One of the most popular and in-depth guest posts we've ever had at SCU is thanks to my good buddy, Kevin Gilligan. It was a three-part post, complete with a short podcast on everything you needed to think about when putting together your own exhibition. Here's the link connecting you to all the components.

I've followed Kevin's work for several years, since first being introduced to him through Tamron's Image Master Program. He's a terrific artist, writer, educator and friend, He's teaching a workshop in June and it's killing me to have to be in Ohio at that time - otherwise I'd be figuring out myself how to be in Wyoming.

Just to give you an idea of Kevin's skill set with a camera in his hands, I picked a few of my personal favorites from one of his recent trips, along with an older image from Yosemite at the top. 

You can find out a lot more about Kevin's style of shooting and creative versatility with a visit to his website. Then swing by his Tamron Image Master page.   His images are stunning and a workshop giving you a chance to spend some time "inside" his head is an opportunity not to be missed.

by Skip Cohen

Tamron has always made great glass, but in the last year they've reset the standard for quality. In addition to their entire traditional line there are now four SP lenses in the family.  In the 175+ year history of photography, artists have never had more creative tools at their fingertips and many of them are now thanks to Tamron.

Tamron's newsletter is loaded with great stories and links to products and information you need to help grow your skill set. It's also a terrific way to keep track of new programs, workshops and what other Tamron users are up to.

For example, one of this month's feature stories is thanks to the images of Tara Ruby. Sheila and I have son in the military, so while it's a story that hits home for everybody, it's especially poignant to us.

Just click on the banner below to read the complete story. Then, get yourself into a Tamron dealer to find out firsthand what all the noise is about. I promise, you won't be disappointed!

By Skip Cohen

It's probably about the most sappy sounding title I could give a blog post, but I love this guy's work!

Ed is a Tamron Image Master and over the last few weeks he was randomly posting images from a workshop he was teaching, along with a few preview shots. If you've never met Ed then you need to understand whether he's teaching, shooting for a project or just has a camera in his hands for the fun of it, ideas for images run through his veins constantly. I wouldn't be surprised if his red and white cell counts competed with space for pixels! LOL

I've shared Ed's work here before, but I thought it would be fun to grab a few of Ed's recent posts and share them as one body of work, as if we were all standing in front of a wall at a gallery.

You can see more of Ed's work with a quick trip to his Tamron Image Masters page.  

Here's Ed's workshop schedule so far for April, May and June:

 SPRINGTIME IN THE SMOKIES
Kennett Square, PA
April 24-28, 2016
LONGWOOD GARDENS
Kennett Square, PA
May 7, 2016
SPRINGTIME IN THE TETONS
Jackson, WY
June 22-26, 2016 - (Wednesday to Sunday)

Ed Heaton needs to be on your radar. His website is just a click away!

by Skip Cohen

For the last few years I've shared numerous posts and announcements about one of the finest and most diverse tech teams in photography - Tamron's!  Last week they announced their new traveling educational program, the Mobile Learning Center Tour. Making over 70 official stops through December of this year, things all kick off April 14 in Fairfield, NJ.
 
Tamron really raised the bar on this year's tour. The format includes free 45-minute seminars with hands-on shooting, giving attendees a chance to test drive Tamron's quality. Plus, some of the tour stops provide a more traditional seminar followed by next-day in-the-field shooting at a minimal cost for attendees.

The Tamron Tailgate Tour, launched in 2013, took a casual and fun approach to photography education by offering easy and free access to great information to anyone interested in photography at stops in photo retailer parking lots. The 2016 Mobile learning Center moves the concept forward by integrating live shoots thematically tied into each free seminar. For more information and to find out when the Tamron Mobile Learning Center will make a tour stop  in your area, visit www.tamron-usa.com/TMLC.

The concept is based on creating a unique learning experience. "Travel & Nature Techniques," "The Art of Macro," and "Light Like a Pro," are just a few examples of how the Tamron crew will be working to help attendees. I love the way they're bringing education to your doorstep with no need to register at most locations and all seminars and shooting are free for every attendee.

Just click the banner above to check out the tour stop and schedule. 

Seminars and Field Trips

Here's the detail on part of this year's more extensive educational opportunities...

At a limited number of stops select Tamron retailers will host an evening seminar followed the next-day with an in-the-field shoot where lenses will be loaned and on-location instruction will be provided. The cost for this 1.5-day event varies and has limited seating. Check the website for details. Additionally, the Tamron Mobile Learning Center will make stops at four National Parks (Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, Zion, and Acadia) in association with National Park Trips to provide an overnight camp-out and a Night Skies Photography Workshop, each led by a Tamron Image Master with Ken Hubbard and André Costantini. The camp-outs are limited to 25 participants and registration details are available at www.nationalparktrips.com/photo-workshops

Win One of Three Tamron Lenses and Get Discounts on Tamron Lenses

No matter what tour-stop style attendees visit, Tamron strives to make the event a photographic celebration full of prizes randomly given away after each seminar, special discounts on Tamron lenses, and valuable insight from the Tamron tech team of photographers. Visitors will also see the latest in Tamron products, and will be eligible to enter to win any Tamron lens of his/her choice. Tamron will give away three lenses this year-July 15 from eligible surveys completed April 14 through June 30; Oct 15 from eligible surveys completed July 1 through September 30;  and January 15, 2017 from eligible surveys completed October 1 through December 31. The schedule is continually updated and can be accessed at  www.tamron-usa.com/TMLC.

I'm excited about this year's schedule and hope to catch up to the crew at a couple of locations. Tamron is making some pretty incredible glass, but even more impressive is there never-ending focus to help photographers raise the bar on the quality of their images and their skill set!

You can also expect a few new episodes from the dynamic duo themselves, Ken Hubbard and Andre Costantini. They joined me on a podcast just a short time ago and I can't wait to see the first new episode in their video series!