The Alabama Hills & Ancient Bristlecone Pines

~Bristlecones & Boulders~

a 4 Day and Night Astro-Landscape Photography workshop based in Lonepine & Bigpine, California

June 14th-18th, 2026

Mission

Two places come to mind when someone says Eastern Sierra's to me. The Alabama Hills and the Ancient Bristlecone pines. Of course there's a whole lot more to them but these two locations are quintessential. From Jacked peaks and boulder fields to ancient gnarled trees high atop mountains this workshop will take you there. The Alabama hills has been like a second home to me over the years, having spent more than a year accumulatively exploring every nook and cranny. The Patriarch Grove of the Ancient Bristlecones is off the beaten path, with trees that feel like they're straight out of a Tolkien novel. Explore some of my favorite compositions with me by day and night. Learn how to capture dynamic scenes, focus stacking, astrophotography and so much more!

Lodging is included in this workshop. Single occupancy lodging based in Lonepine for the first 2 nights and Bigpine for the 3rd and 4th nights. And since these trees are so far off the beaten path, a 4x4 vehicle is required and you can rent a suitable 4x4 vehicle from places like Outdoorsy.com. Which I recommend over Enterprise or the like. Las Vegas is the nearest International airport and there are plenty of options for vehicles there!

Meals are not included although we will eat as a group(optional) twice daily

Where: Lonepine & Bigpine, California

When: June 14th - 18th, 2026 (4 Nights)

Cost $2699.99

Limited to only 6 Students

Vision

Storytelling through your images
Creating Engaging and thought provoking compositions to enhance that story
Capturing the scene in a creative and imaginative way beyond a single exposure
Blue Hour Blending, Stacking for noise reduction and using a star tracker
Focus, Focal Length and Exposure Blending, Dodging & Burning, and more...
Color theory and application
Putting it all together with In-depth post processing sessions (recorded)
Growing through peer group image critiques

Group, Terrain & Weather

Six

Desert/Alpine

Warm

This workshop will require minimal hiking of up to 1/4 mile. Some of that will be above 11,000 ft of elevation. Days in the Alabama hills will be very warm in the afternoons, however the Ancient bristlecones will be MUCH cooler. A mix of terrain, altitude and temperatures.