Tidepooling with Underwater Cameras!

Come take a look at underwater life in the tidepools at Beavertail State Park! Children will use prototype trunkCams, which let them poke a small camera underwater and look all around. It's a lot like snorkeling, but drier.

Who are you? What is this?  Hi! I'm Alex Hornstein! I'm an inventor and wildlife photographer with a specialty in marine megafauna (aka big ocean friends).  There are lots of wildlife photographers out there who buy fancy cameras and take beautiful photos, but there aren't many inventor photographers who build their own cameras to photograph wildlife in ways that no one else can.   That's what I like to do.

In addition to working with scientists, conservationists and science communicators, I spend a lot of time teaching and working with children.  I like to use the inventor part of my brain to take fancy, expensive hardware that scientists use to answer their own questions about life in the world, and turn it into something cheap & simple that a four year-old can use.  I'm interested in how we can develop individual relationships with the natural world around us, and how to use new and old techniques to explore, observe and understand what is going on in nature when we are not around.

trunkCam is a new prototype device I've been working on since ~september last year.  I designed it originally to film urban eels in Providence (ask me about urban eels!), and I found it to be a fascinating tool for filming all kinds of wildlife.  Workshops where I see how other people use it are really fun to do, and they help me make it better.

What to wear? It looks like the rain will stop before noon but it will still be a chilly spring day -- please dress accordingly. Children will be at the (shallow) edge of tide pools. It is *possible* to do this activity without getting muddy or wet, and we strive to keep all children clean and dry, but you know your kid best -- if you think you should bring a towel and a change of clothes, then do so.

What to bring? It's helpful but not necessary to bring a smartphone.  trunkCams use phones as viewfinders. We have a couple loaner phones, but if you would be up for installing an app and letting your kid use yours, that lets us operate more trunkCams/accommodate more kids

What age should my kid be?  I'm less worried about age than maturity level.  I think the question is, do you trust your kid to hold your phone near a body of water?

I'm running late!  I can't stay for the whole time!  I have LOGISTICS STRESS!  That's cool.  This is a very informal workshop and there is no need for logistics stress.  We are just hanging out with kids by tidepools.  You can call me at 401.688.0489 if you come late and can't find us.  It's fine to leave early.

What will we see?  Crustaceans, mollusks, fish and more! Check in the crevices for crabs and sea urchins, see how many sea anemones and periwinkles you can count. If you're lucky, you may see a sea star or octopus! Check out the gallery below -- these were all filmed with trunkCams in the last couple months

animals filmed by trunkCam