Latitude: Coos Bay, Santorini Greece, Create Photography Retreat

Brent and Brian talk about Brent’s workshops, recent trips to Coos Bay and Santorini Greece, and the upcoming Create Photography Retreat.
Topic 1: Brief Announcements:
I have a nasty habit of going to my “happy place” whenever I talk about a workshop such as my Croatia and Ireland workshops. And that doesn’t do anyone any good 🙂
Head on over to my website http://brentbergherm.com/travel-with-me/ and you’ll be able to learn all about the details for each trip.
Discount code: february for $50 off if you book by March 1. This is for either international trip.
Topic 2: Brent, Trip report from the Coos Bay area.
For President’s day weekend, 2018, my wife and I left the kids with the grandparents and took off for Coos Bay, Oregon. I decided to focus pretty closely on areas right around Coos Bay. There’s quite a bit to do here.

* Cape Arago state park was my first location. It’s slightly confusing since the Cape Arago lighthouse is a few miles north of the state park (and there’s two other state parks between as well… Anyway, the park has a fine overview and you can get down to the beach after going down a fairly steep and treacherous cliff area, but I was able to get down fine enough. I was there for sunrise which mean the sun was rising behind me. The weekend was full of clouds, storms and the like, which is what I was looking for. However, in this area I didn’t find much to shoot. Just didn’t find anything that inspiring given the available light.
So I went on to the lighthouse and upon my arrival there was a rainbow. I was so excited.  But it took too long to set up. I couldn’t walk with my gear at the ready because to get there I had to bushwhack my way through Oregon grape bushes that are about six feet tall. There was a defined path, but it was tough going. So I set up, scrambled for a view and just as I found my shot the light started to fade. The rainbow was coming right out of the lighthouse. It was so cool. I just wish I had 5 more minutes of light.
* After lunch the wife joined me and we went to Shore Acres state park. This is a very beautiful place. The rugged sea scape is amazing during a storm where the waves crash against the rocky cliffs. While we were there it was rather calm so I focused on the sandstone formations at the top of the cliff, and it’s also set back a bit. The water has eroded the sandstone over time and the landscape looks rather alien and foreign. I used my 50mm Art lens by Sigma. It’s insanely sharp and I wanted to really do that sandstone texture well.
* Sunset found me at Yoakum Point state park, where I had a great overview of the lighthouse once again. The sunset didn’t really produce any significant color but it was a good time anyway. This hike was so easy compared to the morning where I was bushwhacking my way through the oregon grape.
* The next day we took a walk to the south slough estuarine research reserve. As it was my day off I didn’t shoot any pics, but we had a nice walk just the same. It was raining most of the time but it was truly enjoyable to spend the time like this with my wife.
* Sunday found me down at Face Rock area in Bandon for Sunrise. It was great even though I put up with tons of sleet, hail and heavy gusts to get the shots. I used my water socks to keep from worrying about the surf and just had a grand time shooting the sea stacks.
* We went to the old town during the midday and did tourist stuff, then I went back out by myself to the lighthouse area once again. I found it was sort of becoming my muse. I knew the light had a chance of being awesome with all the storm action, so I hoped for the best and I think it paid off. I should, if you’re looking to come out here and get this yourself, the access road to the lighthouse overview is blocked due to it crossing private lan...