This will be my fifth-year teaching macro/close-up photography at the Madeline Island School of Art.

Also teaching this year will be Charles Needle, which is Charles third year teaching on the Island, and new this year are instructors Gerri Jones, and coming in all the way from England is Sue Bishop.

Madeline Island, nestled in the sparkling embrace of Lake Superior, captivates with its natural beauty and tranquil allure. Lush forests and meadows, painted with vibrant hues in summer, create a picturesque landscape perfect for photographers and nature lovers.

The island's artistic spirit thrives within its small communities, where galleries, local crafts, and a rich cultural heritage add depth to its charm.

On Sunday attendees will take a fun ferry ride from Bayfield to Madeline Island School of Arts sprawling campus.

On Sunday evening we will have a meet and greet with the four instructors in the dining hall.

After a good night's sleep in the campus cabins everyone will meet up for breakfast in the dining hall and find out who will be their instructor and shooting location for the first morning.

Each day you will work with a different instructor in a new location.

Flowers will be a big part of this workshop and the islands Lupine flower is a big attraction, plus shoot in private gardens on the island or take a ferry ride back to the mainland to shoot some Bayfield gardens. You will also shoot a variety of other subjects in nature. 

After the morning shoot you will be back in the dining hall for lunch, and after lunch you will attend a lecture with your instructor of that day in one of the meeting rooms. 

After your instructor meeting you will have some time to relax before heading back to the dining hall for dinner.

After dinner you will have free time to go out and shoot, hang out with the instructors, or go to the island's galleries, bars, shops. 

After breakfast on Friday morning, you will head to the milkhouse barn meeting space for image critique from one of the instructors. 

Bring a laptop to load your images for the critique.

The workshop will come to an end at noon on Friday.  In the afternoon you will prepare to leave the island or stay an extra night and leave on Saturday.

Macro and Abstract Photography Retreat

June 17th–21st

For information about the workshop and to sign up click the link below.

CLICK HERE

I call this the stairway plant, but I doubt that is the name of the plant, and even if I would have saw a name of the plant, I probably wouldn't remember it today.  So, I call it the stairway plant as it reminds me looking down a spiral staircase. 

I was an instructor at the Out of Chicago Flower Conference held at the Chicago Botanical Gardens a few years ago.  It was really windy one day, so I took the group of photographers that I was leading into the Tropical Greenhouse where we didn't have to deal with any wind. 

I was looking over a railing on a ramp I was walking down and spotted this plant.  I thought what an interesting plant and captured a quick shot of it.

Because there was a lot of depth from the top to the bottom of the plant, I shot it at f/32 to get it all in focus. I used Smart Photo Editor to process the image.

Here is the processed image.

Here is the before, out of the camera image.

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I think Mayapple plants are very interesting.  The top group of leaves form like an umbrella, and under the umbrella it produces one white flower.

They come out in the early spring in wooded areas, grow in large groups tightly together.

Here is the first stage as it is just emerging from the ground.

Here is a shot of a large group packed in close to each other.

Sometimes I like to shoot the top of the plant, interesting design in the leaves.  Shoot them covered with rain drops, or maybe do some creative post processing with the colors.

Now for the flower. They are not easy to shoot because the flower is underneath the umbrella, so you have the tripod down as low as it can go, and a little tough on the body having to work so low to the ground.  There are so many ways you can shoot the flower for an artistic look and then do a little creative post processing for a more creative feel. 

Because of all the clutter behind the flower it's and not easy to work a background behind it, I tend to shoot these in the lower f/stop ranges, so, maybe f/5.6, f/6.3 or /f/8. which helps to blur the background but you do sacrifice some focus on the subject.

Join my Macro Photo Club online. Over 280 instructional videos. Over 2800 members from 28 countries. Lifetime membership only $99.
Info and to sign up. 

MACRO PHOTO CLUB - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer (tinylandscapes.com)

Also Check out my workshops and zoom programs.

WORKSHOPS - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer

Lately I've been having fun shooting group of flowers rather than single flowers.  This one is not a group of a flower but a group of flower and buds, plus I like that shooting the backside of the flower is a different perspective.

Fuji X-T30 MKll Tamron 18-300, f/5.6 @ 1/100sec, ISO2000

Creative post processing done in Smart Photo Editor.

The original out of the camera.

Join my Macro Photo Club online. Over 280 instructional videos. Over 2800 members from 28 countries. Lifetime membership only $99.
Info and to sign up. 

MACRO PHOTO CLUB - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer (tinylandscapes.com)

Also Check out my workshops and zoom programs.

WORKSHOPS - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer

My wife and I went to a local nursery to buy some new plants for our flower beds and came across this flower that I have never seen before.  

I was like, wow, look at this cool flower, have to buy one to photograph. 

The sign behind the pots said it was a Kangaroo Paw Plant.

Shot with my Fuji X-T30 MKll and my Tamron 18-300 and also with my new Fuji 70-300. 

So far not happy with the depth of field at the f/22 on the Fuji lens but will do more tests soon.

I will shoot it again as more of the buds open.

Join my Macro Photo Club online. Over 280 instructional videos. Over 2800 members from 28 countries. Lifetime membership only $99.
Info and to sign up. 

MACRO PHOTO CLUB - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer (tinylandscapes.com)

Also Check out my workshops and zoom programs.

WORKSHOPS - Mike Moats - Award Winning Macro Photographer