This week I booked my first vacation for 2006. For the last year I have had my eye on several National Geographic Expeditions. The one I chose to attend first is their Photography Workshop: On Assignment in Tuscany, Italy.
I am scheduled to attend the Spring workshop scheduled for May 7 to May 13. The program is billed as
"..geared for amateur and serious photographers who want to learn the techniques used to capture and select the amazing images for National Geographic’s books and magazines. The workshop format features afternoon photo shoots in nearby scenic locations followed by morning edit and critique sessions reviewing photos taken the previous day."
We will operate in and around the medieval village of San Quirico near Pienza (shown above). My hotel accommodations are at the Casanova Hotel in the Tuscan Hills. A detailed day by day itinerary may be viewed here.
The National Geographic Expert that will be leading this expedition is Tomasz Tomaszewski. Born in Warsaw, Tomaszewski started his photographic career with Polish magazines and worked with Solidarity Weekly. He has published 11 articles in National Geographic magazine. His award-winning photos have also appeared in Stern, Paris, Match, Geo, Time, and the New York Times.
I seriously considered one of the Fall sessions as that is my favorite season of the year (and I have this impression that Tuscany is probably most visually stunning then). However, I plan to take at least 1-2 additional vacations this year and I would like those to benefit from whatever photography skills I am able to acquire from this trip in the spring.
I am excited to take photography, which has been a passing hobby to date, to another level. All I know is that I am going to have one hell of a Flickr posting when I arrive home from Italy.
Sounds like it’s going to be a fantastic time. You are so lucky!