I tried to sign up for this workshop back in December 2019, but it was already sold out. So I made my own trip to Joshua Tree in February. Then, in late February, I got a notification that a spot had opened up -- several people had dropped out over Coronavirus concerns, and I wasn’t about to pass up the chance.

I ended up attending the 2020 Joshua Tree National Park Black-and-White Infrared Intensive Workshop with Penelope Taylor. I’d been wanting a guided workshop in Joshua Tree for a while -- it’s so close to home, yet I’d never really spent much time exploring it properly.

This workshop introduced me to something I’d never tried before: getting up before sunrise to shoot landscapes in the pre-dawn light. We had some overcast days, but the soft, moody light made for some truly striking results. It’s a technique I’ll definitely be bringing to other locations.

Coronavirus -- later known as COVID-19 -- was in its early days, and no one seemed quite sure what to do. Twenty Nine Palms and Joshua Tree don’t have a lot of restaurants to begin with, and many were closed while we were there. The park visitor center and bookstore were also closed, and no one was manning the entry booths. We did hold some class sessions, keeping our distance as a precaution. Every afternoon, Trump and Fauci were on the news explaining the day’s developments -- this was the period when Trump would have twenty people crowded on stage shoulder to shoulder while telling everyone else to stay six feet apart.

Many of the students in the class, including the instructor, had flown in -- one from Canada and another from the UK. Airports were beginning to shut down while we were in session, and everyone was scrambling to figure out how to get home. The student from the UK spent most of his time trying to arrange an early flight and missed out on much of the photography. I was fortunate to have driven in from San Diego, so I stayed in the area a couple of extra days. When I left on Sunday, I had planned to drive out through Joshua Tree. I was able to get into the park, but a Ranger stopped me on the road and let me know they were clearing everyone out -- the park was closing by noon. Little did I know what the impact of that closure was going to mean for everyone’s activities for the next year and a half.