Sandhill Cranes
For millions of years, Sandhill Cranes have migrated through North America on their way to breeding grounds up North, and the Platte River in Nebraska has long been one of their landing destinations. The hundreds of thousand of cranes that travel through Nebraska every late March create an absolutely stunning sight for photographers and nature-lovers alike.
Witness the world's most beautiful migration
Dates: March 19-22 & March 24-27, 2025 | Location: Kearney, NE
Tuition: $2,695 | Deposit: $675
Deposit due upon registration, full tuition due 120 days before the workshop. Workshops limited to 10 participants.
We are thrilled to offer two back-to-back Sandhill Cranes workshops! In the first workshop join elite nature and wildlife photographers Dave Showalter, Michael Forsberg, and Jim Richardson. In the second workshop you will be learning from Michael Forsberg, Melissa Groo, and Dave Showalter. Both workshops will be along the Platte River in Nebraska to photograph one of nature’s oldest and largest migrations. In both workshops you will have private blind access with only our group and learn from the best!
Come Fly Away with summit
In this workshop, you’ll be immersed in blinds along the Platte River to get an up-close look as the cranes dance, sing their famous “Crane Song”, and do other fun things that make for extraordinary pictures!
At Summit Sandhill Cranes You Will
Photograph North America's Iconic Bird Migration
Experience the awe-inspiring Sandhill Crane migration, one of the most iconic wildlife spectacles in North America, and capture breathtaking images alongside expert instructors.
Learn from Leading Conservation Photographers
Gain hands-on guidance from world-renowned nature photographers, all members of the International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP), and sharpen your skills in wildlife storytelling and conservation photography.
Connect with a community of Like-Minded Photographers
Register now!
March 19-22
$2,695
March 24-27
$2,695
Workshop Itinerary
- 2:00pm – Welcome and Overview
- Tips for Photographing Birds in Flight
- 5:00pm – Depart Fairfield Inn
- 6:00pm – Position in blinds
- 9:30pm – Return to Fairfield Inn
- 5:20am – Depart Fairfield Inn
- 6:30am – Positioned in Blinds
- 7:31 am – Sunrise
- 10:00am – Depart for Fairfield Inn
- 11:00am-3:00pm – Lunch/Download/Downtime
- 5:00pm – Depart Fairfield Inn
- 6:00pm – Positioned in Blinds
- 7:54pm – Sunset
- 7:29am – Sunrise
- 10:00am – Image Critique
- 12:00pm – Lunch
- 1:000pm-3:30pm – Field Work
- 4:00pm – Return to Fairfield Inn
- 5:30pm – Depart Fairfield Inn
- 6:20pm – Positioned in Blinds
- 7:55pm – Sunset
This is your day to sleep in, it is needed. You are free to shoot on your own in the morning but you will be best served to get your rest before our final night in the blinds with the cranes!
- 10:00am – Fairfield Inn Outdoor Coffee Q&A
- 11:00am-3:00pm – Lunch/Download/Downtime
- 6:30pm – Depart Fairfield Inn
- 7:55pm – Sunset
The final workshop schedule will be provided one month prior to the event. Please keep in mind that the schedule is tentative and may be adjusted as needed during the workshop.
Meet Your Instructors
Michael Forsberg
Melissa Groo
Dave Showalter
Jim Richardson
Chris Steppig
Workshop Information
Photographing here is a practice in patience, persistence, and acceptance of what it gives you, but it can also be very rewarding and the experience itself and its sight and sound is unforgettable.
This workshop will provide opportunities to photograph sandhill cranes from group blinds on the Platte River as the cranes come back to the river roost for the evenings, and when they leave the river at first light in the mornings. In the mornings we will be up early and get to the blind and be settled in an hour before sunrise and will not leave until the birds have left the river. In the evenings, we will arrive to the blind about two hours before sunset and will not leave until dark. Between blind trips, we will download and edit images, have a group critique session of selected images, and provide opportunity to learn more about the Platte River Valley, its conservation and the wildlife it supports. There may also be opportunities to photograph these birds and other migrating waterfowl midday from county roads while they are feeding on waste grain leftover from in farmers fields from the previous fall harvest. Waste grain provides and nutrients from prairie grasslands and wet meadows provides fat reserves they need for migration and their early stages at the nest.
Photographing cranes in Nebraska’s Platte Valley is a very different experience than photographing cranes on wintering grounds or other migratory staging areas in the continent like Bosque Del Apache NWR in New Mexico or the San Luis Valley of Colorado where they are acclimated to human presence. This crane population in the Central Flyway is hunted in every state and province along their migratory pathway, except in Nebraska. Therefore the cranes are very skittish when they arrive here and usually do not tolerate human presence at less than several hundred yards unless you are in a blind or a vehicle. And while there are many protected areas for cranes and other wildlife along the river, central Nebraska is not wilderness. It is countryside, mostly in private ownership, and ranks as some of the most productive farmland in the world. Finally, the cranes and their daily rhythms and patterns change constantly, dictated by weather, water levels and disturbance, which are ever changing along the Platte. In late March, it can be 80 degrees and shirt sleeves one day, and 15 degrees and a blizzard the next. Together, this makes photographing these birds very challenging.
Past Student Work
Student Testimonials
Frequently asked questions
No! Summit Workshops is available to any photographer, regardless of what brand of camera you use. We often have camera gear available to borrow, free of charge, but you are not required to use that gear or any specific brand.
Tuition includes activity fees, location fees, all instruction, planning and logistics. It does not cover hotels, travel, and most meals.
Our Sports Workshop is for shooters of all ages and skill levels, from beginners to seasoned veterans. We all learn from and help one another, that is what makes the Summit Community so special.
Lodging & Classroom
Discounted rates have been secured for students at the Fairfield Inn and Suites Kearney. This is where the workshop will be held and where the faculty and staff will be staying! We hope you’ll take advantage of this discount at the workshop hub!
