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| Ireland's South-West: | September 12-21, 2010 | Places Available! |
"Thank you Peter for an excellent workshop experience!... You were very generous with your knowledge, extremely accommodating to the goals that I came with, and I will never forget the beauty of the Gougane Barra Valley!"
— Jennifer Cobble, USA
Join me and nine other Williams Alumni & friends on an unforgettable ten day photography workshop through Ireland's south-west where you will photograph some of the Emerald Isle's most dramatic and beautiful scenery. I'll introduce you to my favourite locations - famous and unknown alike. Along the way, there'll be plenty of opportunities to learn how to improve your own photography with ad-hoc lectures and one-to-one attention. Not to mention an introduction to the local culture and plenty of good craic!
My ultimate goal is for you to have a great time on the trip, get some fantastic photographs of stunning locations and most of all to go home having learned how to make better images for yourself.
If this sounds like something that you'd love to do - read on!
"Just wanted to say thanks so much for the workshop. It really helped me start to get my head around the technical details of the camera itself and the sessions with Lightroom have already helped me go from 'play-around' mode into real usage."
— Franklin Henderson, USA
As such, this workshop is targetted to a wide range of people. From the advanced amateur who is looking to refine his or her technique, to someone who has recently started to cultivate their passion and is looking for a guiding hand to master the technical and compositional aspects of the art.
In the evenings while enjoying a nice beer or a cup of coffee, we will discuss such topics as:
As well as all that there will be regular critique sessions in the evenings where we can look at what was successful and what wasn't about each other's images. These sessions are an invaluable tool in improving your photos as they show you exactly what you did wrong (and right!), allowing you to learn from your mistakes.
All meals are included. If you have a special dietary requirement you will be accommodated - just be sure and let me know when you make your booking.
Lunches will be taken on the road, either in cafés or as packed lunches/picnics.
Several of the places we'll be passing through are Gaeltacht areas where Irish is spoken on a daily basis, so if you have a cúpla focail you'll be able to try your hand conversing with the locals as Gaeilge.
This is the basic itinerary, and may change depending on the weather conditins. If the weather is particularly poor, we will spend time relaxing and critiquing images as well as holding a few classroom-type sessions on shooting technique and post-processing.
Day one: Fáilte romhat! We begin by meeting at Shannon airport. If you arrived the day before, I will collect you from your hotels. From there we will drive to our first location on the Loop Head Peninsula in Co. Clare. This is a place of dramatic seascapes - cliffs, sea-stacks and quaint villages. It is a short drive from Shannon and will give us a gentle introduction to the trip.
We'll take our lunch in the small town of Kilkee and then head to our next location - the Dingle Peninsula in Co. Kerry. This is a Gaeltacht area - one of the last few places where Irish is spoken on a daily basis. We will be spending two nights in this area, photographing Slea Head, Brandon Mountain, the Three Sisters and the Blasket Islands among others.
Overnight: Dingle
Day two: More of the Dingle peninsula and a chartered trip around the Blasket Islands with a short stop on the Great Blasket, weather permitting.
Overnight: Dingle
Day three: More of the Dingle peninsula with a second chance at the Blaskets trip if the weather didn't cooperate the day before. Head towards the Killarney area via the stunning Connor Pass. We will spend the rest of the day exploring the famous Lakes of Killarney and/or the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, the highest and most dramatic mountain range in the country.
Overnight: Killarney
Day four: We will spend the day continuing our exploration of the Lakes and the Reeks. We will also visit the stunning Black Valley near Kenmare, passing through the Gap of Dunloe. In the late afternoon we'll make our way to Portmagee on the other side of the Ring of Kerry. This is the jumping-off point for the spectacular Skellig islands, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Overnight: Portmagee
Day five: Weather permitting, we'll brave the 8-mile boat trip to Skellig Michael, definitely the crown jewel of Ireland's landscape. A jagged spire of rock thrusting out of the Atlantic Ocean, it is home to thousands of seabirds and, hundreds of years ago, to a small monastery inhabited by hardy souls who chose to live on what was then the very edge of the known world.
If the weather doesn't co-operate, we'll be exploring the Skellig Ring on the mainland which has more than its share of dramatic scenery.
Overnight: Kenmare
Day six: We will spend this day with a leisurely exploration of the Beara Peninsula, taking in the dramatic Caha Mountains and crossing the Healy Pass (a spectacular drive on a road which was built as a relief project during the Great Famine).
Overnight: Glengariff
Day seven: This day will see us exploring the wonderful Garinish Island. Garinish is a small sheltered island less than a mile from the picturesque town of Glengariff and has been painstakingly cultivated to form a series of formal gardens. This area has a micro-climate which allows various sub-tropical plant species to thrive here that can survive nowhere else in Ireland.
After an easy morning on the island, we'll head for my home area of Gougane Barra, a few miles inland. Gougane is a stunning glacial valley nestled on the Cork/Kerry border and is an important cultural and religeous location.
Overnight: Gougane Barra
Day eight: Beginning with a dawn shoot in the Gougane Barra valley, we will then drive to Three Castle Head at the end of the Mizen Peninsula. We'll take our time and photograph along the way, as it is a particularly scenic drive.
Three Castle Head is an area of spectacular seascapes with razor sharp rocks tumbling down to the Atlantic. In peaceful weather, it is picturesque. If the wind is blowing it's truly incredible to watch the water pounding on the rocks below.
Overnight: Crookhaven
Day nine: Staying in the Mizen/Crookhaven area we will have our morning shoot around Brow Head, looking down on the Crookhaven peninsula. Following this will be an easy drive along the South Coast, stopping at towns such as Schull, Baltimore and Goleen along the way before reaching our destination of Kinsale.
Kinsale is a beautiful harbour town, well known for its art and culture. We will photograph in and around the town in the evening.
Overnight: Kinsale
Day ten: After a morning spent exploring Kinsale town and harbour, we will begin the long drive back to Shannon airport for the mid-afternoon flights home.
Slán agus beannacht libh!
I have a passion for both photography and for teaching. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced photographer, I make sure to pitch my lessons at your level and to ensure that you understand what's being taught. My goal is for you to leave not just with great pictures and fond memories - but with increased confidence and ability too.
I teach year-round, both private and group workshops and courses - all on digital landscape photography. I also teach a Winter Study course on digital postprocessing techniques at Williams.
I won the Irish Professional Photographers Association's "Landscape Photographer of the Year" award in 2007 in both the portfolio and single-image categories, and have placed highly in several international photographic competitions.
I encourage you to visit my photo_course_testimonials page to see what my past students have had to say about me.
Accommodation will be two to a room. If you require a single room, there is an additional charge of $500.
To secure your place, a deposit of US$1,000 is required within two weeks of registration, the balance payable two calendar months before the start date of the workshop. If you have to cancel up to two months before the trip, you will get a full refund less US$350. Cancellations after that date will receive a refund less US$700. Cancellations within a month of the start date of the trip will only be refunded if a replacement for you can be found.
| Ireland's South-West: | September 12-21, 2010 | Places Available! |
