Photography Workshop: On Location in Northern Portugal

Barbara Nelson Photography presents …

A PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP IN NORTHERN PORTUGAL

Editor’s note: I am pleased to share with our readers this information about an upcoming photography workshop on location in northern Portugal. It is produced by Barbara Nelson, an accomplished photographer and journalist who has traveled the world to capture the essence of the places she visits with inspiring photographs of natural beauty, urban landscapes, street scenes, iconic landmarks, unexpected events, and ordinary people going about their daily lives. I had the pleasure of meeting Barbara a few years ago when our paths crossed in Italy as she led a workshop through Emilia-Romagna.

Lisbon street scene — Photo by Barbara Nelson

Here are some highlights you can expect to experience if you join Barbara and international photography educator, Terry Abrams, in their Portugal Photography Workshop.

Capturing the essence of northern Portugal

By Barbara Nelson

Workshop dates: June 17 – 28, 2018

Iconic Lisbon tram — Photo by Barbara Nelson

Join us to be inspired by the sights and scenes of northern Portugal and be challenged to capture your perspectives in photographs during the workshop. We will often have unique access to people and places as we travel from Lisbon to Porto, ending our workshop in Santiago de Compostela (in the Galicia region of Spain)

Itinerary Highlights

Lisbon street performers — Photo by Barbara Nelson

• We will meet in the capital city of Lisbon, staying for 3 nights in the historical section of the city (the only part that was left standing after the 1755 earthquake).  This district still retains its Kasbah-like layout with winding and steep lanes and stairways. Here you will also see captivating street life scenes and wonderful views of the Tagus River.

Boats on the Douro in Porto — Photo by Barbara Nelson

• From there, we move north to Porto, whose picturesque historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There will be many photo opportunities here, but the city is also a wonderful base for our side trips that include:
  

  Terraced vineyards of the Douro Valley — Photo by Barbara Nelson

  • • the intricately terraced vineyards of the Douro Valley (the birthplace of port wine), visiting vineyard owners, old villages and the people who live there, and a 9th-century monastery
    • the Alto Minho area to visit at least one of the old transhumance villages
    • a traditional village of indigenous people with a large weekly market featuring local handicrafts and products
    • Barcelos Market, visiting fishing villages on the Atlantic coast along the way.

Portuguese woman at the market — Photo by Barbara Nelson

• On our way to Santiago de Compostela, we will spend time photographing around Viana do Castelo.
• The workshop ends in the historic, medieval town Santiago De Compostela, famous for the destination of all who are walking the Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James). Workshop participants are free to spend personal days here or return home.

Santiago de Compostela Cathedral — Photo by Barbara Nelson

Workshop activities

In this photography workshop we learn new skills and practice known techniques for capturing the essence of places and people in this beautiful and historical region. This workshop is for students who can operate their cameras on manual exposure and who want to go further with their photography. The class will learn how to work with minimal equipment and maximum adaptability. We will work on analyzing the quality/direction of light, frame/compose the image, and anticipate the unfolding activity. We will practice in-camera techniques such as multiple-exposure in camera, black & white, HDR, and more.

The class is built on a schedule of photographing and critiquing with some downtime planned for organizing your images for review. We will be together photographing on some mornings from sunrise till late morning as well as afternoons, through the sunset, occasionally past twilight and into the early evening. The class will meet daily for discussions, to review work, and critique each student’s photographs — individually and as a group. The schedule will be flexible for special events, weather changes, and such.

A list of suggested equipment and other travel needs will be emailed to all in the class.

Restaurant in Lisbon’s old district — Photo by Barbara Nelson

For details and booking, visit Barbara Nelson Photography on the web.

Contact Barbara Nelson at bnelson2@earthlink.net