Trip Report - Newfoundland Workshop #1 - June 2019

Its always nice to travel with friends! This trip was the perfect mix of people that I knew, and some I was just meeting for the first time. Five of the guests on this trip had travelled with me before. Three were new to the Muench Workshop family.

This was also the first time I had the opportunity to work with my fellow Muench Workshops Pro Photographer, Greg Vaughn. We had talked on the phone for years, but our schedules never lined up to work together. The stars aligned and I had the opportunity to work with one of the nicest guys in the industry.

Armed with our trusty mascot for the week, a stuffed Atlantic Puffin. We embarked on our scheduled photo shoots that seemed to change based on daily reports I was getting from all my contacts in Newfoundland on (a) locations of the icebergs, (b) three fox dens and (c) the emergence of chicks hatching at the Gannet Colony at Cape St. Marys.

While having a schedule is important, we go on these trips to take great photos. Having a network of friends in Newfoundland allows me to change things on the fly and get people to the right spot, at the right time.

On my first night I received a text from a friend that lives near the Northern Gannet colony at Cape St. Marys. He told me there was a fox den with three kits and there had been eggs that had hatched at the Gannets. It was a full stop, we switched gears and off we went for an afternoon of Gannets and fox kits along the cliffs of Cape St. Marys.

Then there was the day of our boat tour. With winds that were fighting against us to see large icebergs in the area, our boat tour company that I have used for years called me to let me know that a large iceberg had been moving in, but sea fog was effecting our ability to see it.

He made the suggestion to change our days for the boat tour because he saw a shift in the wind coming. I listened to Kris as I have learned to do after going on boat tours for many years , and he NAILED IT.

We had great seas and a 20 mile boat ride out to an amazing iceberg that started calving along one side not long after we arrived. If we would have went the day earlier… it would have been shrouded in sea fog. If we went a day later, we might have missed seeing this iceberg in its current state because the calving had started.

The group then lucked out when I received another call telling me about another fox den and some Puffin activity. Half the group went to photograph the Puffins, the other half went to see the second fox den of the week.

I went to the Fox Den because Greg Vaughn, my co-leader had never been to Newfoundland and wanted to see Puffins. The group that was with me was treated to the opportunity to photograph a kox kit coming in and out of the den that was under an old building. - you can see a photo from this photoshoot below.

Our skies also co-operated this week. We had great light when we needed it. An awesome early morning photoshoot at Cape Spear Lighthouse that did not look promising when we arrived. The lighthouse was shrouded in fog. But I had been given reports that the fog was intermittent. I know staying the course and patience would prove the right course of action for this photoshoot. And, it paid off. As the sun was about to hit the horizon the fog lifted and we were presented with a gorgeous colored sky above the fog.

Then there was the sunset at one of my all-time favorite shoots (the fishing hut photo below). The clouds parted an hour before sunset and we were given golden skies behind the three colorful fishing huts. .