Name: Autumn Waterfalls of the New York Finger Lakes
Start: 2025-10-15T00:00:00.000Z
End: 2025-10-19T00:00:00.000Z
Location: Ithaca, NY, USA

Rock Light Photo

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12 reviews

Oct 15 - 19, 2025

Group size: 3 - 6

Autumn Waterfalls of the New York Finger Lakes

Ithaca, NY, USA

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Rock Light Photo

Email address verified

12 reviews

$1,200

Deposit: $500

Oct 15 - 19, 2025

Group size: 3 - 6

The Finger Lakes Region of New York boasts one of the best concentrations of world class waterfalls in the U.S. What could be better than spending a long weekend photographing some many of these waterfalls? Photographing them with fall color!

This 5 day workshop will be dedicated to the techniques involved with photographing waterfalls in the Finger Lakes Region near Ithaca and Watkins Glen, New York. Each day we will head into the field to capture a number of my favorite waterfalls, including Taughannock Falls, Watkins Glen, Buttermilk Falls and Ithaca Falls as well as Robert Treman & Letchworth State Parks. Each afternoon we will return to a lovely Craftsman Cottage near Ithaca to take part in classroom sessions and post-processing our images. The workshop will end with a group slide show and critique on Sunday morning.

Field lessons will include tips & techniques for

Capturing the power and/or silky smoothness of moving water and waterfalls
Making your fall color images pop
How to capture good images in challenging lighting conditions
varying shutter speed for creative effect
Reading and shooting the light
working with a range of lenses for a variety of compositions
using filters to improve artistic results

- Fall foliage photography techniques

- Adobe Lightroom post processing workflow for getting the most from your waterfalls images

- Creating dynamic black and white images from digital color captures

- A positive group slide show and critique of images to end the workshop. This can be a wonderful lesson in composition and seeing the world through other artists' eyes.

Skill Levels

All skill levels are welcome. Participants who have a good working knowledge of their cameras, a basic understanding of digital workflow, and knowledge or exposure to Adobe Lightroom and/or Photoshop will get the most from this workshop.

Physical Demands

Though locations visited during this workshop are readily accessible, the hilly terrain requires some moderate hiking (typically less than 3 miles round trip). Participants MUST BE IN GOOD PHYSICAL SHAPE and able to climb and descend moderate to steep inclines and stairs. They should wear sturdy boots and use caution on slippery and rocky slopes.

Group Size

Maximum 6 photographers (new for 2025 - smaller groups make for more one-on-one instruction)

Accommodations are available in the 4BR vacation rental property that will be the home base for the workshop, giving us a place to gather for classroom sessions, a kitchen to use for meals, and a chance to mingle with and learn from your fellow photographers. Prices shown do not include local taxes.

Private bedroom (King bed, shared bath (1 avail): $225/night single occ, $275/night dbl occ.
Private bedroom (Queen bed, shared bath (2 avail): $195/night - $235/nt dbl Occ
Private bedroom (full bed, shared bath (1 avail): $160/night

Room packages include workshop registration plus one of the options above. If a room you are interested in is not available, we can add you to a wait list for rooms. There are various good chain and independent hotels/motels in Ithaca, NY, but they are all on the pricey side. Contact colin@Lightandphoto.com with questions.

Registration fee: $1200 per person

Deposit to reserve a date: $500

Dates and Times

Workshop begins Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 3pm, and ends Sun, Oct 19 at 11am.

Non-photographer/tag-along rate: $400 - for a spouse/partner/friend who wants to come along, eat meals with the group, and travel to some of our shooting locations. Note there is a double occupancy rate for the lodging options at the vacation rental properties.

Where to Meet

Participants will gather and be based at the Ithaca, NY vacation rental property that will be the home base for our workshop (320 Hook Place, Ithaca, NY 14850) Directions and details will be sent well in advance of the workshop.

How to Get to Ithaca:

The closest major airports are in Syracuse (SYR) about 75 minutes away, or Rochester (ROC) about 2 hours away. There is also a small airport in Ithaca (ITH) with daily flights from Newark and JFK. Ithaca is approximately 4 hours drive from New York City.

No Lodging Needed

Deposit: $500

Only 3 left

Registration fee for the Oct 15-19, 2025 Autumn Waterfalls of the New York Finger Lakes photo workshop, including all applicable local taxes. (does not include housing or transportation).

You will be responsible for your own lodging in the Ithaca area, as well as local transportation.

$1,200

Deposit: $500

Full bedroom with shared bath package

Deposit: $800

Available until October 13, 2025Sold Out

A room with a double/full sized bed and a shared bathroom in the 4BR/2BA vacation rental in Ithaca, NY which will be the home base for the workshop. 4 nights (Oct 15-19) at $160/night + local room tax (1 person)

Full price includes workshop registration and all applicable room taxes.

$1,995

Deposit: $800

Queen bedroom with shared bath package

Deposit: $850

Available until October 12, 2025Sold Out

A room with a queen bed and a shared bathroom in the 4BR/2BA vacation rental in Ithaca, NY which will be the home base for the workshop. NOTE: if you are signing up for 2 people, make sure you select the 'no lodging' option for the 2nd person if you plan to share a room. 4 nights (Oct 15-19) at $195/night + local room tax (1 or 2 people) An additional charge of $40/night will be added for double occupancy. Extra night (Oct 14) in advance of workshop available - please indicate interest in notes upon booking.

Full price includes workshop registration and all applicable room taxes.

$2,055

Deposit: $850

King bedroom with shared bath package

Deposit: $900

Only 1 left

A room with a king bed and a shared bathroom in the 4BR/2BA vacation rental in Ithaca, NY which will be the home base for the workshop. NOTE: if you are signing up for 2 people, make sure you select the 'no lodging' option for the 2nd person if you plan to share a room. 4 nights (Oct 15-19) at $225/night + local room tax (1 or 2 people) An additional charge of $50/night will be added for double occupancy. Extra night (Oct 14) in advance of workshop available - please indicate interest in notes upon booking.

Full price includes workshop registration and all applicable room taxes.

$2,195

Deposit: $900

Non-participant/tag-a-long rate

Available until October 12, 2025Only 2 left

For a spouse/partner/friend who wants to come along, eat meals with the group, and travel to some of our shooting locations as an observer/cell phone photographer. Note there are double occupancy rates for the lodging options at the vacation rental property.

$400

Joel D.

Julie H.

justin D.

I've attended a few photo workshops/tours and I rate this as one of the better ones I've attended. Colin took us to some great locations and was very engaged with us while on site to insure we were able to get the best vantage points for our photography. It's important that any workshop I attend include at least one classroom editing training session. We had two of these during this workshop and both where excellent. I learned a great deal about Lightroom to add to what I've already learned. I'll add that Colin was very good with his instruction and patient with anyone who repeated a question and it was clear there were no dumb questions. All in all I had an amazing time and hope to do another Rocklight photo tour at some point in the future.

By Randy G for Arches, Canyonlands and Beyond on Nov 18, 2024

Thanks, Randy! Hope to see you in another workshop soon!

By Rock Light Photo on Nov 18, 2024

We had a great time. Host was amazing, accommodating, and responsive. The total package was great-photography lessons, guided visit/hikes, photo processing instruction. This experience is highly recommended for those wanting to experience location and really immerse in photography. Great people and places.

By tanvir b for Arches, Canyonlands and Beyond on Nov 17, 2024

Thanks, Tanvir! Hopefully I will see you on more workshops down the road!

By Rock Light Photo on Nov 18, 2024

This trip was amazing. Colin was a wonderful host, seemed to know everything about the entire area and adapted our park visits and photos shoots to changing conditions nicely. We were able to have a perfect balance of relaxation, hiking and site seeing, photography instruction and collecting great shots. I would HIGHLY recommend a trip with Rock Light Photo to anyone.

By Amanda P for Arches, Canyonlands and Beyond on Nov 10, 2024

It was a good trip. Colin was very good at leading us to locations most apt to having the best color. I look forward to joining him on future photo tours.

By bill r for San Juans Fall Color Photo Workshop on Oct 17, 2024

I had a great workshop with Colin in the San Juan Mountains. He knows the area so well and is a great instructor for photographers of all levels.

By Marcus S for San Juans Fall Color Photo Workshop on Oct 09, 2024

Show More Reviews

I have been out with Collin for quiet a few times to capture the moments of nature with cameras. I enjoyed all of the trips. The beauty and grandeur of those places often captured my mind, as I was capturing their images. Photography is about capture the right light at right moments and right places. Colin is a career professional light expert, and has a keen sense and splendid knowledge about light. He helped almost every participant in his workshops to get high quality images. I have about 50 years of experience in photography, and I still learn something new in each Colin’s workshop. I plan to attend more Collin’s workshops.

By Quan D on 18 Dec, 2023

I attended Colin's Arches and Canyonlands workshop in March of 2023 and it was a fantastic experience. Colin knew the area well and took us to all the best spots at the right times. He was friendly and personable and I would recommend him to anyone interested in landscape photography. Our group had photographers with greatly varying levels of skill and experience and Colin was excellent at meeting their often different needs. This was my first time doing a photography workshop but it definitely won't be my last.

By Jerry B on 04 Dec, 2023

My first workshop with Rock Light Photo hooked me! The trip was well-organized, well-planned, had good fellow guests, and solid leadership from Colin Young. There was a strong sense of camaraderie and fun, heightened by most of us staying in the same rental house. We visited a lot of sites in Bryce Canyon, and since I'd never been, it was really eye-opening and fun. Colin organized things well, but not too much, and was responsive to the group's varying skill levels and energy. I've done several more photo workshops with Rock Light Photo in different places and consistently enjoyed myself, learned a lot about many aspects of photography, and gotten great images. I'd strongly recommend Rock Light Photo for photographers with a range of experience - you'll also have fun, grow as an artist, and create great photos.

By D H on 02 Nov, 2023

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Autumn Waterfalls of the New York Finger Lakes

Autumn Waterfalls of the New York Finger Lakes

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