Yosemite is one of the most spectacular alpine landscapes in the world. From the soaring heights of El Capitan and Half-Dome to lush meadows to mesmerizing waterfalls – experience a photographer’s paradise on this Yosemite in Spring Photography Workshop!
With the high-country snow melts, Yosemite’s waterfalls and rivers spring to life, invoking scenes like perhaps no other in the world. In years of maximum water flow, Yosemite’s Upper and Lower Falls make a thundering sound that can be heard throughout the Valley. Bridalveil Fall is spectacular in the spring, with sprays that reach half of its 620-foot height. Some waterfalls, such as Ribbon Falls, only appear during the spring if it’s wet enough – at 1,162 feet, it is one of the tallest waterfalls in the world.
Wildflowers bloom everywhere in Yosemite in the spring, and you can see scores of varieties. Yosemite is one of the few places you can see the bright red stalks of the Snow Plant, a striking sight even if it’s technically a fungus and not a flower. You may also see poppies, goldfields, meadowfoam, baby blue-eyes, and redbud trees.
This workshop has been scheduled to coincide with peak waterfall season in the spring of the year. You’ll have the opportunity to photograph rainbows, waterfalls, wildflowers, and wide-open landscapes at some of Yosemite’s most iconic locations, some of which include the big granite domes of El Capitan, Sentinel Dome, and Half-Dome, and the cascading waters of Yosemite Falls, Bridalveil Falls, and Vernal Falls. We’ll also shoot many other locations on the valley floor, making sure that you’re in the right place at the right time during the best lighting conditions.
Itinerary & General Information
- May 21 – Arrival at the hotel / 5 PM Meet-and-Greet and group dinner.
- May 22 – We normally spend the first day of the workshop at Glacier Point and other locations along Glacier Point Road where we’ll have commanding views of Yosemite Valley, Yosemite Falls, and Half Dome from Glacier Point. We’ll end our day with sunset and some night photography at Tunnel View on our way back to our hotel.
- May 23 – We’ll spend the morning of our second day at Mariposa Grove. Some of the trees in Mariposa Grove date back 2,400 years reaching sizes of 90 ft in diameter and over 210 feet tall. We’ll spend the rest of the morning and afternoon on the Valley Floor, photographing El Capitan, Yosemite Falls, the Three Brothers, the Merced River, and Half Dome. We’ll also photograph daytime photos of the Valley View. Time and weather permitting, we’ll end our day with sunset at Valley View on our way back to our hotel.
- May 24 – Our third day will start with sunrise at the Valley View – another iconic view of Yosemite Valley. In contrast to the elevated view of the valley at Tunnel View, we’ll be shooting on the banks of the Merced River surrounded by towering granite cliffs on both sides of the Valley. We’ll spend the remainder of the day in the eastern section of the Valley Floor with a hike to Mirror Lake. We’ll end our day back at the Valley View for sunset on our way back to our hotel for a farewell celebration dinner.
- May 25 – We’ll spend our final morning critiquing our images in the classroom before concluding our adventure.
John Bosma Fine Arts Photography is an Authorized Permittee of the National Park Service.