UPDATE: Our wonderful instructor Molly Roberts took a tumble in Mexico and broke her leg. Ouch! She is recovering well, though, and we look forward to seeing her back on the workshop trail in June for the Chesapeake Country Scenic Byway Workshop (coming soon).
But, in the meantime, we are pleased to announce Lynda Richardson as our instructor for this workshop. Lynda, a seasoned wildlife photojournalist, brings over 30 years of experience to capturing captivating images about the natural world and our impact on it. Her work has been featured in renowned publications such as Smithsonian, National Wildlife, The Nature Conservancy, and many others showcasing her unique perspective and expertise. During this same time Lynda has taught many workhsops and is excited to be joining us on the Georgia Coast! More about Lynda down below.
Please Note: Individual Portfolio Reviews (30 minutes) are included with the fee for this workshop and will be held with Lynda Richardson and Nancy McCrary by Zoom.
Spring on the Georgia Coast is something you don’t want to miss. The migrating birds are still stopping along the barrier islands, the flora is waking up from a long winter’s nap, and the light is absolutely amazing. With an average high of 77 and low of 62, and hurricane season still a ways off, April has perfect weather for exploring the islands, morning boat rides, and nighttime shooting on the beach. Also, the bugs are still months away!
So, whether we’re exploring the history and nature of Daufuskie, photographing birds from the Little Tybee dunes, or shooting the architecture and culture of Tybee Island, this is a workshop designed to help you expand your current photo skills, and explore new possibilities. And we are proud to have Molly Roberts as our instructor. Please see her bio below.
On Thursday and Friday, Sundial Charter Tours, an eco tour agency, will be our private tour guide while we boat to the islands of LIttle Tybee and Daufuskie. Sundial Charter Tours is owned and operated by my friend Captain René Heidt, a woman who knows these islands’ history, ecology, flora, and fauna like the back of her hand. She is also a master naturalist. She and her Captains, who are also well versed in these waters and islands, will guide us on private tours of Daufuskie Island (Thursday), and Little Tybee Island (Friday). With no more than 6 students per boat we’ll have plenty of room to shoot as we move along the creeks and estuaries.
We’ll stay on Tybee Island. We’ll meet at The House for communal gatherings in the afternoons and evenings, projections of our work, and great conversations.
For student accommodations, Tybee has lots of good, safe, clean hotels and AirBnBs for your choosing. Many right on the beach, and in April still with reasonable rates. If you’d like to share a hotel room, or an AirBnB, just let me know and I’ll put you together with another student seeking the same.
Molly Roberts will give a presentation of her career in photography on Wednesday evening during social hour. She’ll also lead us on all the tours, and in the Saturday group review. And, during our days please feel free to ask her questions, or for any guidance you might require.
Lynda Richardson 
- Freelance Photojournalist, 1983 to present
- Assignment photography covering news events and feature stories for major magazines, newspapers, and organizations around the world including The Smithsonian Institute, The Nature Conservancy, The National Wildlife Federation, The National Geographic Society, U.S. News and World Report, The New York Times, The Associated Press, The American Farmland Trust, The Southern Environmental Law Center, and many others.
- The leader of photography workshops to Alaska, the Amazon in Peru, Tanzania, and South Africa sponsored by the Nature Conservancy, the National Zoo, St. Catherine’s School and the University of Mary Washington. Workshop Presenter – Over 40 years experience in giving photography workshops to all levels from kids to adults. Too many topics to list here but have included: Introduction to Wildlife Photography, How to Use Your Flash Outdoors, and The Big Picture: How to Shoot Magazine Assignments.
Assignment Work (examples)
Smithsonian magazine
To Reproduce, Mussels Go Fishing, January 1998. (COVER)
Tracking America’s Native Breed, March 1999, (Carolina dogs)
Hippo Communication, Bill Barklow, March 1996
Tunnel Vision, December 2001 (what lives in holes in the desert)
Pieces of History, November 2002 (civil war ship, Monitor)
The Nature of Cuba, May 2003 (COVER)
Fighting for Foxes, October 2004 (barrier island foxes)
Rethinking Jamestown, January 2005
The Fish are a Jump’n, November 2006, (traditional fishing for mullet)
Rising Seas Endanger Wetland Wildlife, Alligator River, August 2010
The Venus Flytrap’s Lethal Allure, February 2011
The Mystery of Singing Mice, May 2011 (Discovery of communication)
Crisis in the Caves, August 2011 (white nose and bat decline)
National Wildlife Federation – National Wildlife Magazine
Homeward Rebound, April/May 1990 (osprey)
Secret Creatures of the Night, Oct/Nov 1990 (American eels)
Big Lift for a Little Falcon, Aug/Sept 1991 (kestrel)
Pulling Turtles Out of the Soup, April/May 1992, (loggerhead sea turtles)
Getting to Know You, Oct/Nov 1995, (blue crab research)
Are Our Coastal Waters Turing Deadly?, April/May 1998 (Pfiesteria outbreak)
How Did the Poison Get into the Trout?, Aug/Sept 1998 (Lake Trout)
Planting the Seeds of Conservation, Oct/Nov 2001 (Farmers Bill programs)
National Wildlife Federation – International Wildlife Magazine
Standing Up for Sitting Ducks, Jan/Feb 1993, (black-bellied whistling ducks)
The Shrimp Trade Boils Over, Nov/Dec 1993, (shrimp trade)
Chocolate Takes Flight, Sept/Oct 1998 (cocoa farming)
Across a Divide, July/Aug 1999 (shared park border with Belarus and Poland)
Detective Rasmussen Gets Her Owl, Nov/Dec 1999 (rare owl discovered)
Where the Wild Things Are, Sept/Oct 2000, (COVER, illegal wildlife trade)
Pesos for Parrots, July/Aug 2001, (Thick-billed parrots in Mexico)
Surrounded, 50 Year Anniversary of Nairobi National Park, July/Aug 2006
What previous workshop participants are saying….
I have been on several trips with Nancy McCrary and they never disappoint. She always engages photographers who are helpful and willing to share their knowledge. Her attention to detail with regard to accommodations, meals, daily outings, and other logistics is thorough and she attracts talented and considerate photographers. Nancy herself is a wonderful artist and very accessible. Her workshops appeal to any level of photographer. There are always professionals who attend, but if you’ve only just begun she encourages everyone to share knowledge. The groups she leads are supportive and I learn something new every time. After having photographed full-time for a decade, I rarely attend workshops anymore. That being said, I always love going to ones Nancy organizes since they are always in beautiful places and so much fun. –Lynne Buchanan
I was fortunate to attend my first South [x] Southeast photo workshop in April to Tybee Island, Georgia. My experience was magical. Our daily excursions by boats to the nearby barrier islands were led by seasoned naturalists who also happened to be our captains. They went out of their way to ensure that we had the opportunity to encounter as much wildlife as possible and to view the variety of ecosystems that exist in this fragile environment. It was a feast for the eyes. Our trip to Little Tybee Island was the highlight for me. Walking within the pristine landscape and seeing Oystercatcher’s nests with eggs on the beach was transformative. This experience would not have been possible without the careful planning on the part of Nancy McCrary. Nancy does an excellent job at organizing an experience that is sure to delight all who participate. –Beate Sass
ITINERARY:
Wednesday – Tybee Island
We’ll arrive at Tybee island, get settled in, and have some time to explore the island in the afternoon.
We’ll meet at 4 at The House where we’ll get to know each other over wine and cheese before Lynda Richardson gives a presentation on her work in photography. A Welcome Dinner will follow.
Thursday – Daufuskie Island
Daufuskie comes from the Muscogee language and means “sharp feather” for the island’s distinctive shape. Long before European colonists arrived to the New World, native peoples called Daufuskie Island home as evidenced by artifacts dating back some 9,000 years.
Golf Carts and a map will be our sources of land transportation once we arrive on Daufuskie Island. We will split up into groups of 2 or 4 and, using maps, head out on our own for 2 hours of shooting. Molly will divide her time between the golf carts! We’ll send you off with water and a brown bag lunch. We will have @4 hours of shooting before the return boat ride to Tybee.
Points of Interest:
Mary Dunn Cemetery
Bloody Point Lighthouse and Museum
Moses Ficklin Cottage and Oak Tree
White School House
Mary Fields School
First Union African Baptist Church
Mary Fields Cemetery
Oyster Union Society Hall
Mt. Carmel Baptist Church and Jane Hamilton School
Haig Point Lighthouse
Strachan Mansion
Birds of Daufuskie:
Wood Stork
Sandpipers
Anhingas
Snowy Egrets
Bald eagles
Gulls and terns
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Harlequin ducks
Osprey
Thursday early evening (6-9) we’ll meet at the house for pizza and night shooting on the beach. It’s an early morning on Friday!
Friday – Sunrise and Sunset on Little Tybee Island
Rise and Shine! We’ll meet at the public fishing pier on the back river on Tybee at 5:30 am when we cast off over the creeks and marshes on our 30-minute trip to Little Tybee Island for sunrise. Brown bag biscuits, and hot coffee will be provided. This is a 2-3 hour trip returning @9 am.
Little Tybee, owned by the state of Georgia, is an uninhabited barrier island lying just to the south of Tybee Island. It is made up of salt marsh interspersed with hardwood hammocks and fronts the Atlantic Ocean with pristine beaches. It is an undisturbed nature preserve with no hotels or other dwellings on the island.
The only way to get to Little Tybee is by boat or kayak.
Birding on Little Tybee may include: roseate spoonbill, reddish egret, and the curlew sandpiper. Osprey and bald eagles nest on the island. In the winter large numbers of shorebirds gather to rest on its beaches including whimbrels, dowitchers, and piping plovers. Egrets, herons, ibis, and storks are numerous and there are a few nesting spots on the island for these birds. In the summer oystercatchers, Wilson’s plover, and the endangered Least Tern nest on its undisturbed beaches. These birds are easy to see but you are requested to stay away from the posted nesting sites.
Tides change drastically every 6 hours on Little Tybee Island, a pristine, uninhibited nature preserve owned by the state of Georgia. Bird watchers will be in for a treat as exotic species of birds are a common sight.
We’ll meet again this afternoon at 5 pm for another boat ride to Little Tybee for sunset and full moon rise.
Saturday – Free Day until 4
Saturday is a free day to explore Tybee, take a ride into historic Savannah, edit your work for the afternoon’s critique (!), and go back for those images you may have missed on the first visit.
We’ll meet at the house at 4 for a group critique.
Followed by a Farewell Dinner, and the last nighttime shots on the beach.
Included In the Fee:
The instruction and guidance of Lynda Richardson.
The House to hang out in – plenty of coffee and tea, and places to curl up, chat, or edit. Social hours in the evenings, and a few dinners will be held here, also.
Wednesday social hour food and beverage
Wednesday’s Welcome Dinner on Tybee
Two Private Boat Trips to Little Tybee Island (sunrise and sunset)
Casual Dinner at the house before nighttime shooting at the beach
Private Boat Trip to Daufuskie Island, S.C. (6 hours)
Golf carts and maps to find your way around the island while shooting.
Social Hour Food and Beverage at The House
Group Review lead by Molly Roberts
Farewell Dinner
Not included in the fee:
Transportation to and from Tybee Island, Georgia
Night-time Accommodations on Tybee Island during the length of the workshop
Meals not listed above.
Alcoholic beverages other than those offered during social hours at the House.
Fee: $2899
Depost Due Now: $1000 Click Here
Balance Due March 1st: $1899 Click Here
Paying in Full Now: $2899 Click Here
PLEASE NOTE: We strongly suggest you purchase travel insurance for last-minute change of plans. I have use Allianz many times with no problems.
Questions? Please just send me an email – nancy@sxsemagazine.com.
Nancy McCrary is the publisher and editor-in-chief of South x Southeast photomagazine,(sxsemagazine.com), an online and in print magazine featuring fine art photography from emerging and established artists. She is the director of South x Southeast Workshops (sxseworkshops.com), and the gallerist at South x Southeast Gallery, online (sxsegallery.com). Prior to SxSE she worked in a range of positions with other niche magazines such as Contents, Pop Star, Georgia Music Magazine and, her personal favorite, Advertising Director with International Tattoo Art for 14 good years. During the years of 2004-2012 Ms. McCrary was co-director of SlowExposures, a photography festival and juried exhibition celebrating the rural South.
She, and a menagerie of dogs and cats, live on her 4th generation family farm in rural Georgia where she shoots only photos.
