The Pro-Am
An Images for Conservation Pro-Am Tournament combines a workshop and a fun photo contest into an enjoyable 4-day, 5-evening event that takes place on private lands professionally prepared for wildlife and nature photography.
We carefully select our locations so that our Coaches/leaders can combine the best elements of the finest nature photography workshops with the power of a competitive learning experience.
Pro-Am Tournaments are open to anyone with a digital SLR camera, but space is limited to six (6) participants per Coach/leader.
The Coaching Experience
The professional nature photographer who brings you through your Pro-Am Tournament serves to not only educate you about the wildlife you'll see and the techniques you'll learn, but to coach you as well.
Your Pro-Am Coach leads you with three primary goals in mind:
- You'll leave a better photographer.
- You'll benefit from the competitive experience.
- You'll have a great time!
The Competitive Experience
What do you get from the competitive experience that you don't get from a simple workshop? Plenty.
If you've ever competed, you know that part of the process is getting to know your own strengths and weaknesses. The Pro-Am Tournament offers the perfect chance to do that.
And having a Pro-Am Coach with you every step of the way helps you identify and build on those strengths while bringing your work to a higher level.
But please don't get too serious! We keep our cash prizes small to keep folks focused on the fun.
We call our Pro-Am's "cooperative competitive experiences" because they engender community among participants. We find this to be true whether participants compete against one another in a Pro-Am Me™ or band together in a Pro-Am Us™.
The best competitive experiences generate enthusiasm and here you'll find the sort of enthusiasm that ordinary workshops can't touch.
The Private-Lands Photography Experience
Our landowners know what you want. They know what it takes to get the great shots. And, best of all, they've got the wildlife you want to see in real life and to take home in images.
Our landowners created their photo blinds with your special needs in mind. Set-ups are in place. Water holes and feeding stations are ready. What's needed now? You, your equipment, your enthusiasm and your Pro-Am Coach.
When you're on private land that's been professionally planned for wildlife and nature photography a diverse array of wildlife will pass closely by your lens giving you an incredible outdoor experience.
The Pro-Am Experience
Pull it all together - great coaching, plenty of learning opportunities, the cooperative competitive experience, professionally prepared set-ups on private lands, lots of fun - and you have the Pro-Am Tournament, a nature-photography experience like no other!
Your Pro-Am offers the chance to be outdoors with your camera as you get to know yourself, your subjects, and your equipment like never before.
Lose yourself in the lens and enjoy nature's bounty in a whole different way. Relax. Have fun. Make new friends or participate with old ones.
And, when it comes to that competitive element, it's your choice: Take it seriously.
Or don't.
Images for Conservation offers you two unique Pro-Am Tournament experiences:
- Pro-Am Me™
Have fun, receive plenty of coaching and instruction, all while you compete against and encourage others participating in the same Pro-Am Tournament.
As you do, learn lots, put your skills to the test and have a great time. Throughout the day, your Pro-Am Coach gives each participant individual attention and, even though teamwork is not the focus, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how the spirit of cooperation adds a special element to a Pro-Am Me™.
- Pro-Am Us™
You'll be a proud member of a Pro-Am Tournament team as you and your teammates battle against another Pro-Am Tournament team located on another ranch.
As you do, learn lots, put your skills to the test and have a great time. Throughout the day, your Pro-Am Coach gives each member of your team plenty of instruction to improve individual skills, but teamwork adds a special element to the Pro-Am Us™.
Pro-Am Me™ & Pro-Am Us™
Since fun is the main ingredient of an Images for Conservation Pro-Am Tournament, we kick things off with an Opening Night Party. (Our Pro-Am's always begin on a Thursday evening and end the following Monday evening.) Relax while you get to know your Pro-Am Coach, the landowner and all the other participants. Ask any questions you have about the procedures, rules, etc., so that when you get to the blind for the morning shoot you'll be completely at ease. Each full day of your Pro-Am Me™ or Pro-Am Us™ starts with a morning shoot and ends with an evening shoot, both perfectly timed to catch the sweetest light and the most animal activity.
Nightly, you, your team and your Pro-Am Coach work together choosing submissions for the competitive portion of the Pro-Am Me™ or Pro-Am Us™. Each day ends with excitement when every participant enters an image for judging via Internet.
As you head into the blind the next morning to enjoy a new day of photo adventures, you and the others find yourselves exhilarated. With the approach of lunchtime the wondering begins: "Will I be one of the winners from the day before?" Mid-day brings growing anticipation as the time draws closer to discover how everyone fared from the previous night's judging.
That evening, before submitting that day's entry, your Pro-Am Coach discusses winning images from the previous evening and critiques them. He/she helps you understand: How did the other entries compare? What can you do to make your next image better? How have you already improved? As you and the others discuss these very questions amongst yourselves, it becomes crystal clear that the competitive experience is not only enjoyable, but that it serves as a terrific learning tool, too.
The Pro-Am Tournament ends with a Closing Night Party, dinner and awards' ceremony. After 4 days of fun and 3 exciting nights of judging, total scores are tallied for Grand Prize, Second, Third, and Honorable Mention awards. Also, throughout, daily winners have also been announced and those photographers receive recognition.
Regardless of who wins the small monetary prizes, every Pro-Am Me™ and Pro-Am Us™ participant goes home with amazing images and great memories!
Prizes
Pro-Am Tournaments aren't high-stakes photo competitions - we leave that to the Pro-Tour of Nature Photography!
Instead, to keep the emphasis on what can be gained from the experience, the prize-pot is derived from the total of registration fees collected. Thus, the actual amount of cash prizes awarded will depend upon the number of participants.
In addition to overall Pro-Am Tournament winners, there will be token individual daily winnings of 1st, 2nd and 3rd. We will also award miscellaneous prizes to generate more excitement and energy. [Most of these will come from the generosity of sponsors and donations since we are a non-profit organization - if you are interested in donating prizes for the Pro-Am please let us know.]
Fun, new experiences and the sort of learning that comes from a cooperative competitive environment - not monetary gains - are at the heart of our Pro-Am Tournaments.
Your Pro-Am Tournament provides the kind of valuable "intrinsic" rewards offered only by a private-lands' nature photography workshop like this.
See the Pro-Am Schedule of Events, and sign up today. Space is limited for the 2012 season.
