The family and I are in Palm Springs this week, enjoying some sunshine while I attend the North American Nature Photography Association’s (NANPA) annual summit.  We left record warmth in New Hampshire (it was near 70 degrees in Portsmouth the Saturday before we left) and found ourselves in record cold here in the Southern California desert (highs in the 50’s and lows in the 20’s.)  Still, every day is sunny and the pool is heated!

Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, California

Palm Springs is well known for its golf courses and movie stars, and the juxtaposition of flat, palm tree lined neighborhoods with the snow-capped and brown desert slopes of the towering San Jacinto Mountains.  To me, one of the more distinctive landscape features is the huge wind farm that hugs the I-10 corridor between the San Jacinto range and San Gorgonio peak.  Hundreds of wind mills fill the valley and lower slopes of the mountains.  I find the scene to be visually arresting, as well as a compelling story about clean, renewable energy.

 

Palm Springs wind farm.

This is the eight NANPA summit I’ve attended, and I can’t recommend more the experience to anyone who loves to take nature pictures.  The summit consists of four days of hanging with friends, networking with photo buyers, and learning the nuts and bolts of nature photography, but the best part of the NANPA summits is the inspiration I get from seeing what other photographers accomplish through their creative genius, guts, and sheer determination.  This year’s program includes keynote presentations by Frans Lanting and Kevin Schafer.  To learn more about NANPA, check them out at www.nanpa.org.

 
My boy Quinn.

Until next time...