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Photograph mushrooms like a naturalist with Brittany on October 11th
October 11th
12:00 - 4:00 pm
Spend an afternoon photographing the coastal forest floor and learning about the wonderful world of mushrooms! In this class, you’ll learn to make images that are beautiful and useful, practicing in our Wonder Garden before a gentle, guided field hike with a naturalist.
We will start indoors at the Hoffman Center with a short welcome, then move into the Wonder Garden for hands-on practice with phones. We’ll learn about working in cool coastal light and composing a small subject against a busy background. We will discuss how to add your finds to a free global scientific log called iNaturalist.
Next, we will caravan in cars to Nehalem Bay State Park for a guided walk. This park is one mile away from the Hoffman Center for the Arts. On our walk, you'll learn to spot mushrooms, see what they’re growing from, what their habitat reveals, and how moisture and decay can help shape your pictures. Then, you'll practice photographing the same mushroom two ways. The art image captures mood, form, and color. The field-note image documents what you saw clearly enough that someone else could identify it for scientific purposes, including the cap, underside, base, substrate, and scale. By the end of this class, you'll know more about how to move between the two, and perhaps even combine them in a single frame.
After class, you can edit and upload your favorites to iNaturalist and enter two categories: Best Mushroom Portrait and the Tiny World Award. Winners may be featured in the Hoffman newsletter and on our social media (with your permission).
What to bring
A fully charged smartphone or other camera
The free iNaturalist app installed from https://www.inaturalist.org
Weather-appropriate clothing and sturdy footwear for coastal conditions
Water and snacks
A small cloth for drying hands and phones
Notes
This is not a foraging class. Brittany will help identify the various fungi we see; we will not be eating or harvesting any mushrooms.
This is a rain-or-shine workshop, barring extreme weather, so please come dressed for potentially very wet coastal conditions.
This class is designed for ages 13 and up, but kids aged 10 to 12 are welcome to come along as long as they stay close to their guardian.
The field session covers about 1.5 miles at a slow observation pace, on relatively flat but often wet, sandy, or rooty ground.
Bending and kneeling are encouraged but never required.
We will caravan with cars from the Center to Nehalem Bay State Park. A State Parks day-use parking permit is required.
This class is for anyone curious about mycology and nature photography. You do not need a fancy camera, prior mushroom knowledge, or any specific art background. Even if you don’t have a smartphone, you are still welcome to come on the walk and learn with the group.
If you would like to bring a waterproof kneeling pad, portable sit stool, folding cane, or sit pad, that may be helpful, since we will be getting low on wet ground.
A small phone tripod or bendable mini-tripod can be helpful if you have one to help steady your shots in dim forest light. A clip-on macro lens can also help if you want to get extra close to tiny mushrooms. Inexpensive options from brands like Xenvo or Apexel usually run $10 to $40. These work best with your phone's "Pro" or manual camera mode, so check that it fits your phone before purchasing.
You'll do any photo editing and upload to iNaturalist at home, which keeps our time together focused on learning about mushrooms.
Hoffman Center classes and events are often photographed or filmed, and we love sharing those moments on our social media, website, and newsletter so people can get a feel for what it's like to create and connect here. When you register, you're agreeing that we may use photos or video that include you. If you'd rather not appear, just let a staff member know when you arrive.
This class is free to attend thanks to support from our donors! If you would like to donate so we can continue to host classes like these, we welcome that. Your support helps Hoffman provide accessible arts programming, creative opportunities, and meaningful community experiences on the North Oregon Coast. https://www.hoffmanarts.org/donate
About your instructor
Brittany Marcotte is a North Oregon Coast naturalist, mushroom guide, educator, and photographer. Since 2018, she's led mushroom walks and field learning for groups large and small, with collaborators including the Oregon Mycological Society, Oregon State University, Regional Arts and Culture Council, Hoyt Arboretum, and Portland Metro. Her teaching is grounded, playful, and welcoming to beginners.
See her work on iNaturalist and on Instagram at @stellar_viscera.
October 11th
12:00 - 4:00 pm
Spend an afternoon photographing the coastal forest floor and learning about the wonderful world of mushrooms! In this class, you’ll learn to make images that are beautiful and useful, practicing in our Wonder Garden before a gentle, guided field hike with a naturalist.
We will start indoors at the Hoffman Center with a short welcome, then move into the Wonder Garden for hands-on practice with phones. We’ll learn about working in cool coastal light and composing a small subject against a busy background. We will discuss how to add your finds to a free global scientific log called iNaturalist.
Next, we will caravan in cars to Nehalem Bay State Park for a guided walk. This park is one mile away from the Hoffman Center for the Arts. On our walk, you'll learn to spot mushrooms, see what they’re growing from, what their habitat reveals, and how moisture and decay can help shape your pictures. Then, you'll practice photographing the same mushroom two ways. The art image captures mood, form, and color. The field-note image documents what you saw clearly enough that someone else could identify it for scientific purposes, including the cap, underside, base, substrate, and scale. By the end of this class, you'll know more about how to move between the two, and perhaps even combine them in a single frame.
After class, you can edit and upload your favorites to iNaturalist and enter two categories: Best Mushroom Portrait and the Tiny World Award. Winners may be featured in the Hoffman newsletter and on our social media (with your permission).
What to bring
A fully charged smartphone or other camera
The free iNaturalist app installed from https://www.inaturalist.org
Weather-appropriate clothing and sturdy footwear for coastal conditions
Water and snacks
A small cloth for drying hands and phones
Notes
This is not a foraging class. Brittany will help identify the various fungi we see; we will not be eating or harvesting any mushrooms.
This is a rain-or-shine workshop, barring extreme weather, so please come dressed for potentially very wet coastal conditions.
This class is designed for ages 13 and up, but kids aged 10 to 12 are welcome to come along as long as they stay close to their guardian.
The field session covers about 1.5 miles at a slow observation pace, on relatively flat but often wet, sandy, or rooty ground.
Bending and kneeling are encouraged but never required.
We will caravan with cars from the Center to Nehalem Bay State Park. A State Parks day-use parking permit is required.
This class is for anyone curious about mycology and nature photography. You do not need a fancy camera, prior mushroom knowledge, or any specific art background. Even if you don’t have a smartphone, you are still welcome to come on the walk and learn with the group.
If you would like to bring a waterproof kneeling pad, portable sit stool, folding cane, or sit pad, that may be helpful, since we will be getting low on wet ground.
A small phone tripod or bendable mini-tripod can be helpful if you have one to help steady your shots in dim forest light. A clip-on macro lens can also help if you want to get extra close to tiny mushrooms. Inexpensive options from brands like Xenvo or Apexel usually run $10 to $40. These work best with your phone's "Pro" or manual camera mode, so check that it fits your phone before purchasing.
You'll do any photo editing and upload to iNaturalist at home, which keeps our time together focused on learning about mushrooms.
Hoffman Center classes and events are often photographed or filmed, and we love sharing those moments on our social media, website, and newsletter so people can get a feel for what it's like to create and connect here. When you register, you're agreeing that we may use photos or video that include you. If you'd rather not appear, just let a staff member know when you arrive.
This class is free to attend thanks to support from our donors! If you would like to donate so we can continue to host classes like these, we welcome that. Your support helps Hoffman provide accessible arts programming, creative opportunities, and meaningful community experiences on the North Oregon Coast. https://www.hoffmanarts.org/donate
About your instructor
Brittany Marcotte is a North Oregon Coast naturalist, mushroom guide, educator, and photographer. Since 2018, she's led mushroom walks and field learning for groups large and small, with collaborators including the Oregon Mycological Society, Oregon State University, Regional Arts and Culture Council, Hoyt Arboretum, and Portland Metro. Her teaching is grounded, playful, and welcoming to beginners.
See her work on iNaturalist and on Instagram at @stellar_viscera.