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September 29 – October 3, 2026
The timing of this 5-day night photography workshop is especially unique this year. This 5-day workshop will capture the Milky Way over iconic Fall Colors of the Colorado Rockies and combine your night images with moonstrikes and moonlight.
For more than a decade, Brad Goldpaint has developed a unique approach to night photography, centered around ‘Capturing the Milky Way with Moonlight.’ This method moves beyond isolating the sky and instead focuses on natural illumination, where moonlight reveals foreground detail, texture, color, and depth that would otherwise remain hidden in darkness. Unlike our shorter Fall Color Workshop, this experience is intentionally designed around utilizing moonlight, while capturing the Milky Way.
Spanning over 1.6 million acres, the Gunnison National Forest is filled with rugged peaks and alpine meadows and large aspen groves that come alive in the fall. For a short window each autumn, these groves ignite in a fiery display of golden hues, deep reds, and alizarin crimson, creating a stunning transformation. As twilight fades, the landscape transitions into glowing autumn scenes where golden aspens, long shadows, and illuminated terrain become the foundation for nighttime compositions. Each night Moonstrikes take place after sunset, providing a rare opportunity to capture autumn’s spectacle combined with the Milky Way and the night sky.
During this 5-day workshop, we will shoot from a variety of locations, including wide-open overlooks, quiet aspen groves, and panoramic viewpoints of the Colorado Rockies. We’ll head out before sunset to capture soft light filtering through the trees and to combine rich colors with long shadows across the landscape. Once Earth’s shadow meets the horizon, we’ll turn our attention to capturing the night sky, featuring moonlit mountain peaks and the setting Milky Way.
Two 4-hour post-processing tutorials and a 65+ page in-depth workshop booklet are designed to develop your editing workflow and bring your images to life. Our classroom-style tutorials walk you through our workflow using Adobe Bridge/Lightroom and Photoshop, while the booklet details every step of the process, ensuring you can refine your images long after the workshop ends. We will cover RAW adjustments, exposure blending, panoramic stitching, star trails, and more.
September 29 – October 3, 2026
8 Participants
2 Instructors
$3895
EASY
We’ll be very close to our vehicles
Waning Moon
80 – 50% Illumination
8K – 10K feet
“Two passions of mine are wilderness travel and experiencing the drama of a night sky. I combine my passions with photography by teaching night photography workshops to participants of all skill levels.”
“I love to wander and explore! I’m looking forward to sharing my passion for the night sky, wilderness and wildlife while helping people understand that you don’t have to fear the wild side of our planet!”
To provide you with the best learning environment possible, we limit our group size and NEVER BRING OUR OWN CAMERAS to a workshop.
This 5-day workshop begins with a 3-hour introductory class at an indoor facility in Crested Butte, CO. We will have a number of in-field photographing opportunities during the workshop, in addition to two 4-hour post processing ‘classroom style’ sessions. This workshop will focus on capturing fall-color foliage, camera settings, panoramas, distant abstracts of aspen groves, the night sky, and much more. As part of your introduction, you will receive an updated copy of our 65+ page workshop booklet with step-by-step instructions about all phases of post processing for personal reference. During all field work, we will follow “Leave No Trace” principles to minimize any impact on the fragile, alpine environment. With over 65 topics you will:
We encourage you to visit our ‘Workshop FAQ’s’ page for required equipment during your workshop, itinerary examples, and much more. We’ve also listed additional info below pertaining to this new workshop experience.
We HIGHLY RECOMMEND bringing a 24-70mm f/2.8 and a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. See the Workshop FAQ’s page for more information regarding renting your equipment.
We HIGHLY RECOMMEND arriving 2 days prior to the workshop start date to acclimate to the elevation.
Weather is more predictable this time of year. Temps will range from 80° – 30°F. Make sure to BRING proper rain gear, a large down/synthetic jacket, and thermals to stay warm at night.
Morning:
10:00 AM – 3-Hour Introduction
A workshop syllabus, post processing booklet, and liability waiver will be provided to each participant at this time.
1:00 PM – Lunch/Rest
Evening:
4:30 PM – Departure
7:00 PM – Sunset Shoot
8:00 PM – Night Sky Shoot
10:00 PM – Return
Evening:
4:30 PM – Departure
7:00 PM – Sunset Shoot
8:00 PM – Night Sky Shoot
10:00 PM – Return
12:00 PM – Post-Processing Tutorial (4 hours)
5:00 PM – Group Dinner
Sunrise:
4:45 AM – Departure
7:00 AM – Sunrise Shoot
8:00 AM – Return/Rest
Evening:
4:30 PM – Departure
7:00 PM – Sunset Shoot
8:00 PM – Night Sky Shoot
10:00 PM – Return
12:00 PM – Post-Processing Tutorial (4 hours)
5:00 PM – Group Dinner
We leave our cameras behind to keep our focus entirely on YOU.
Your workshop is about your interests, your growth, your images, and your experience. By not shooting, we’re able to dedicate our full attention to guiding each participant, offering hands-on support, all in a fun, safe environment.
This commitment sets our workshops far apart from the rest, ensuring each one of our participants has our undivided attention.
A total of 8 participants may attend this workshop.
Our workshops cover every aspect of successfully photographing the night sky. You’ll learn to scout locations amongst the Colorado Rockies, master camera settings for low-light conditions, learn to use moonlight to enhance your foreground, and capture the Milky Way all during our 5-day instruction.
We will also dive into post-processing techniques to produce print-ready images in Adobe Photoshop. During both of the 4-hour post-processing sessions, we will spend time reviewing the entire 65+ page post processing booklet, and we’ll take time to show you how we would edit your own images.
This workshop is rated EASY. We will remain close to our vehicles during all in-field instruction.
Due to the nature of outdoor photography workshops, we cannot offer refunds for weather-related events. We ask all participants attending our workshops to ‘come a day early, stay a day late.’ If rain is forecasted during our scheduled outings, we may offer additional shooting time. We do not offer refunds for government shutdowns and other uncontrollable factors. However, we do our best to accommodate your needs with flexible itineraries where possible. For detailed information on cancellations, rescheduling, or other terms, please review our Terms & Conditions.
Fall Colors in Colorado Photography Workshop: September 29 – October 3, 2026
$1,947.50
*Must be 18 or older to participate. Prices do not include meals, accommodations, camera equipment, transportation, or incidentals. A 50%, non-refundable deposit is required to reserve your space for the workshop. The remaining balance is due 90 days prior to the scheduled workshop start date. Please pay the balance in full by July 1, 2026, or your space may be forfeited. Please read our terms & conditions for more info.
Participants are responsible for their own meals, accommodations, and transportation, which are not included in the workshop fee. For hotel accommodations, we recommend booking in the Crested Butte, CO area. The workshop’s classroom sessions will take place at an indoor facility. We’ll provide a detailed itinerary well in advance to help you plan your arrangements.
I have taken Goldpaint workshops since 2012, and each time I come away with more night photography skills. The addition of Evie in 2025 as co-instructor is a total win. They teach with patience and clarity, and they make it fun for all. Those who take the challenge will embark on a remarkably rewarding journey.
The Fall Colors in Colorado workshop was the best night time workshop I have attended. What made this particularly worthwhile and exciting was the team of Brad and Evie. Together they made this workshop the best. Both are truly passionate nighttime photographers who are excellent educators.
I recently took my first Brad Goldpaint workshop in the Colorado Crested Butte area. Brad and Evie Wilder were amazing instructors! They did not bring their cameras, so their focus was dedicated to the participants. I was able to take in what I needed to learn to plan, shoot, and process these types of images. I look forward to the next one!
If you have additional questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us by sending an email to info[at]goldpaintphotography.com.
Goldpaint Photography, LLC operates under a special use permit on the Gunnison National Forest. This institution is an equal opportunity provider. Drones are not permitted during the workshop.