The Palouse Summer Tours 2025 – Rockhopper Workshops

Made with the iPhone and using Snapseed and distressed. I'll show you how to use the iPhone along with your regular camera system to make unique and different images. — Made with the iPhone and using Snapseed and distressed. I’ll show you how to use the iPhone along with your regular camera system to make unique and different images.

If you have never been or have been many times, you should join me in one of my favorite places to photograph in America. The Palouse. This incredible region of rolling hills and farmland is located in Southeast Washington State. I have been photographing this area for years and usually make annual visits to the Palouse both in the early summer and for the harvest in August. Join me while I guide you through full days of photography to some special places that only we will be available to visit.

This year, I will also offer a one-hour review, critique, and private one-on-one consultation after the workshop virtually on Zoom. The schedule for these will be determined after the workshop.

Abandoned home

New As Of 2024

We will also do a 2-3 hour private photo session at an abandoned hospital in Colfax. The Palouse, in many ways, is all about abandoned places, and this location adds to the theme. Check out the article I wrote on our experience there. A Unique Experience: Exploring An Abandoned Hospital in The Palouse

The Palouse Summer Tour – 5 Person Private Tour

Workshop #1 -June 16- 21, 2025
Workshop #2 – June 23-28, 2025

Lone Tree pano with Steptoe Butte in the background

If you have never been or have been many times, you should join me in one of my favorite places to photograph in America. The Palouse. This incredible rolling hills and farmland region is located in Southeast Washington State. I have been shooting this area for years and usually visit the Palouse in the early summer and for the harvest in August. There are many places to photograph in this area. I’d love to take you to some of my favorite fabulous spots.

You’ll photograph hundreds of images like this from Steptoe Butte.

Over the last 17 years, we have held workshops in the Palouse with 12 or more people. This year, I am offering something special. Come and shoot with me and no more than five other photographers (6 of us total) in the Palouse in the early summer. We’ll be photographing from dawn to sunset at some of my favorite locations. As a small group, we will have plenty of time to discuss photography and making images. Along the way, I’ll help you find the best ways to shoot this landscape and coach you on seeing it differently. If weather and time permits, we’ll also spend time processing and prepping images for printing.

As a bonus, each participant will get an hour of consultation after the workshop via a live Zoom call. We will look at your images and talk about composition and post-processing, as well as possible print projects.

I’ll pick you up at the Spokane airport at noon on June 16th for workshop #1 and June 23rd for workshop#2. We will head right into the region and start our photography adventure. We’ll be staying at the Hampton Inn Pullman, WA. The rooms are large and comfortable, and it is conveniently located for the photography that we will be doing. Information for making your reservation will be mailed to you after you register.

Palouse — The famous iconic Weber House.

Another Weber House photo

Photographing Palouse Falls

Gorgeous Landscapes Around Every bend

Abandoned gems everywhere, each with its own story

We will cover a lot of ground — We cover a lot of ground in our days together. The amount of photographic potential is huge.

Two Workshops June 16-21 and 23-28, 2025

Your Instructors

workshop-boxes

Kevin W. Raber

I see the world through the lens and a frame. Photography for me is an extension of who I am. I have gone through many stages in my career. At one time I was a portrait photographer with many prestigious clients. Over time I grew restless for something else in the field. I truly enjoy my current work as a fine art landscape photographer. There is something special about examining and photographing everything from grand scenes in nature that are there for a moment and then gone to industrial landscapes and focusing on the incredibly minute details of peeling paint and rust. I am most fortunate to be able to travel to many wonderful places.

I have fond memories of nights and weekends spent in the darkroom creating prints. The stereo blasting. It could be fun and it could be tedious. You didn’t always know what you were going to get and, at times, it required extensive hands-on darkroom manipulation. I can still smell the chemicals. I was taught by the masters of the darkroom.

Today, that has all changed thanks to the advent of computers, digital cameras and Photoshop. The darkroom is the computer. Some things are still unpredictable, but the tools to achieve the final result allow you to see them immediately on the screen in real-time and right in front of you. Digital allows you to capture a range of tonalities and exposures that were impossible with film. Variables such as emulsion, temperature, chemistry and exposure are taken out of the equation. What you see on your computer monitor is what you will get when printed. One thing that hasn’t changed is the music. It goes along with creating and working on images. Thank God for iTunes.

I embraced digital early on. It continues to evolve and provide flexibility to all who embrace it. The digital age is still young and has completely transformed our industry. Never before has a switch from analog to digital been so prevalent as in photography. I’m looking forward to seeing where the next ten years take us.

My career in photography has evolved since 1972 when I first began making a living with photography. Today I am also CEO and Owner of photopxl.com, one of the most visited and prestigious websites for the photographers on the internet. I lead photography workshops to the edge of the planet locations as well as provide instructional videos to photographers on how to improve their craft.

There doesn’t seem to be anything that can dampen my passion and enthusiasm for photography. It has opened doors to the world for me and I am most grateful I can share my experiences with others.

Please visit my RaberEYES.com Storefront site.

Accomodations & Pricing

We’ll work our way south and check you into the hotel by late afternoon. We’ll grab dinner and then head out to shoot for a few more hours as the sun falls lower in the sky. You’ll be amazed at the rich green colors and beautiful clouds.

Unlike other workshops, we will be going all day. We can go where many carpool workshops can’t as we have a large 4WD vehicle. Be prepared for some pretty dusty trails. We will stop for breaks and lunch every day. At the end of the day, we will top it off with a good dinner. There are a few fun and surprisingly good restaurants in the region and we’ll get to try them out.

The Palouse Video

Get an idea on what to expect during our Palouse workshop.

This workshop includes pick up and drop off at the airport, in-field instruction, and one dinner. We’ll be out early each morning for sunrise and return to the hotel or town for breakfast before heading out again. During the day we will shoot abandoned houses, trucks, and the gorgeous rolling hills. We may take a break in the afternoon to work on our images collectively or rest up if needed.

Photographing sunset in the Palouse

Check out the article on PhotoPXL.com about 2021’s first workshop. Lots of photos are included in this article. I know you’ll be surprised as to how many photos you’ll take. Also, look at the Article on 2023’s amazing trip HERE.

Palouse

We literally will cover hundreds of miles each day. We’ll go where other workshops can’t go, and you’ll experience the people and culture of the Palouse. You’ll discover why this is one of my favorite places to photograph and why each visit is always different. I’ll also provide a GPS track of each day’s travels upon request.

This will be an amazing opportunity to work elbow to elbow, do critiques of the images we shoot, and discover the methods to get the most from your files. We’ll also have a lot of fun!

The skies in the Palouse are magical

A Row Of Trees

Windmills and Lone Trees are what the Palouse is famous for.

On Saturday, the 21st or 28th of June, we head back to the airport early in the morning to get our flights from 11 AM on. It is highly recommended that you arrive in Spokane a day early in case of flight delays, etc. There are a number of hotels on the airport grounds within a short walk from baggage claim.

If you are interested in or have questions about this small, private workshop, then please email me or phone me at 317-379-7482. This is on a first-come, first-served basis. The cost for the workshop is $3950.00. A deposit of $1500.00 is required to hold your spot. The balance is payable by May 15th. There may be an option to do some aerial photography at an extra cost. The airport for the workshop is in Spokane, WA. Please arrive and be ready to roll out by 12 noon on either the 16th or 23rd of June. More details will be sent once you have registered.

An old General Mills grain elevator

The cost includes in-field instruction, Transportation, pickup and return to the airport, and everything in between. Hotel rooms are your responsibility. A block of rooms has been booked at the Hampton Inn in Pullman, WA. The first lunch and dinner on the last night are also included. All other meals, alcoholic beverages, etc., are your responsibility.

More details will be provided after the registration.

Download The Palouse Workshop Registration

Headlight

Abstract of one of the many abandoned trucks and cars we will photograph

There are plenty of abandoned homes to keep us occupied

June 16-12 and 23-28, 2025

Good food to keep your energy up

Price:

USD $3950.00 (excludes airfare, hotel, and most meals)

A deposit of $1500.00 is required to hold your spot. The balance is payable by May 15th before the workshop. It is always recommended that travel insurance is purchased for any workshop.

There may be an option to do some aerial photography at an extra cost. The airport for the workshop is Spokane, WA. Please arrive and be ready to roll out by 12 noon on the 16th of June for workshop #1 and the 23rd for workshop #2. We will have a quick lunch and then hit the road for our first destination.

We will enjoy meals at several nice restaurants and breakfast places. You won’t go home hungry. Except for the first lunch and last night’s dinner, meal costs will be your responsibility.

After registration, additional information on hotel reservations and preparation will be provided. A block of rooms will be reserved for the workshop at the hotel.

Download The Palouse Workshop Registration

lone tree — The Lone Tree

Old abandoned trucks, ever one of these has a story — Old abandoned trucks, every one of these has a story

Abandoned Grain Silo

Cocktails at days end

June 16-21 4 spots available June 23-28 5 spots available