I promised larger images from our Happy New Year blog. Much of the website has been updated (but there is always more), so, let’s start with the first four pairs from our 2013 workshops. Don’t forget to click the link to read more after the second pair of images …

Arnie and I do not get to shoot a lot during our workshops. That is why we go two or three days ahead, not only to scout and make sure locations have not suffered some disaster since last year, but to have our own, quiet time to photograph.

We did our first weekend workshop right in our back yard, Durham, North Carolina, that abuts our town to the east. The workshop was called Through This Lens, in honor of our base at a great photo gallery and probably the only one between DC and Atlanta. There is a lot of wonderful rehab going on in Durham, so there is a rich combination of old, new, and amazing textures.

Arnie was drawn to the combination of reflections and reality on the side of a building and created this rich, visual palette.

I found textures and patterns in a snaggle of what looked like a bygone type of bed springs in an old building awaiting rehab..

We brought our first two groups to Cuba, Her People & Culture, and Arnie and I found it the most incredible place to photograph. What we read about Cuba does not hold a candle to the real deal. As Arnie says, “Whatever you read about Cuba is both true and false.” You really have to go there to understand this large, island nation. We were welcomed by all and through our contacts, had access to some fascinating locations.

I met this gentleman who sat on his throne with a dignity that belied the hard times he had experienced. He was a welcoming host and a wonderful subject.

As a car lover (me, too), Arnie did not want to do the standard, ho-hum images of 50s automobiles; he wanted to put them in context as a daily part of Cuban life.

Charleston, a Southern Belle is always a popular workshop, and this was no exception. with its old-world, gracious charm, plantations, and cityscapes, our groups always find much to photograph.

Our workshops are long, fun, and intensive, and one evening, one of the group said to the others, “Well, the light’s gone; let’s go get warm and eat.” Meanwhile, one of our participants stuck close and was amazed at the colors. She enjoyed tweaking her fellow students by showing them her images when we finally went inside!

All our shots were different (same place, different view), and this was Arnie’s. The colors displayed that evening were unusual and well worth braving the chilly, evening temperatures.

One morning, we headed off to one of our regular locations, and the early light was gorgeous. The slabs of pier, washed up on the shore, made this photograph for me and gave it a different look … not just another pretty postcard!

The Outer Banks of North Carolina are an easy drive for us. We head there twice a year for workshops, and usually once or twice more to see family and/or friends. Springtime on the Outer Banks has a different flavor from our fall workshop. The time of year is the obviously difference, but the seas are different, too.

It was chilly, but I was encouraging our group to chase the waves, to find one that had drama. I found one, and it is one of my iPad covers. I loved the power this one evoked.

Arnie has always been drawn to the bizarre, the different side of life. There is a flying saucer on the Outer Banks that always makes us laugh. Arnie interpreted it in true Arnie style.

Next: Part 2, including Europe…

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