South Texas Birds and Wildlife Spring Workshop April 2025
April 3rd, PM-6th, AM 2025
$1,200.00
The total workshop price of $1200.00 covers lodging, food, and unlimited blind access once you arrive on the ranch.
See y’all soon!!!
A little bit about your instructor
Angie is an award-winning photographer who discovered her love for the outdoors as a teenager shortly after her family moved to Lake Tahoe. Her passion is landscape photography, which she broadened after photographing birds for many years, and she’s realized she is a bird watcher too.
Intrigued by so many different kinds of birds, in January 2021, her year-end bird count was 202 species of birds.
Angie is a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography and is nearly done with her master’s degree at PPA (Professional Photographers of America).
Her first publication was in Diesel Magazine. Since then, she has been featured in Focus on Texas Magazine and on their website numerous times. Angie started offering photography workshops and private lessons in the summer of 2019.
She also has a Facebook group called WT F-STOP and does meetups with local photographers in the South Texas area to share her knowledge with those who are struggling to get started in photography or just need a little help with camera settings.
WT F-STOP was born while she was out with friends, and they would ask, “Hey Angie, what is the F-Stop?”.
About this workshop
Springtime is South Texas is amazing, from the baby animals and bird migration to the wildflowers. Join me on an amazing weekend at the Welder Wildlife Refuge. We have blinds, nature trails, and after dark we can do night sky or just hang out around the firepit.
Join Angie Birmingham for 3 mornings and 3 evenings for photography and instruction. During the workshop, we will target all the South Texas resident birds and raptors. Green Jays, Pyrrhuloxia, Golden-fronted Woodpeckers, Thrashers, and Quail, just to name a few, and there will be many others since we will be there during the spring migration period. We will also target raptors at the ranch’s raptor blind. Crested Caracara, Harris Hawk, and Turkey and Black Vultures frequent the raptor blinds at the ranch.
Lodging will be on the refuge. We have 6 dorm rooms, each with 2 twin beds. If you have a non-photographer that would like to join you. They can join you for an additional $700.
Cost of Photo Tour: $1200.00 per photographer A $500 deposit is due at booking, with a balance of $700 on or before March 14th.
(Please email me for the non-photographer option.)
NON-photographer solo $850
NON-photographer with photographer $700 sharing the same room
Includes:
- Lodging at the Welder Wildlife Refuge Guesthouse for 3 days and 3 nights.
All meals will be catered, and non-alcoholic beverages will be available during your stay.
midday photographic Instruction and editing tutorial, so bring your laptop.
all applicable taxes.
Does not include:
Transportation to and from the ranch. (unless prearranged)
Alcoholic Beverages (Bring your own; there is a fridge to put all drinks in.)
Gratuities are appreciated but not required.
Our itinerary will be very similar each day, but workshop information will be different with some other opportunities.
Early rise with a light breakfast and coffee in the dining room; get to the blind before sunrise.
Return after the morning shoot at approximately 10 am for breakfast.
Evening blind, we will get to the blind at around 3 p.m.; we can go earlier if it’s not too hot.
Free time to review images and then meet back for lunch and editing or photo tips. Last night, together, we reviewed images of everyone who wanted to participate. We will then take one of my images and have everyone edit it in their own way or follow me as I edit it. After everyone is done, we will share to see what we all come up with since everyone has their own style!
Night sky
If we have a clear sky, we will do a nighttime photo workshop to learn how to take Milky Way photos with stars and light painting.
We are limiting the number of photographers to 6 so you can get our full attention and have unlimited exclusive access to the blinds during your stay.
History of the Welder Wildlife Refuge
Robert H. (Rob) Welder had a uniquely rich family ancestry consisting of a diversity of peoples that immigrated to North America. His ancestors, and the countries from which they originated, included the Welters (Bavaria), de la Portillas (Spain), Powers and Hughes (Ireland), and Traylors (France). Mr. Welder’s great-grandfather, Franz Welter, immigrated here in 1830 with his wife and their five children. Franz and his family lived in New Amsterdam until 1833, when they joined the Beales and Grant Colony to head for Texas to settle along the Rio Grande. Later, his two sons, John and Tom, would change the family surname from Welter to Welder.
The 59-person Beales colony was led by empresarios Dr. Charles Beales and Dr. James Grant. They, along with the Welder family, embarked from New York on November 10, 1833, on the schooner Amos Wright and anchored at El Copano on the Texas coast on December 11, 1833. El Copano is located within 12 miles of the Welder Wildlife Refuge.
Franz Welter’s son, John Welder, was Robert H. Welder’s grandfather. John accumulated approximately 100,000 acres of land in south Texas, mostly through the purchase of land grants. In 1850 John married Dolores Power, daughter of Dolores de la Portilla and Colonel James Power, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Dolores de la Portilla’s father, Felipe Roque de la Portilla, was born in Spain and immigrated to New Spain around 1786.
In 1807 Felipe Roque de la Portilla was living in Matamoros, Mexico, when the Mexican governor of Texas established a civil settlement program on the Texas frontier to ward off foreign penetration. In return for premium lands, de la Portilla agreed to make a Texas settlement at his own expense, thus inaugurating the empresario system of colonization in Texas.
The Rob and Bessie Welder Wildlife Foundation and Refuge are located about 10 miles northeast of Sinton, Texas, on the lands deeded along the Aransas River in the original 1834 land grant to Felipe Roque de la Portilla.
Cancellation policy
You can register any way you like, just so I get your information. You can use the online registration or email, either to register or just ask a question. Registration is done on a first-come, first-served basis, so register early to secure your space. A deposit of $500 is required to reserve your space, and full payment is due on March 14th, 2024. Enrollment is limited in our workshops, so once you have been accepted, your participation is important to us. We are counting on you to attend. If you must withdraw from a course, we must receive written notice of your cancellation and then apply the following refund policy: We do not make refunds on workshop fees. We do not make partial refunds for unused portions or services of a workshop for any reason whatsoever. If we are able to fill your space in the workshop, we will give full credit to another workshop. If we are not able to fill your space, we will issue a 50% credit towards a future workshop.
We can accept no responsibility for losses or additional expenses due to delays or changes in the services to be provided. We reserve the right to change our arrangements should conditions necessitate, or to cancel any aspect of the workshop due to exceptional circumstances.
In the unlikely event that we need to cancel a workshop, we will refund all monies paid, in full. Notification of our cancellation will be made via either a telephone call or an e-mail to you at least 14 days prior to the beginning of a workshop, unless there is an emergency. We cannot be responsible for phone messages and e-mails not being received in a timely manner due to your service providers. We cannot be responsible for non-refundable airline tickets that are unused or for other travel arrangements because of a workshop cancellation. All workshops have a minimum participation level that must be met, or the workshop may be canceled.
We are not responsible for any fees associated with non-refundable air travel, and we highly recommend the purchase of travel insurance. We use https://www.insuremytrip.com/
Liability Waiver
All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning a workshop. As there is always an element of risk in any adventure associated with the outdoors, participants must read the liability release form carefully. The participant’s signed/dated release will certify that said participant is physically fit and capable of participating in outdoor photography exercises in field locations and is fully and completely aware of any associated risks created by field locations and weather.
Weather
The more, the better, at least as far as the photography goes. Workshops will not be canceled, and no refunds will be made due to weather; we will not be responsible for any additional costs that may be incurred by weather delays or cancellations due to weather, flight delays, or other. Participants should come to the workshop prepared for all weather conditions.
Smoking
We prefer that you do not smoke; however, if you must, please abide by the following guidelines. Smoking is not allowed in or near vehicles, during instructional sessions, during group meals, or at other times when in close quarters with other workshop participants.
April 3rd, PM-6th, AM 2025
$1,200.00
The total workshop price of $1200.00 covers lodging, food, and unlimited blind access once you arrive on the ranch.
See y’all soon!!!
A little bit about your instructor
Angie is an award-winning photographer who discovered her love for the outdoors as a teenager shortly after her family moved to Lake Tahoe. Her passion is landscape photography, which she broadened after photographing birds for many years, and she’s realized she is a bird watcher too.
Intrigued by so many different kinds of birds, in January 2021, her year-end bird count was 202 species of birds.
Angie is a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography and is nearly done with her master’s degree at PPA (Professional Photographers of America).
Her first publication was in Diesel Magazine. Since then, she has been featured in Focus on Texas Magazine and on their website numerous times. Angie started offering photography workshops and private lessons in the summer of 2019.
She also has a Facebook group called WT F-STOP and does meetups with local photographers in the South Texas area to share her knowledge with those who are struggling to get started in photography or just need a little help with camera settings.
WT F-STOP was born while she was out with friends, and they would ask, “Hey Angie, what is the F-Stop?”.
About this workshop
Springtime is South Texas is amazing, from the baby animals and bird migration to the wildflowers. Join me on an amazing weekend at the Welder Wildlife Refuge. We have blinds, nature trails, and after dark we can do night sky or just hang out around the firepit.
Join Angie Birmingham for 3 mornings and 3 evenings for photography and instruction. During the workshop, we will target all the South Texas resident birds and raptors. Green Jays, Pyrrhuloxia, Golden-fronted Woodpeckers, Thrashers, and Quail, just to name a few, and there will be many others since we will be there during the spring migration period. We will also target raptors at the ranch’s raptor blind. Crested Caracara, Harris Hawk, and Turkey and Black Vultures frequent the raptor blinds at the ranch.
Lodging will be on the refuge. We have 6 dorm rooms, each with 2 twin beds. If you have a non-photographer that would like to join you. They can join you for an additional $700.
Cost of Photo Tour: $1200.00 per photographer A $500 deposit is due at booking, with a balance of $700 on or before March 14th.
(Please email me for the non-photographer option.)
NON-photographer solo $850
NON-photographer with photographer $700 sharing the same room
Includes:
- Lodging at the Welder Wildlife Refuge Guesthouse for 3 days and 3 nights.
All meals will be catered, and non-alcoholic beverages will be available during your stay.
midday photographic Instruction and editing tutorial, so bring your laptop.
all applicable taxes.
Does not include:
Transportation to and from the ranch. (unless prearranged)
Alcoholic Beverages (Bring your own; there is a fridge to put all drinks in.)
Gratuities are appreciated but not required.
Our itinerary will be very similar each day, but workshop information will be different with some other opportunities.
Early rise with a light breakfast and coffee in the dining room; get to the blind before sunrise.
Return after the morning shoot at approximately 10 am for breakfast.
Evening blind, we will get to the blind at around 3 p.m.; we can go earlier if it’s not too hot.
Free time to review images and then meet back for lunch and editing or photo tips. Last night, together, we reviewed images of everyone who wanted to participate. We will then take one of my images and have everyone edit it in their own way or follow me as I edit it. After everyone is done, we will share to see what we all come up with since everyone has their own style!
Night sky
If we have a clear sky, we will do a nighttime photo workshop to learn how to take Milky Way photos with stars and light painting.
We are limiting the number of photographers to 6 so you can get our full attention and have unlimited exclusive access to the blinds during your stay.
History of the Welder Wildlife Refuge
Robert H. (Rob) Welder had a uniquely rich family ancestry consisting of a diversity of peoples that immigrated to North America. His ancestors, and the countries from which they originated, included the Welters (Bavaria), de la Portillas (Spain), Powers and Hughes (Ireland), and Traylors (France). Mr. Welder’s great-grandfather, Franz Welter, immigrated here in 1830 with his wife and their five children. Franz and his family lived in New Amsterdam until 1833, when they joined the Beales and Grant Colony to head for Texas to settle along the Rio Grande. Later, his two sons, John and Tom, would change the family surname from Welter to Welder.
The 59-person Beales colony was led by empresarios Dr. Charles Beales and Dr. James Grant. They, along with the Welder family, embarked from New York on November 10, 1833, on the schooner Amos Wright and anchored at El Copano on the Texas coast on December 11, 1833. El Copano is located within 12 miles of the Welder Wildlife Refuge.
Franz Welter’s son, John Welder, was Robert H. Welder’s grandfather. John accumulated approximately 100,000 acres of land in south Texas, mostly through the purchase of land grants. In 1850 John married Dolores Power, daughter of Dolores de la Portilla and Colonel James Power, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Dolores de la Portilla’s father, Felipe Roque de la Portilla, was born in Spain and immigrated to New Spain around 1786.
In 1807 Felipe Roque de la Portilla was living in Matamoros, Mexico, when the Mexican governor of Texas established a civil settlement program on the Texas frontier to ward off foreign penetration. In return for premium lands, de la Portilla agreed to make a Texas settlement at his own expense, thus inaugurating the empresario system of colonization in Texas.
The Rob and Bessie Welder Wildlife Foundation and Refuge are located about 10 miles northeast of Sinton, Texas, on the lands deeded along the Aransas River in the original 1834 land grant to Felipe Roque de la Portilla.
Cancellation policy
You can register any way you like, just so I get your information. You can use the online registration or email, either to register or just ask a question. Registration is done on a first-come, first-served basis, so register early to secure your space. A deposit of $500 is required to reserve your space, and full payment is due on March 14th, 2024. Enrollment is limited in our workshops, so once you have been accepted, your participation is important to us. We are counting on you to attend. If you must withdraw from a course, we must receive written notice of your cancellation and then apply the following refund policy: We do not make refunds on workshop fees. We do not make partial refunds for unused portions or services of a workshop for any reason whatsoever. If we are able to fill your space in the workshop, we will give full credit to another workshop. If we are not able to fill your space, we will issue a 50% credit towards a future workshop.
We can accept no responsibility for losses or additional expenses due to delays or changes in the services to be provided. We reserve the right to change our arrangements should conditions necessitate, or to cancel any aspect of the workshop due to exceptional circumstances.
In the unlikely event that we need to cancel a workshop, we will refund all monies paid, in full. Notification of our cancellation will be made via either a telephone call or an e-mail to you at least 14 days prior to the beginning of a workshop, unless there is an emergency. We cannot be responsible for phone messages and e-mails not being received in a timely manner due to your service providers. We cannot be responsible for non-refundable airline tickets that are unused or for other travel arrangements because of a workshop cancellation. All workshops have a minimum participation level that must be met, or the workshop may be canceled.
We are not responsible for any fees associated with non-refundable air travel, and we highly recommend the purchase of travel insurance. We use https://www.insuremytrip.com/
Liability Waiver
All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning a workshop. As there is always an element of risk in any adventure associated with the outdoors, participants must read the liability release form carefully. The participant’s signed/dated release will certify that said participant is physically fit and capable of participating in outdoor photography exercises in field locations and is fully and completely aware of any associated risks created by field locations and weather.
Weather
The more, the better, at least as far as the photography goes. Workshops will not be canceled, and no refunds will be made due to weather; we will not be responsible for any additional costs that may be incurred by weather delays or cancellations due to weather, flight delays, or other. Participants should come to the workshop prepared for all weather conditions.
Smoking
We prefer that you do not smoke; however, if you must, please abide by the following guidelines. Smoking is not allowed in or near vehicles, during instructional sessions, during group meals, or at other times when in close quarters with other workshop participants.
April 3rd, PM-6th, AM 2025
$1,200.00
The total workshop price of $1200.00 covers lodging, food, and unlimited blind access once you arrive on the ranch.
See y’all soon!!!
A little bit about your instructor
Angie is an award-winning photographer who discovered her love for the outdoors as a teenager shortly after her family moved to Lake Tahoe. Her passion is landscape photography, which she broadened after photographing birds for many years, and she’s realized she is a bird watcher too.
Intrigued by so many different kinds of birds, in January 2021, her year-end bird count was 202 species of birds.
Angie is a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography and is nearly done with her master’s degree at PPA (Professional Photographers of America).
Her first publication was in Diesel Magazine. Since then, she has been featured in Focus on Texas Magazine and on their website numerous times. Angie started offering photography workshops and private lessons in the summer of 2019.
She also has a Facebook group called WT F-STOP and does meetups with local photographers in the South Texas area to share her knowledge with those who are struggling to get started in photography or just need a little help with camera settings.
WT F-STOP was born while she was out with friends, and they would ask, “Hey Angie, what is the F-Stop?”.
About this workshop
Springtime is South Texas is amazing, from the baby animals and bird migration to the wildflowers. Join me on an amazing weekend at the Welder Wildlife Refuge. We have blinds, nature trails, and after dark we can do night sky or just hang out around the firepit.
Join Angie Birmingham for 3 mornings and 3 evenings for photography and instruction. During the workshop, we will target all the South Texas resident birds and raptors. Green Jays, Pyrrhuloxia, Golden-fronted Woodpeckers, Thrashers, and Quail, just to name a few, and there will be many others since we will be there during the spring migration period. We will also target raptors at the ranch’s raptor blind. Crested Caracara, Harris Hawk, and Turkey and Black Vultures frequent the raptor blinds at the ranch.
Lodging will be on the refuge. We have 6 dorm rooms, each with 2 twin beds. If you have a non-photographer that would like to join you. They can join you for an additional $700.
Cost of Photo Tour: $1200.00 per photographer A $500 deposit is due at booking, with a balance of $700 on or before March 14th.
(Please email me for the non-photographer option.)
NON-photographer solo $850
NON-photographer with photographer $700 sharing the same room
Includes:
- Lodging at the Welder Wildlife Refuge Guesthouse for 3 days and 3 nights.
All meals will be catered, and non-alcoholic beverages will be available during your stay.
midday photographic Instruction and editing tutorial, so bring your laptop.
all applicable taxes.
Does not include:
Transportation to and from the ranch. (unless prearranged)
Alcoholic Beverages (Bring your own; there is a fridge to put all drinks in.)
Gratuities are appreciated but not required.
Our itinerary will be very similar each day, but workshop information will be different with some other opportunities.
Early rise with a light breakfast and coffee in the dining room; get to the blind before sunrise.
Return after the morning shoot at approximately 10 am for breakfast.
Evening blind, we will get to the blind at around 3 p.m.; we can go earlier if it’s not too hot.
Free time to review images and then meet back for lunch and editing or photo tips. Last night, together, we reviewed images of everyone who wanted to participate. We will then take one of my images and have everyone edit it in their own way or follow me as I edit it. After everyone is done, we will share to see what we all come up with since everyone has their own style!
Night sky
If we have a clear sky, we will do a nighttime photo workshop to learn how to take Milky Way photos with stars and light painting.
We are limiting the number of photographers to 6 so you can get our full attention and have unlimited exclusive access to the blinds during your stay.
History of the Welder Wildlife Refuge
Robert H. (Rob) Welder had a uniquely rich family ancestry consisting of a diversity of peoples that immigrated to North America. His ancestors, and the countries from which they originated, included the Welters (Bavaria), de la Portillas (Spain), Powers and Hughes (Ireland), and Traylors (France). Mr. Welder’s great-grandfather, Franz Welter, immigrated here in 1830 with his wife and their five children. Franz and his family lived in New Amsterdam until 1833, when they joined the Beales and Grant Colony to head for Texas to settle along the Rio Grande. Later, his two sons, John and Tom, would change the family surname from Welter to Welder.
The 59-person Beales colony was led by empresarios Dr. Charles Beales and Dr. James Grant. They, along with the Welder family, embarked from New York on November 10, 1833, on the schooner Amos Wright and anchored at El Copano on the Texas coast on December 11, 1833. El Copano is located within 12 miles of the Welder Wildlife Refuge.
Franz Welter’s son, John Welder, was Robert H. Welder’s grandfather. John accumulated approximately 100,000 acres of land in south Texas, mostly through the purchase of land grants. In 1850 John married Dolores Power, daughter of Dolores de la Portilla and Colonel James Power, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Dolores de la Portilla’s father, Felipe Roque de la Portilla, was born in Spain and immigrated to New Spain around 1786.
In 1807 Felipe Roque de la Portilla was living in Matamoros, Mexico, when the Mexican governor of Texas established a civil settlement program on the Texas frontier to ward off foreign penetration. In return for premium lands, de la Portilla agreed to make a Texas settlement at his own expense, thus inaugurating the empresario system of colonization in Texas.
The Rob and Bessie Welder Wildlife Foundation and Refuge are located about 10 miles northeast of Sinton, Texas, on the lands deeded along the Aransas River in the original 1834 land grant to Felipe Roque de la Portilla.
Cancellation policy
You can register any way you like, just so I get your information. You can use the online registration or email, either to register or just ask a question. Registration is done on a first-come, first-served basis, so register early to secure your space. A deposit of $500 is required to reserve your space, and full payment is due on March 14th, 2024. Enrollment is limited in our workshops, so once you have been accepted, your participation is important to us. We are counting on you to attend. If you must withdraw from a course, we must receive written notice of your cancellation and then apply the following refund policy: We do not make refunds on workshop fees. We do not make partial refunds for unused portions or services of a workshop for any reason whatsoever. If we are able to fill your space in the workshop, we will give full credit to another workshop. If we are not able to fill your space, we will issue a 50% credit towards a future workshop.
We can accept no responsibility for losses or additional expenses due to delays or changes in the services to be provided. We reserve the right to change our arrangements should conditions necessitate, or to cancel any aspect of the workshop due to exceptional circumstances.
In the unlikely event that we need to cancel a workshop, we will refund all monies paid, in full. Notification of our cancellation will be made via either a telephone call or an e-mail to you at least 14 days prior to the beginning of a workshop, unless there is an emergency. We cannot be responsible for phone messages and e-mails not being received in a timely manner due to your service providers. We cannot be responsible for non-refundable airline tickets that are unused or for other travel arrangements because of a workshop cancellation. All workshops have a minimum participation level that must be met, or the workshop may be canceled.
We are not responsible for any fees associated with non-refundable air travel, and we highly recommend the purchase of travel insurance. We use https://www.insuremytrip.com/
Liability Waiver
All participants will be required to sign a liability waiver before beginning a workshop. As there is always an element of risk in any adventure associated with the outdoors, participants must read the liability release form carefully. The participant’s signed/dated release will certify that said participant is physically fit and capable of participating in outdoor photography exercises in field locations and is fully and completely aware of any associated risks created by field locations and weather.
Weather
The more, the better, at least as far as the photography goes. Workshops will not be canceled, and no refunds will be made due to weather; we will not be responsible for any additional costs that may be incurred by weather delays or cancellations due to weather, flight delays, or other. Participants should come to the workshop prepared for all weather conditions.
Smoking
We prefer that you do not smoke; however, if you must, please abide by the following guidelines. Smoking is not allowed in or near vehicles, during instructional sessions, during group meals, or at other times when in close quarters with other workshop participants.