Who do I contact if I am running late?

Please plan to arrive on time for your class. We allow a 10-minute grace period for check-in before the class officially departs or begins. If you find that you will not be making it, please notify us in advance via email at desertinstitute@joshuatree.org.

What if I need to cancel?

Desert Institute will provide a full refund if we are notified more than 7 days in advance. We are unable to process refunds for any cancellations less than 7 days in advance.

Does Desert Institute cancel activities for weather or low enrollment?

If we do not meet our minimum of 10 registered participants for any given activity, we will likely cancel the activity with at least 48+ hours’ notice. Desert Institute runs classes rain or shine, except for astrophotography classes, which require mostly clear skies to be successful. If weather poses a safety risk, the class will be cancelled or postponed. We recommend that you purchase travel insurance, as we are unable to reimburse for expenses you incur due to a canceled class, such as airfare and hotel.

What if I forgot something I need?

Our visitor centers and park stores are stocked with amazing essentials for your adventure. Preview or purchase items from our online shop; we carry hats, shirts, bandanas, water bottles, notebooks, maps, books. And more!

Can I bring my kids? My Spouse? Pets?

Only registered participants may attend Desert Institute activities (unless noted in the activity description). If this is a kid-friendly activity, please make sure your child(ren) are registered and meet the age requirements. As much as we love pets, we don’t allow them in the field with any of our activities.

Desert Landscape Photography Weekend Workshop

Name: Desert Landscape Photography Weekend Workshop
Start: 2026-09-11T17:00:00-0700
End: 2026-09-13T12:00:00-0700
Location: Meeting at Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Fri, Sep 11, 5pm - Sun, Sep 13, 12pm PDT

Meeting at Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Joshua Tree CA, United States

· Accessibility info

Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park Association

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Description

Join an immersive weekend landscape photography workshop to discover and practice the fundamentals of landscape photography. Topics covered will include shooting in manual mode, the exposure triangle, using the histogram to ensure optimum exposure, exposure bracketing, focus bracketing, panoramas, shooting in RAW, white balance and color temperature, understanding focus and depth of field, and composition techniques. Whether you’re a beginner or looking to refine your skills, this friendly atmosphere encourages creativity and collaboration. Landscape photographer and outdoor guide Jon Norris will provide personalized hands-on instruction in this intimate class.

This class takes place at Lost Horse Road in Joshua Tree National Park.
This fundamentals course is great for photographers of all skill levels. Participants are required to bring their own cameras and accessories. Please find the full photography and camping equipment list here.
Entry to Joshua Tree National Park is not included in the cost of enrollment. Please purchase your park pass ahead of time by visiting the NPS website.
No meals or equipment are provided.
Participants are responsible for their own transportation; carpooling with other participants is encouraged.

This class is moderate. It requires less than 5 miles of walking with limited elevation gain on somewhat variable terrain and/or more than one hour outdoors in the elements throughout the weekend.

Discount Policy: Only one discount may be applied per registration. Discounts cannot be combined. Eligible discounts include Friends & Family, Teacher, Veteran, Active Duty Military (and spouses), Park Lover Member, and Student discounts. The highest applicable single discount will be applied at checkout.

Meet Your Instructor: Jon Norris is a professional landscape photographer and workshop guide, a JTNPA business member, and a Desert Institute volunteer. Jon offers one-to-one and small group workshops, plus photographic adventure tours, in Joshua Tree National Park. He started taking photos at the age of 14 with his trusty Zenit 10, teaching himself the fundamentals of photography via countless rolls of poorly exposed 35 mm film. Born in the UK, Jon spent 25 years working in aerospace engineering (15 years while living in France and Germany). As a recovering engineer, he now divides his time between marketing and photography and lives in Lake Forest, OC.

Photo Credit: NPS/Kelsey Graczyk

FAQs

Who do I contact if I am running late?

Please plan to arrive on time for your class. We allow a 10-minute grace period for check-in before the class officially departs or begins. If you find that you will not be making it, please notify us in advance via email at desertinstitute@joshuatree.org.
What if I need to cancel?

Desert Institute will provide a full refund if we are notified more than 7 days in advance. We are unable to process refunds for any cancellations less than 7 days in advance.
Does Desert Institute cancel activities for weather or low enrollment?

If we do not meet our minimum of 10 registered participants for any given activity, we will likely cancel the activity with at least 48+ hours’ notice. Desert Institute runs classes rain or shine, except for astrophotography classes, which require mostly clear skies to be successful. If weather poses a safety risk, the class will be cancelled or postponed. We recommend that you purchase travel insurance, as we are unable to reimburse for expenses you incur due to a canceled class, such as airfare and hotel.
What if I forgot something I need?

Our visitor centers and park stores are stocked with amazing essentials for your adventure. Preview or purchase items from our online shop; we carry hats, shirts, bandanas, water bottles, notebooks, maps, books. And more!
Can I bring my kids? My Spouse? Pets?

Only registered participants may attend Desert Institute activities (unless noted in the activity description). If this is a kid-friendly activity, please make sure your child(ren) are registered and meet the age requirements. As much as we love pets, we don’t allow them in the field with any of our activities.

Tickets for good, not greed Humanitix dedicates 100% of profits from booking fees to charity

Host information

Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park Association

273 followers

Contact host

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Desert Institute is the educational branch of JTNPA, Joshua Tree National Park’s primary non-profit partner and offers field classes, recreational adventures, weekend excursions, and social events that span a wide spectrum of disciplines and formats. Our programming works to articulate and animate the rich resources of not only the national park but also the surrounding desert environment and the community of people who make Joshua Tree so unique. Our vision is to provide a rich, learning environment that inspires people of all ages and backgrounds to recreate together and help steward this beautiful place for years to come.

Desert Institute (DI) was established in 1999 by the former Chief of Interpretation and current Vice President of JTNPA’s Board of Directors, Joe Zarki. DI was operated by the National Park Service in its first year thanks to a grant from the Parks as Classrooms program. After the first year, the Institute program was absorbed by JTNPA as part of its educational operations.

JTNPA has provided support to the park for over 60 years through educational programming, cash aid, in-kind aid, and visitor center operations. We work in partnership with Joshua Tree National Park to help achieve programming goals in education and interpretation, along with scientific and historical research and activities.

Learn more about our work and how you can get involved: (760) 820-1103 | desertinstitute@joshuatree.org