Hello everyone: CELEBRATE SPRING AT CLEVELAND METROPARKS "NORTH COAST NATURE FESTIVAL" Celebrate spring with Cleveland Metroparks "North Coast Nature Festival," a free, weekend-long event for nature lovers, beginning Friday evening, April 27 through Sunday, April 29. The event features a variety of programs and activities for novice to experienced nature enthusiasts, and includes the weekend "Nature Show" at Rocky River Nature Center in Rocky River Reservation in North Olmsted. In addition to the "Nature Show" activities, visitors have the opportunity to enjoy two Special Evening Presentations on Friday night, April 27 at 7 and 9 p.m. and Saturday night, April 28 at 7 p.m. The Friday evening presentation (at 7 p.m. and repeated at 9 p.m.) features nationally-known Nature Photographer Rick Sammon with "Exploring Digital Photography." Sammon will share his photos from around the globe, including some that have appeared in his 27 books and thousands of newspaper and magazine articles. For every image, Sammon will share a photographic technique, PhotoShop tip or his photo philosophy. After each presentation, Sammon will conduct a question-and-answer session that is more like a "photographer's happy hour" and gives visitors a great opportunity to meet Sammon up-close. Sammon: Rick Sammon has published 27 books, his latest trio: Rick Sammon's Travel and Nature Photography, Rick Sammon's Complete Guide to Digital Photography and Idea to Image. He is host of the Digital Photography Workshop on the Do It Yourself (DIY) network and a guest host of the Canon Photo Safari on the Outdoor Life Network. He writes for PCPhoto, Outdoor Photographer, Shutterbug, and Layers magazines. Sammon has produced 7 interactive DVD's for photographers and Adobe Photoshop/Photoshop Elements users for his co-founded site rickspixelmagic.com. Each year, he travels the globe in search of new images and gives more than a dozen photography workshops & presentations around the world, including the Arctic, Antarctica, Africa, Bhutan, Brazil, Galapagos, India, Indonesia, Nepal, and Papua, New Guinea. The Saturday night presentation at 7 p.m. is entitled "Play on Birds" and features Sharon Stiteler, aka "The Bird Chick," and her non-birding husband, Bill. "Play on Birds" is a sketch comedy show written and performed by both Sharon and Bill Stiteler that lovingly pokes fun at birds, bird watching and bird feeding. Popular sketches include: "Bird and Chain" (birding with your non birding spouse), "What Birders Think They Look Like, What Birders Actually Look Like," and "Birds with Dirty Names." Stiteler: Sharon Stiteler was given a Peterson Field Guide to Birds when she was seven and snapped! She tried to flee destiny in a brief career with Universal Exports, but has worked in the birding industry since 1997. She has run a wild bird store, been an optics rep, and now leads birding tours, keeps a blog and appears on radio and television as "The Bird Chick." Stiteler has two books City Birds/Country Birds and Disapproving Rabbits both due out this year. Both of the evening presentations are free. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and seating is limited for both. Guest speakers featured on Saturday include: Mike Durkalec of Cleveland Metroparks on "Fish of the Rocky River Watershed" at 10:30 a.m., "Snakes, Turtles, Lizards, and Frogs of Ohio" with Norm Damm of the North Ohio Association of Herpetologists at 12:30 p.m., "Exploring Digital Photography" with nationally-known photographer Rich Sammon at 2 p.m., and "Attracting Birds" with "The Bird Chick" Sharon Stiteler at 4 p.m. Speakers featured on Sunday include: Mike Durkalec of Cleveland Metroparks on "Fish of the Rocky River Watershed" at 10:30 a.m., "Bird Banding as a Tool to Study Ohio Birds" with regionally-known bird-bander Tom Bartlett at 12:30 p.m., "Peregrine Falcon Soap Opera - 'Life & Times of the Peregrines in the Midwest'" with "The Bird Chick" Sharon Stiteler at 2 p.m., and "Snakes, Turtles, Lizards, and Frogs of Ohio" with Chuck Voracek of the Northern Ohio Association of Herpetologists at 4 p.m. Mini-seminars each day are also offered on "Digital Nature Photography" with Ritz Camera at 11 a.m., "Birding Optics" with Eagle Optics at noon, "National Geographic Handheld Birds" with Heidi Stelmach of Cleveland Metroparks at 1:30 p.m., and "Imagination Arts: Games!" with Kristen Boyesen at 3:30 p.m. Additional presentations will take place outside at the near-by Trailside Amphitheater, and include: Perry Peskin local author of "The Search for Lost Habitats" Saturday only at 1:30 p.m., Walt Sturgeon on "Wild Mushrooms, a Wild of Wonder at Your Feet" Sunday only at 1:30 p.m., Bob Kehres of Ohio Prairie and Nursery at noon, and live animal programs presented by Medina Raptor Center (Saturday) and Lake Erie Nature & Science Center (Sunday) at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. The Festival's "Nature Show" is on Saturday, April 28 and Sunday, April 29 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., both days. The Show features nature art/photography exhibits and sales, exhibits of nature-related organizations and other nature-minded vendors. It also includes a wide variety of presentations by guest speakers, hikes for all ages, live animal presentations, children's activities, a 'Native Plant Sale,' and more. The "Nature Show" features nature art/photography exhibitors/vendors, exhibits of nature-related organizations and other nature-minded vendors, including: photographer Rick Sammon (Saturday only), photographer John Orehovec, Deep Brook Nature Photography, Eagle Optics, RS Photos, Schoolhouse Woodcrafts, Valleywood Farm & Studio, Wild Birds Unlimited, Wild Things in Wood, Wildlife Art, photographer Robert Beck, painter Mary Ryan, Begin Designs, Blissful Beads, Cash for Critters, Nature Quilts, Imagination Arts, Matt & Pappo Stone Sculpting, Smith & Hawken, Ohio Prairie Nursery, EarthWords Nature Shops of Cleveland Metroparks, Western Reserve Wild Ones, Cleveland Metroparks Institute of the Great Outdoors, Black River Chapter of Women in the Outdoors, Las Gralarias Foundation, Northern Ohio Association of Herpetologists, Northeast Ohio Sierra Club, SW Camera Club, Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, Medina Raptor Center (Saturday only), and Lake Erie Nature & Science Center (Sunday only). Rocky River Nature Center is located at 24000 Valley Parkway in Rocky River Reservation, north of Cedar Point Road in North Olmsted - just off the I-480/Clague Road exit (westbound) and I-480/Columbia Road exit (eastbound). For more information and a complete list of speakers and activities, visit clevelandmetroparks.com or call 440-734-6660 or 216-635-3200. Experience the rebirth of spring at the "North Coast Nature Festival" of Cleveland Metroparks - part of your life, naturally! -30- This information is available on Cleveland Metroparks website: www.clevelandmetroparks.com. The media can retrieve this press release from the "Press Room" icon location. ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. 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