Capturing Awe: A Summit to Start Your Journey in Weather, Volcano & Aurora Photography

More info about Capturing Awe

Join Girls Who Chase and internationally acclaimed photographers for a first-of-its-kind weekend dedicated to capturing some of the most awe-inspiring forces on Earth. Designed for all experience levels, this event provides the tools, knowledge, and inspiration needed to begin photographing weather, volcanoes and lava, and the aurora.

The journey begins with foundational development in chase preparation, forecasting essentials, and radar basics. Then learn expert techniques with specialized sessions in lightning, volcano/lava, and aurora photography, and build additional technique with an optional photo critique session. Capturing Awe is about connection, discovery, and learning alongside a passionate community drawn to discovering and photographing some of nature’s most powerful moments.

About Girls Who Chase education programs:

Girls Who Chase trainings offer foundational, operational and accessible information and training material for weather enthusiasts and photographers of all ages, experience levels and genders. GWC’s flagship annual training event “Spring Training” has trained thousands about severe weather preparedness and storm chasing since its inception in 2023, and is co-produced with meteorology education experts COMET’s MetEd program, who produce National Weather Service training programs.

Schedule

Speakers

SESSIONS

This event will offer three different session types:

Presentations: You'll gain knowledge on a variety of topics relevant to weather, volcano/lava, and aurora photography.
Interactive panel: You'll have the chance to connect with volcano/lava experts in a facilitated Q&A session.
Networking lunch: Connect with subject matter experts, other photographers, and weather enthusiasts in a lightly facilitated conversation over lunch.

SCHEDULE*

Below is a DRAFT schedule by topic (all times in CT - more details forthcoming):
Most sessions have 10-minute breaks in between, with an optional networking session over lunch

April 18, 10:00am -- Event kickoff

Weather forecasting info & resources for your photography

Let's chase: How photographers can prepare

Learn to use radar 101

Networking/informational lunch

Monsoon & lightning photography

Volcano/lava panel

Aurora photography, video & timelapse

7:00pm -- Day concludes

April 19, 11:00am -- Day begins

Optional photo critique session

1:00pm -- Day concludes

*Please note all times/topics/speakers are subject to change

TO ACCESS THE EVENT

This live event will be held on Zoom. A Zoom join/streaming link will be sent to registrants via the email you used to register approximately 48 hours prior to event start, and again the morning of the event. The event will go live promptly at 9:00am MT/10:00am CT on April 18, at the link you are provided. Please make sure you double-check the email address that you use to register for this event, as that is where you will be sent your access information and the post-event recordings!

All presentations and panels will be recorded, and a permanent access link to the recordings will be sent out shortly after the event concludes.

SPEAKERS & PANELISTS
*To read the full bio, click on a speaker's image

Mike Mezeul II

Mike Mezeul II is a Colorado-based extreme nature and landscape photographer. He is a Nikon Ambassador whose work includes documenting some of the world’s most powerful natural events, most especially volcanoes and severe weather. He has been featured internationally in outlets such as National Geographic, Science Magazine, BBC Magazine, and more.

Mike is also an experienced educator and leads workshops around the world, guiding photographers of all experience levels in dramatic and sometimes extreme environments.

Beyond the lens, Mike describes himself as a nature “nerd” with a deep connection to the outdoors and a commitment to storytelling and environmental appreciation.

Instagram: @mikemezphoto

Lori Grace Bailey

Lori Grace Bailey is a professional photographer with a passion for capturing extreme weather and extraordinary skies. Her pursuit of the perfect storm has taken her across the country, chasing supercells and tornadoes in the Midwest, towering dust storms in the Southwest, and rare atmospheric phenomena like sprites. Lori’s dedication to her craft results in vivid, evocative imagery that stands out in the world of weather photography.

In 2024, Lori was featured on CBS Sunday Morning in a segment exploring the science of lightning. Her work has additionally appeared in prominent publications and media outlets, including Cosmopolitan Magazine, Backpacker Magazine, and the “Tempest” issue of Flaunt Magazine. Her photography has also been featured in several books focusing on weather and lightning phenomena.

Lori is the director of Monsoon Con, an annual convention held in Tucson, Arizona, that brings together storm chasers, photographers, and weather enthusiasts to celebrate and learn more about the monsoon season and chasing the desert southwest.

Lori recently launched a podcast called "The Storm Before the Calm," which delves into the often-untold stories of thrill-seeking adventurers—storm chasers, extreme athletes, and boundary-pushing weekend warriors—who have faced life-threatening adversity.

Instagram: @lorigraceaz

Ulla Lohmann

Ulla Lohmann is an expedition photographer, documentary filmmaker, and explorer whose work has taken her into some of Earth’s most remote and extreme environments. She is an Ambassador for Canon, Manfrotto and Eizo, recognized internationally for her powerful images of active volcanoes, indigenous cultures, and wild landscapes. She is also an F-Stop Global Icon and Explorer’s Club Fellow, and has produced work for National Geographic, BBC, Red Bull Media House, and others.

Ulla’s passion for exploration began in childhood; at six, she wrote her first self-published book, and by eight she had taken her first photograph. Her curiosity about the wider world only grew; at 18 she won Germany’s prestigious Jugend Forscht science competition and used the prize money to finance a solo trip around the world—a journey that helped launch her career in journalism and documentary work.

Ulla’s explorations have taken her across Africa, the South Pacific, Papua New Guinea, the Andes, and Europe’s Alpine regions. She has documented extraordinary phenomena—from climbing the world’s highest active volcano, Ojos del Salado, in Chile to exploring deep into the craters of Pacific volcanoes.

In addition to editorial photography, Ulla is an accomplished filmmaker, with films and photographic stories featured on major broadcast outlets and at prestigious photo festivals such as Visa pour l’Image. She has published several books—including a National Geographic coffee-table book on the Dolomite Mountains—and actively engages audiences through multi-vision shows, workshops, and lectures worldwide.

Instagram: @ullalohmann

John Sirlin

John Sirlin is a photographer and storm chaser with over 30 years of experience in the field. He began chasing storms in Minnesota and the northern plains in the early 1990's and learned to forecast, target, and track severe weather, long before mobile radar and up-to-the-minute weather data was widely available. He currently leads storm chasing tours and weather photography workshops in the Great Plains and Desert Southwest.

Instagram: @john.sirlin

Vincent Ledvina

Vincent Ledvina is a professional photographer and aurora chaser based in Alaska. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in space physics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and sits on the U.S. Space Weather Advisory Group as its first-ever student representative.

Vincent’s research focuses on what causes auroral "substorms," and part of his work involves leveraging participatory science data from aurora chasers who can provide valuable insights into how particularly rare auroral phenomena are created.

Vincent is passionate about sharing his love for the northern lights with others. He runs an aurora photography workshop in Fairbanks and owns a northern lights tour company. He is also an expert in timelapse photography and real-time video recording of auroras.

Instagram: @vincentledvina

Bruce Omori

Bruce Omori is an international award-winning photographer and photojournalist best known for his dramatic and awe-inspiring images of lava flows, volcanic activity, and the dynamic landscapes of Hawaiʻi’s Big Island.

Born and raised in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, Bruce developed an early love for photography after receiving his first camera from his grandfather at about nine years old, fascinated by the idea that a photograph could “freeze a moment in time.” He began photographing volcanic eruptions in earnest in 2008, capturing the power and beauty of lava flows and other geological phenomena. He has spent thousands of hours documenting the activities of Kīlauea and Mauna Loa volcanoes—often from helicopters as well as ground positions—producing images that reveal both the destructive force and the creative energy of volcanic processes.

Bruce’s work has earned significant international recognition. His photograph “Volcanic Vortices,” capturing multiple steam vortices at a lava-ocean entry, won the top honor in the “Power of Nature” category of the prestigious Windland Smith Rice International Awards and was exhibited at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Another image, “Ribbons in the Sky,” depicting lava exploding in vibrant detail, also won a Windland Smith Rice award and was displayed at the Smithsonian.

Bruce’s portfolio additionally includes native Hawaiian wildlife, landscapes, and abstract compositions drawn from natural forms. He co-owns and operates the Extreme Exposure Fine Art Gallery with his wife, Sheryl, in downtown Hilo.

Instagram: @bruceomori

Viktoria Haack

Viktoria Haack is a globally-published, professional multi-genre photographer dedicated to finding profound connection in the world around her and to inspiring a reverence for the natural world through her work. She is a Nikon Canada ambassador and is regularly invited to serve as a judge in leading international photography competitions.

Viktoria loves to share her passion for photography with others and is an experienced speaker and educator. Originally from the UK, she has made British Columbia, Canada her home since 2007. She has a background in fine art and anthropology; this, combined with her love of the natural environment, brings a unique perspective to her photography. Viktoria’s ethos is to tread lightly, and observe and search out the subtle visual story within whichever photographic genre she is working. Her work covers the fields of landscape & nature, portrait, wedding, event, promotion, editorial, stock and photography education. Her versatility across multiple photographic disciplines continuously sparks new levels of creativity that inspire and excite her.

Prior to becoming a professional photographer, Viktoria worked in the nonprofit sector in both conservation and animal welfare.

Instagram: @viktoriahaack

Marco Di Marco

Marco Di Marco is a Sicilian visual journalist and photographer based in Reykjavík, Iceland. He began documenting the eruptions of Mount Etna in 2011 for local news agencies in Sicily, developing an early fascination with the dialogue between humans and volatile landscapes. After relocating to Iceland in 2018, he joined The Associated Press as a freelancer, and has been covering the island’s frequent volcanic eruptions and other major events for the global agency since 2021.

With an academic background in geology and volcanology from the University of Catania, Marco combines scientific insight with an instinct for storytelling, translating complex natural processes into visually compelling narratives. His photographs and videos have been published by leading international outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time Magazine, CNN, BBC, ABC, CBS, National Geographic, and The Guardian, among others.

His coverage of the 2023-2025 Iceland Svartsengi eruption was widely recognized, appearing in multiple Photos of the Year selections, including Time’s Top 10 and Top 100 Photos of 2024, The Washington Post’s Enduring Images of 2024, The Guardian’s Photographs that Defined 2024, The Atlantic’s Top 25 News Photos of 2024, The Economist’s Year in Pictures, and the Associated Press 100 Photos of 2024. His documentation of the February 2024 eruption earned AP’s Best of the Week, while the November 2024 event received an honorable mention.

Instagram: @marco.d.marco

THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS FOR THEIR SUPPORT OF THIS INAUGURAL EVENT!

*Want to pave a new path by sponsoring or partnering with us on this first-of-its-kind event? We'd love to hear from you at girlswhochase[at]gmail.com.