Picture yourself in Salt Lake City

In last month's Journal, we provided an overview of Salt Lake City and the Sheraton City Centre Hotel, the site of the 2005 PSA International Conference of Photography. In the Journal in the months ahead, we'll tell the details of the conference schedule; describe all of the presentations, programs, and meetings; provide information on the feature presenters and their programs; describe the new Photoshop[TM] classes; and provide the conference and official hotel's registration forms.

This article describes the photo tours during and after the conference. The conference week begins on Sunday, August 28, 2005, with Photoshop[TM] classes and photo tours, and the conference concludes on Saturday, September 3 with the evening honors banquet. The conference week photo tours take place on Sunday, August 28; Monday, August 29; and Tuesday, August 30. You should note that, new at the conference this year, in addition to our photo tours, we will also be offering Photoshop classes in the mornings on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Since those attending the classes will not be able to go on our regular all-day tours, we will also offer afternoon tours, which will follow the conclusion of each day's Photoshop classes.

There will be three photo tours on Sunday--an all-day Salt Lake City tour, an afternoon Park City tour, and an evening Great Salt Lake dinner cruise. There will also be three tours on Monday--an all-day northern Utah sunrise tour, an afternoon northern Utah sunset tour, and another evening dinner cruise on Great Salt Lake. We wrap up our conference week photo tours with two tours on Tuesday--an all-day Alps of Utah tour and an afternoon Thanksgiving Point Gardens tour. Following the conference, Close-Up Expeditions will offer a 6-day post-conference photo tour and a 14-day post-conference photo tour.

Crossroads of the West Salt Lake City Tour

Our first photo tour of conference week is an all-day tour of Salt Lake City, Crossroads of the West. The tour takes place on Sunday, August 28 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The tour begins at Temple Square, where we'll attend the weekly national broadcast session of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Next, we'll tour historic downtown, the residential area known as the "Avenues," and the University of Utah campus. Then, we'll have a half-hour photo stop at This Is the Place Heritage Park, where Brigham Young and the Mormon pioneers entered the valley in 1847. Next on the tour is a 2-hour "lunch on your own" and photo stop in the downtown/Temple Square area. Then we'll take the short ride to Cathedral of the Madeleine, where there will be a 45-minute stop for photos of the church interior. Our "crossroads" tour finishes with a 2-hour photo stop at Red Butte Gardens, which feature 50 acres of gardens surrounded by pristine natural mountainside. For those who find it difficult to walk the garden paths, large "golf carts" with drivers will be available to "bus" people from one attraction to the next. The cost of the "Crossroads of the West" Salt Lake City Tour is $48.

Utah Olympic Park and Park City Tour

The Sunday afternoon tour departs the Sheraton City Centre Hotel at 12:30 p.m. and returns at 5:30 p.m. This afternoon tour starts with a ride through the mountains to Park City, where we'll make a 75-minute stop and get a chance to explore the shops, boutiques, and art galleries lined along Main Street. Then we'll board the bus and head to Utah Olympic Park for a one-hour and 45-minute photo stop. The Olympic Park is a U.S. Olympic training site and served as the venue for the bobsled, ski jumping, luge, and skeleton events at the 2002 Winter Olympics. The cost of the Utah Olympic Park and Park City Tour is $43.

Great Salt Lake Dinner Cruise

After the all-day or Sunday afternoon photo tours, you'll be able to relax with the Great Salt Lake dinner cruise. The dinner cruise will take place on both Sunday and Monday evenings, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. As our 65-foot excursion boat, the "Island Serenade," cruises out into the Great Salt Lake, we'll be surrounded by islands, have dinner on board, and view the sunset (at about 8 p.m.) and the city lights. Since the dinner cruise accommodates only a maximum of 46 persons, the dinner cruise will take place on both Sunday and Monday evenings. The cost of the dinner cruise is $74. You should note that we require a minimum sign-up of 30 persons each evening.

Northern Utah Sunrise and Natural Wonders Tour

Our photo tours on Monday start off bright and early in the morning with the northern Utah sunrise and natural wonders tour. Our itinerary will take us to three outstanding natural wildlife preserves, and we'll also make a photo stop at a national historic site. This tour departs from the Sheraton City Centre Hotel at 6:00 a.m.--sunrise is at 6:52 a.m.--and returns to the hotel at 5:30 p.m. You should note that this is an 11-hour tour, and about 4 hours will be spent riding the bus. Be ready for a long but rewarding day. This tour should provide great opportunities for nature photos.