David FitzSimmons
David FitzSimmons is an award-winning free-lance photographer and writer. He photographs and writes for various magazines, including Outdoor Photographer, Popular Photography, Professional Photographer, and Shutterbug. His calendar credits include titles by BrownTrout and Barnes & Noble. David’s publications include Curious Critters, Curious Critters Volume Two, Curious Critters Marine, Curious Critters Ohio, Curious Critters Michigan, Curious Critters Florida, Curious Critters Illinois, Curious Critters Indiana, Curious Critters Missouri, Curious Critters Texas, Curious Critters Maryland, Curious Critters North Carolina, Curious Critters Virginia, Animals of Ohio’s Ponds and Vernal Pools, and Salamander Dance. These books have sold over 150,000 copies and won 13 national book awards, including IBPA best first picture book (2012) and best picture book (2016).
Before becoming a freelance author, David taught for over twenty years, first as high school English teacher and then as a university professor, having instructed at Ashland University, Ohio State University, and Cornell University. He holds a Ph.D. in English from Ohio State, with a specialty in narrative theory—investigating the components of storytelling—something that influences his photography and writing.
One of six Sigma Pro photographers in North America, David presents seminars and workshops to a wide variety of audiences, from public school, college, and university classes to photography groups and civic organizations. His works have been exhibited at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, the National Center for Nature Photography, and the Telluride Photo Festival.
David regularly visits elementary schools, teaching children about nature, writing, and photography. One major focus of his work is helping connect children with nature through reading.
To see more of David’s work and to know more about seminars and photo workshops, visit www.fitzsimmonsphotography.com.
To learn more about David’s award-winning picture book, Curious Critters, visit www.curious-critters.com.
“Curious Critters: From Portraits to Picture Book”
Join Sigma Pro photographer David FitzSimmons for a fun-filled presentation of beautiful and bizarre CURIOUS CRITTERS. Learn how David turned his mesmerizing animal portraits into four traveling exhibits, numerous magazine articles, and a children’s picture book series that has won nine national book awards and sold over 100,000 copies. After explaining the history of the project, David will talk about the techniques, challenges, and purposes for photographing creatures against white backgrounds. Hear stories of animal antics and see amazing images, including sea life from his latest book,
“CURIOUS CRITTERS: Marine.”
“Curious Critters How-To: Producing Your Own Animal Portraits”
Learn the secrets of producing high key animal portraits just like the award-winning Curious Critters photo series. Understand the techniques, challenges, and purposes for photographing creatures against white backgrounds, and participate in a Curious Critters animal photo session with LIVE animals. Everyone will get a chance to photograph critters such as turtles, lizards, rabbits, or other Curious Critters, learning lighting, posing, and post-processing. A session with live animals to work with.
“Photographing Birds Like a Pro”
Join Sigma Pro photographer David FitzSimmons for a bird photography extravaganza, learning professional secrets for creating stunning avian images. Learn how light and the landscape enhance bird photography, and practice tracking techniques and creative compositions. Try out a variety of Sigma loaner lenses, including Sigma’s legendary long telephoto zooms. Plus ~$1,000 in door prizes!
“Macro Photography: Little Worlds, Lots of Wonder!”
Learn how to produce extraordinary close-up images of plants, animals, and other small subjects. Understand how to choose the best subjects, select equipment, and create award-winning compositions. Sigma Pro photographer David FitzSimmons will share his time-proven macro field techniques and talk about best lenses, accessories, and software for making your macro images. See plenty of examples, from wildflowers to wildlife. David will then narrate how he uses his macro magic to inspire photographers to connect with nature through digital photography.
“Waterfalls and Wildflowers”
Learn how to photograph one of the most spectacular features of the natural world—waterfalls. Learn what lenses to use, how to control exposure times to create smooth and silky cascades, and what angles and compositions work best for every kind of waterfall. In addition, practice macro photography on a variety of spring ephemeral wildflowers. Workshop includes classroom sessions and field shoots. Sigma will provide loaner lenses in popular mounts.
Business of Nature Photography
“Building a Successful and Profitable Photography Business”
“Entrepreneur” and “Photographer”—two words that in today’s business world must go together to be successful in the photographic world. Learn from Sigma Pro photographer David FitzSimmons what it means to build a successful, goal-oriented, and inspired business that highlights entrepreneurship and creative photography. Hear stories of what works and what doesn’t as David narrates his twenty-year journey in the visual field. See examples of projects that succeed, resources to take you to the next level, and ways to leverage one success to another.