Join Dawn Wilson for a day photographing Wildlife at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge!
Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is one of the largest urban wildlife refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. This location provides excellent opportunities to photograph wild animals close to home, including bison, burrowing owls, prairie dogs, deer, coyotes and a wide variety of birds. We will meet for an introduction to nature photography in the classroom and then head out to test the classroom skills by photographing birds, butterflies and prairie dogs.
This workshop is for girls and female-identified youth ages 13-18. We do make age exceptions for motivated students. This workshop is free.
Join Karine Aigner for a free online workshop on photographing and understanding the world of reptiles and amphibians. This workshop will take place over Zoom on Saturday, May 28th at 10:00am PST/ 12:00 pm CST/ 1:00pm ET.
This workshop will explore the world of reptile and amphibian photography. Herping is the act of searching for amphibians or reptiles. As a wildlife photographer, you have to be able to find your subject. If you are an expert herper, you will be able to find some amazing and surprising subjects to photograph. Karine will teach you about the secret world of these amazing creates to help you get the best photos possible.
Join Alyce Bender for a free online workshop on Impressionistic Photography. This workshop will take place over Zoom on Saturday, July 30th at 11:00am PST/ 1:00 pm CST/ 2:00pm ET.
In this session, we will explore the world of Impressionistic Photography and how to create painterly type images in-camera. Topics covered will include pre-visualizing scenes, selecting camera settings, in-field techniques, and a few tips on post processing these special images. This will give participants the basic tools to start experimenting on their own in the field to create unique images even in popular shooting locations or with common backyard subjects.
Join Helena Atkinson for a free online workshop on Black and White Photography. This workshop will take place over Zoom on Saturday, March 26th at 9:00am PST/ 12:00 pm ET/ 11:00am CST/ 7:00pm UCT+2
“Black and white photography can make you look at the world differently. It forces us to see things in a simplified way and it can make you constantly look for patterns, contrast, and emotional connection with and between subjects. One of the key elements of this genre is the editing process afterwards but I will share some of the things I have learnt about the settings in the field that work well when you shoot with the intention of turning the images into black and white.
This workshop will focus on the types of subjects, especially wildlife, that lend themselves to black and white photos as well as editing tools that I use.” – Helena Atkinson
Join Jennifer Leigh Warner for a day photographing local La Jolla wildlife!
In this in-person workshop you will go over proper camera settings for wildlife photography, learn field ethics, and be immersed in a search for La Jolla’s special wildlife.
We are thrilled to introduce you to the 2022 Girls Who Click Ambassadors. This group was selected from over 160 competitive applicants and includes 14 Ambassadors who are new to the program and 14 Continuing Ambassadors. They are young, talented photographers and videographers that come from many different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds. Along with a special drive to launch their professional photography career, they are also fierce advocates for conservation. Please take the time to look at their work and follow them. They are a worthy investment and they make us more hopeful than ever about the future. WOW.
The Ambassador Program is one-of-a-kind: a professional mentorship that launches diverse women and non-binary individuals into nature photography, an industry that is heavily male-dominated and white. Girls Who Click is committed to making changes happen.
Click on the links below to learn more about each amazing Ambassador!
We would also like to re-introduce you to our Continuing Ambassadors who are staying with the program to continue developing their work! The Ambassadors exemplify Girls Who Click’s mission and values and have demonstrated leadership and passion in the Ambassador Program.
Each Ambassador has been paired with an established professional photographer who will help her take the next step in her career. These exceptional Girls Who Click partner photographers are the backbone of the Ambassador Program and we are deeply indebted to them for their mentoring and generosity.
In addition to mentorship, Ambassadors have access to all Girls Who Click nature photography workshops. The Ambassador Program is sponsored by ThinkTank, LEE Filters, and Wild Idea Lab, who will provide special benefits to Ambassadors.
Welcome to Part 5 of our GWC Ambassador series! In this post, we feature three more talented photographers in the program. Read on to learn more about their inspiring work.
Make sure to check out the rest of the series on our blog.
Featured in this blog:
Evelyn Smalley (mentor: Erin Ranney)
Samantha Stephens (mentor: Morgan Heim)
Emma Balunek (mentor: Jaymi Heimbuch)
Evelyn Smalley
This picture was taken by one of my closest friends in an attempt to get my first “headshot”, before Erin introduced me on her Instagram. This picture highlights how awkward I am in front of the camera compared to behind it. As a fairly introverted character I really struggle to put myself out there, a fear I am desperately trying to overcome before the inevitable freelance life arrives!
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
After having the wonderful opportunity to experience Southern Africa at a young age, I knew for my sanity I needed to spend the rest of my life working in the remote places of the world surrounded by nature. It therefore seemed logical to apply to the BSc Zoology in Manchester’s concrete jungle. Whilst day-to-day life is pretty nature deprived, I have been able to travel across the world for various field courses and placements, teaching myself how to navigate a camera along the way.
Only now after four years have I realised I actually have an aversion to everything statistical. Whilst we would be nowhere without science, it’s actually its communication I’m interested in. Instead of being cocooned in a laboratory pumping out research papers, through the lens of a camera I want to share inspiring stories from the front lines of conservation. The visual medium is a formidable, emotive tool that when wielded effectively can galvanise audiences to protect the natural world and the well-being of our species.
2. Why did you apply to the Ambassador Program? What are you hoping to achieve?
I applied to the Girls Who Click Ambassador Program because it’s such an ingenious, empowering initiative that I really wanted to be a part of. But also because I had never had a professional opinion of my photography. It’s lovely when your friends and family give you compliments, but to be accepted onto this program alongside such astonishing women was just insane. Through this mentorship, not only am I hoping to grow as a person and storyteller, but also to build a supportive network of like-minded women who are driven to protect the natural world through the visual medium.
3. Who is your mentor? How has the program helped you?
My mentor is the badass wildlife camera operator Erin Ranney – who can carry her own kit, thank you. Just as she followed in the footsteps of Justine Evans and Sophie Darlington, my dream is to follow in hers. Erin has provided invaluable advice from camera settings to the importance of storytelling. Through our chats Erin has given me much needed confidence in my ability, because of her I actually believe I can become a wildlife filmmaker.
4. What are you up to now? Anything you’re really excited about?
As part of my final year dissertation, I chose a science communication project. For this I had the amazing opportunity to create my first film. The Salamander’s Saviour is a short documentary about the conservation of a critically endangered Mexican salamander by a convent of nuns. Whilst the process was slightly stressful due to COVID restrictions and a complete lack of experience, I’m very proud of the finished product. As I am no longer a student and now just unemployed, I am currently looking for any jobs vaguely wildlife or media-related before applying for UWE’s MA Wildlife Filmmaking.
This image, titled Nature’s Pitfall, is one of my favourite images I’ve created so far. First, it involved some technical challenges related to figuring out how to light and compose this scene creatively. It’s something that I photographed over and over again, and I am proud of the result of that process. Additionally, it has captured people’s curiosity. Curiosity is such an important element of the scientific process and so when I photograph stories of scientific research, I try to inspire that same feeling in the viewer. I hope that I can create images that make people ask, “what is going on here?!” and then be intrigued to delve further into the story.
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Growing up science was my favourite subject in school. Back then, I didn’t realize that there was any other way to turn that passion into a career aside from the obvious choice to pursue an education in science. While studying biology, I became much more interested in communicating science, rather than conducting research. When I heard about the Environmental Visual Communication program, a post-graduate program that teaches those with a background in science to become visual storytellers, I knew right away that that was the career path I wanted to pursue.
I am currently based in Ottawa, Canada, where I grew up, and the majority of my photographic work focuses on wildlife research and conservation local to this area. For the past few years, I have been primarily based at the Algonquin Wildlife Research Station, located in Ontario’s iconic Algonquin Provincial Park, where I’ve been documenting various wildlife research projects on turtles, salamanders, wolves and small mammals.
2. Why did you apply to the Ambassador Program? What are you hoping to achieve?
GWC is such an important initiative. I think if something like GWC had existed when I was younger, I would have recognized photography as a career path earlier in my journey. I applied to GWC because I was keen to join a supportive group of women who are empowering each other to become the best visual storytellers we can be. The opportunity to be mentored by a woman photographer who can not only help with the craft of photography itself, but also provide advice and share experiences related to navigating a career in this field is an invaluable opportunity. There’s a lot of variability in what a career in nature/conservation photography can look like, which is exciting, but can also make it difficult to navigate. I hope one day, when I’m further along in my own career, I can be a mentor to a future GWC Ambassador!
3. Who is your mentor? How has the program helped you so far?
My mentor is Morgan Heim. I’ve admired Morgan’s work since I first considered switching from a career in wildlife research to one in photography. Morgan’s work has led to tangible conservation outcomes, and that’s something I aim for with my own projects. I have been working on some long-term photography projects that I’m able to go back and shoot again and again, so Morgan has been helping me think about how I can photograph these stories in different, creative ways and how to build a narrative. She is also helping me learn how to pitch this work to editors.
4. What are you up to now? Anything you’re really excited about?
As I write this, I’m currently in the field, at the Algonquin Wildlife Research Station. I’m continuing to document wildlife research projects that take place here and I’m excited to start sharing some of that work soon!
I love this photo because my friends, my dog, and I were hanging out in a beautiful aspen grove in Colorado. My dog and I are happiest when we are exploring outside with a camera, so it is a fitting photo.
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Growing up I spent almost every weekend outdoors catching newts and fireflies, planting trees, and putting up bird boxes to help restore our family property for wildlife. My affinity for nature continued when I moved to Fort Collins, Colorado to study ecosystem science and sustainability. I now work for the Colorado Natural Heritage Program doing field work to conserve Colorado’s ecosystems and species that call them home. Colorado is such a diverse state with mountains on the west and plains on the east. I love being able to go hiking in the mountains and well as explore the plains.
The turning point for me into conservation photography was on a Kids Conservation Photography Workshop in Ecuador. Our project for the trip was to create a photo story. I learned that I could combine two things I loved: conservation and photography. Since then, I have been improving my photography storytelling skills by working on projects near home, specifically with prairie dogs.
2. Why did you apply to the Ambassador Program? What are you hoping to achieve?
I applied to GWC to connect with other women photographers. My mentor has helped me work through story ideas and solve problems that arise. Being a part of GWC has allowed me to build new connections with similar people.
3. Who is your mentor? How has the program helped you?
My mentor is Jaymi Heimbuch. She is the perfect mentor for me because she loves conservation photography and knows how to help others improve. Jaymi has been helpful in talking through ideas about my projects and other photography related topics.
4. What are you up to now? Anything you’re really excited about?
I am working on a camera trap project in the plains focused on a rock pile where a variety of wildlife comes, like golden eagles, badgers, coyotes, and swift foxes. A new addition to my story is a timelapse camera to document what the wildlife experience in a year. I am excited to turn this project into a science communication master’s program in the near future! I am looking forward to learning more about how to communicate science effectively through photos and videos and building photography into my career.
Growing up, Alice’s dream was to become a National Geographic photographer. This passion led her to spend much of her high school years photographing and sharing stories of wildlife in her own backyard, which earned her a spot in the 2016 NANPA High School Scholarship Program. She then went on to pursue a degree in environmental biology and a graduate certificate in environmental visual communication, sharpening her skills and building a foundation for a career in visual storytelling. Today, she is a freelance science communicator and conservation storyteller based in Vancouver, Canada. Inspiring young people to pursue the same dream she had is something that Alice is passionate about, and why she’s extremely be on the Girls Who Click team! Visit Alice’s website (alicesun.ca) to see the stories she has told over the years.
Join award-winning author and photographer Amy Gulick for her workshop From Snapshot to WOW Shot! Amy will speak about her life and career as a nature photographer, but you will also learn a thing or two about photography!
This workshop will take place on Zoom on Saturday, November 6th at 10:00am PT and will be followed by a Q&A. This workshop is FREE.
Amy’s work has been featured in National Wildlife, Sierra, Audubon, and National Geographic Newswatch. She is a columnist for Outdoor Photographer, and a founding Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers. Check out her work at www.amygulick.com
Please fill out the application below to register!
