* ONLY 4 Participants * Register Early – All sessions sold out in 2009 *

Featuring Wildlife Photographers Bruce Finocchio and Oliver Klink

This is a complete photographic and spiritual experience. You will learn about photo techniques, bird behavior, and the history of the Ramrod Ranch. You’ll be blown away by the natural space just over one hour away from San Jose.

Over sixty years ago, Bruce’s dad wanted a place of his own to go deer hunting. Thus, the ramrod ranch was born. A son’s duty is to follow his father footsteps in learning about guns and hunting—a rite of passage into adulthood. Somewhere along the way, around eighteen years of age, Bruce started to break from his father’s path. And today no hunting is allowed ;-)

The property has been developed for nature photography; especially for bird photography by building a couple of permanent ponds on the property. If you feed birds, they will come, so we place perches and feeders around our little ponds--arranging the perches to obtain the best and cleanest backgrounds.

From mid April on the rains stop and the country dries out, during the hot summer months our little ponds provide life sustaining and precious water for all the bird species around. In addition to food, water is a prime attraction for birds. How they do like to bath and clean their feathers!
There are two ponds; each attracts its species, a few species only using one pond. Most species found at both ponds. Two different habitats; one pond is closer to the brush covered hillsides, the other in the more open oak grasslands near the cabin.

We use photo blinds and place them next to the ponds, so with the right photographic equipment you can get frame filled images. It is just marvelous to watch birds in their nature habitat, going about their lives, acting completely natural. To hear a group of California quail calling around your blind is music to the senses. Sometimes a few mammals will surprise us and come to drink too.

I love this place! It is in my heart—it is where I grew up and learned to love the natural world. It’s where I make “nature images that sing to your heart”.

There is a maximum of 4 participants, so each will have the opportunity to receive individualized attention and instruction to ensure their photography workshop objectives are met.

Bruce Finocchio
Wildlife and Nature photographer
www.dreamcatcherimages.net