distance shots. There will be no birding guides on this trip.
If you are only interested in birding this trip is not for you. Please come to our birding trip to this site on Sunday.
• Easy walk.
Wintering Birds: Pied-billed Grebe, Bald Eagle,
Resident and Breeding Birds: Double-crested Cormorant, Anhinga, Great Blue, Tricolored, Yellow-crowned Night, Black-crowned Night, Green, and Little Blue Herons; Cattle, Great and Snowy Egrets; White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill (one year), Wood Duck, Vultures, Osprey, Wild Turkey (one year), Purple Gallinule, Common Moorhen, passerines, and more.
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