UPCOMING EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES WITH SARAH
This page includes information about upcoming educational opportunities, along with how to get in touch with me if you would like to invite me to speak to your group, an overview of my approach to teaching, and some feedback from previous students. If you would like to be notified about my future educational offerings, please sign up for my mailing list below.
Since I am focused on other photo-related projects for right now, I will only be offering a very limited number of workshops and classes in 2026 and 2027 but if you would like to invite me to your in-person photography event, please get it touch!
Crested Butte Wildflower Festival, July 9 to 12, 2026 in Crested Butte, Colorado (Wait list). This is the only in-person workshop I will be teaching during 2026, in partnership with the Crested Butte Wildflower Festival. During this workshop, we will seek inspiration and photographic opportunities across a diverse range of landscapes with a focus on mountain scenery, lush aspen forests, and, of course, the incredible summer wildflowers. An additional focus for this workshop will be developing a visually cohesive portfolio that represents your time in Crested Butte, culminating in a group ebook featuring participant portfolios.
You can learn more about the workshop in this comprehensive PDF, you can add yourself to the waitlist here, and you can see sample photos of the landscape here.
INVITE ME TO SPEAK
If you would like to invite me to speak in-person to your photography conference or other photography gathering, please get in touch using this contact form. Please note: I am not currently offering Zoom-based talks for photo clubs.
I have experience sharing keynote presentations, delivering educational talks, facilitating panel discussions, and teaching field sessions. If you have a date, topic, and budget in mind, please include that information with your submission. Since photography is my career, I charge a speaking fee plus travel costs for all speaking engagements but am willing to be flexible on my fees for exciting opportunities. My talks resonate most with nature-focused groups whose members value personal expression and creativity in their own photography. You can learn more about my background and experience in my photography resume.
MY FAVORITE TEACHING TOPICS
- Beyond the Grand Landscape: Lessons for Photographing Nature's Smaller Scenes
- Making the Most of Any Light
- Abstractions: Seeking Mystery in the Natural World
- Developing Naturalist Skills: Becoming a More Inspired and Curious Photographer
- The Expansive Mindset: Practices to Transform Your Photographic Experience
- Composition and Visual Design for Nature Photographers
- Black + White: Bold Interpretations of Nature
- Creative Approaches to Photographing Plants & Flowers
- The Power of Observation: Creating Opportunities By Seeing More Deeply
- Slow Down & Wander Around: Lessons for a More Meditative Approach to Nature Photography
- Desert Wild: Photographing Death Valley and Other Beautifully Desolate Landscapes
MY APPROACH TO TEACHING
I am a full-time nature photographer, photography educator, and writer, splitting my time between a home base in rural southwestern Colorado and nomadic traveling in an Airstream trailer. My portfolio features a diverse range of subjects including grand landscapes, intimate landscapes, abstract renditions of nature, and creative portraits of plants and trees.
I enjoy teaching photography almost as much as I enjoy creating my own photographs. I always strive to create a supportive, encouraging learning environment for participants, with a focus on personal attention and helpful coaching.
For sessions in the field: Although technical assistance is always available, my teaching focuses more on personal expression, creativity, improving your ability to identify photo opportunities, and connecting with a landscape. And, unlike many nature photographers offering workshops, I have an extensive background in offering professional and personal development coaching. For field sessions, you can expect inspirational locations, top-notch instruction, personal attention, professionalism, and a well-organized agenda when participating in one of my offerings.
For sessions in the classroom: Before transitioning to full-time photography, I owned a busy, well-regarded consulting business focused on leadership and strategy within nonprofit organizations and charitable foundations. Through this work, I taught hundreds of professional development sessions, worked as an executive coach, and regularly facilitated a broad range of sessions with clients. I brings this background in my approach to photography education - experience that helps set me apart in terms of developing inspirational, well-organized, and effective sessions full of information that participants can immediately integrate into their own photography practice.
TESTIMONIALS AND REVIEWS
Selected Feedback from Workshop, Webinar, and Conference Participants
Judy: I just wanted to say how much I truly enjoyed the workshop experience with you. What stood out most to me was your deep knowledge, your flexibility when plans needed to shift, and your ability to navigate a group with varying personalities so smoothly. Your pre-scouting made a big difference. It was clear you had a strong sense of what we’d encounter before we arrived. I also really appreciated how well you handled the somewhat post-peak bloom conditions. Your positive energy kept things inspiring…
Overall, the workshop left me with new techniques, refreshed perspectives, and a shift in how I approach photography. While out on a hike today, I found myself using my histogram more intentionally and photographing layers of flowers, something directly inspired by what I learned from you. I’ll never forget the double rainbow and water textures we encountered and captured. I’m excited to start editing my images!
Anna: Couldn't have asked for a better workshop. Sarah was committed to making sure everyone's needs were met and they got the best out of the experience. I learnt a lot including many concepts that I was able to implement in my own photography straight away. I feel very lucky that I was able to participate in one of Sarah's workshops and I highly recommend.
Lois: I'll be forever grateful for the opportunity to participate in the photography workshops led by Sarah for the Crested Butte Wildflower Festival. Sarah is an extremely knowledgeable, helpful, and giving person who made the workshops interesting and fun. I was definitely stretched a bit outside of my comfort zone and hope to continue to use what I learned. Thanks for the great workshops!
Craig: The workshop was great and I thoroughly enjoyed it and learning from you. Overall, a 10/10 experience. Thanks so much for the inspiration and joy you provided.
Cathleen: I hope that this note finds you well and rested after your phenomenal photography workshops! You are an amazing, highly talented photographer and an extremely generous educator! I learned so much from you!! Thank you, Sarah, for the wonderful, fun, and thought-provoking workshop.
Megan: “I wanted to reach out and let you know how much I enjoyed your presentation last night. You were so informative and passionate about your photographic process. I am a relatively new photographer... and have found myself drawn to trying to capture the mundane in such a way that it becomes truly interesting.
I have missed the mark on many occasions, and watching your presentation has helped me to understand what I need to do to get the results that I strive for. I was also inspired to see the images that you felt missed the mark, because that helps too, to see your creative process. Thank you so much for the inspiration!”
Wayne: “One thing that impressed me as much as the content was the excellent presentation of it. All through the presentation I was wondering if you ever lectured on communication! I just had to look up your background, and I see that at least it had a requirement for effective communication, which was certainly on exhibit this evening.... Your talent in educating on the subject you know well jumped out at me as much as your work itself. Thanks for a wonderful presentation.”
Linda: “Thanks so much, Sarah, for spending time with us tonight, and sharing your vision and expertise. I hope it will help to encourage our members to shoot for themselves, and to find some of those intimate landscapes the next time they are out with their cameras. You work is beautiful and truly inspiring.”
Jim: “I thoroughly enjoyed your very interesting and educational presentation tonight with outstanding, exciting examples to express your points… Thank you again.”
Dick: “What a joy it was to have you with us for our final presentation of the year. Your clear, thoughtful, and beautifully illustrated presentation not only reminded us of many of the basic [composition] concepts to consider, but you also gave us several new ideas to incorporate in our photography. All in all, you gave us a great deal to think about and put into practice, including our “homework.” I’m already thinking about which five photos I want to describe and critique… Thank you again for the generosity of your time and vast experience.”
Carlos: “Thanks for your inspiring presentation! Since it was a warm, sunny afternoon, I decided to go outside and listen on my iPad... As you spoke, I began to see several shots in my front yard that I had totally missed seeing before (and I’ve lived here 10 years). The second you said “are there any questions” I dropped my cigar and ran and got my camera and took some shots in the front yard, which, after editing, have yielded 7 decent photos! Thanks so much for opening my eyes!”
George: “I really loved Sarah’s presentation. Her delivery style is excellent. Very down to earth and simply put. Awesome!”
Isabel: “I saw another of your webinars yesterday and it was great. You are a gifted teacher and photographer, and an excellent communicator. Keep up your good work.”
Joe: “Your presentation this evening was very well done and inspiring. I look forward to taking a walk in the woods to practice some of your techniques. Thanks for the inspiration.”
Jeff: “It was such a pleasure meeting and getting to know you last week... Thank you for taking the time to work with me 1:1 and helping me to see the smaller, more intimate scenes in the grand landscapes. Having now gone through my images from the week, I can tell you that the one we worked to compose together and those I took subsequently are among my favorites from the trip and represent a whole new avenue of photographic exploration for me.”
Don: “Thanks so much, Sarah! Your presentation was one of the very best. So well organized, so much information and so many beautiful images! We’d love to have you back!”
Mark: “I wanted to say thank you for your excellent presentation. Your careful and thoughtful approach came across very clearly. I agree completely with your get out there and experience nature approach. It is pretty amazing what you can find if you keep an open mind.”
Gail: “Thank you Sarah! You explain things so well. I loved the webinar...”
Beth: “I just wanted to thank you again and let you how much we enjoyed your presentation last night. It was outstanding as I knew it would be. Your philosophy resonated with me and many others, I’m sure; and your images are truly breathtaking!”
Bob: “Your presentation [on black and white nature photography] was so well done. It was evident to me that your coaching experience has beautifully informed your teaching of the craft of photography. Very impressive!”