Great Basin School of Photography

Black Friday sale! Landscape Photography and Night Photography Workshops

Enter the discount code “blackfriday” though December 6 (discount box appears after entering number of participants that you”re enrolling).

When you join Jeff and Lori for a photography workshop you can be assured that we will personally lead the workshop. Both guides are true location experts. They researched the locations included in Jeff’s book “Photographing California Vol. 2 – South” (320 pages) together for 5 years, and have led photography workshops together for 14 years. We each have decades of experience exploring, photographing, and leading groups outdoors, and we’ve led hundreds of workshops together.

We lead small group workshops which enables you to get to know the other photographers, and enables us to give you more attention and teach to your level of skill and knowledge. And frankly, small groups have been safest for everyone involved in recent seasons. All levels of photography experience are welcome. Post-processing instruction is included in most of our workshops, and we’re happy to give you feedback and post-workshop support. Click here to learn more about us.

Upcoming Workshops:

We obtain permits for the places we take you. There’s nothing worse than having your investment in a photography trip ruined by your guide getting your tour shut down, and in some situations, if you workshop leader doesn’t have a permit for where they’re taking you, you may be risking getting ticketed as well! We’ve even heard of workshop leaders with proper park permits getting deported for not having work visas! We’re local, and we have done the extra work to ensure that your workshop goes smoothly.

For our Bodie workshops for example, we also invest the extra time, expense and effort of getting Yosemite National Park and Inyo National Forest permits, so the initial two days and nights prior to our night(s) in Bodie are spent practicing landscape photography and night photography in the High Sierra near Yosemite’s Tioga Pass, and in the exotic “Tufa” calcium carbonate rock formations at Mono Lake.

Mono Lake permits are strictly limited, and our USFS contact was out there with us during one of our workshops recently. We’ve had our permits checked multiple times in Yosemite National Park. Protect your investment in a photo tour: make sure that you’re working with reputable, insured, permitted organizations and first aid certified instructors! We’ve had permits checked in Death Valley National Park, NPS rangers frequently check permits in Yosemite, USFS rangers checked in on us during our last night photography workshop up in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest (which is closed to everyone without a permit after 10pm). We believe that most workshop leaders who skip permits will get caught. Don’t be with them when they do.

Just wanted to take a minute to once again thank you. As I have been editing and posting the photos from the workshop I cannot believe what we accomplished - I do not think I have received so many positive comments from my landscape work. I have had a few Facebook/Instagram followers reach out to me and I have recommended that they seriously look into your workshops. Hoping I can schedule one of your Death Valley trips.

Kudos and many thanks to Lori and Jeff for a well-organized 6-day long photo workshop! They helped me get out of my comfort zone (OMG camping!) and showed me the unforgettable raw beauty of Death Valley's rarely traveled back country. (Sand dunes, dry lake beds, low flying jets, and the endless starry night sky over the Racetrack and Joshua Tree) Lori and Jeff are passionate photographers who are true masters of their art. They are also seasoned back country guides with many years of experience and a deep understanding and love of nature. I felt safe, well informed, and my photographic attempts were guided with great patience. I could not have asked for better teachers, or travel companions, and certainly plan to take future trips with them. Whether you are an amateur picture snapper, or an advanced pro, who prefers to travel with back country experts, their company "Great Basin School of Photography" should be high on your list to consider.

Thank you for taking us to all those great places. Too many exposures... but that's my problem! I had a great time.

“I attended the Bodie workshop and have to say, this is one of the best I have ever experienced. If you haven't joined Jeff and Lori, you are missing out. They want each of their students to have a great time, but more importantly, they help develop each student's skills with patience, no matter the level of the photographer.”

I have been on a mini-vacation for the last few days. I drove up to the ghost town of Bodie in Northern California to take a photographic workshop on night photography from Jeff Sullivan and Lori Hibbett. Having access to Bodie during golden hour and utter darkness is a treat. Jeff and Lori are remarkable instructors who are very familiar with Bodie and are willing to share all their secrets of composition and technique. When my D7100 died, Lori dropped everything and tried to help me troubleshoot. When we declared my camera "dead" she handed me her D800, lens and tripod and said "shoot away." That is clearly above and beyond in my book. Today I'm exploring the Alabama Hills with the aid of Jeff Sullivan book, Photographing California. It is great!

“I don’t know how many photos I have developed but in one day alone, I took over 4,500 shots counting bracketed exposures and time lapses! When all is said and done, I have about 75 that I have posted on a 40 inch screen in the waiting room at my office. A good haul for four days.”

“Thanks again to both you and Lori for the experience of exploring the hidden gems (at least to me), of DV. Much credit to you for quickly coming up with alternative sites when conditions were not favorable. I thoroughly enjoyed your leadership, knowledge and expertise in guiding us to the fringes of the park. Good luck on your next visit and may the sun and stars be with you.”