Not having set foot in Kilkenny city or county for over nine years it was a tad strange to find myself there, like a homing pigeon who had temporarily shifted its domicile, three times in as many months this year. What is the Universe trying to tell me? The first two trips were tenuously related: I was in Kilkenny city in late February with friends and I returned in March to collect a small piece of pottery I bought at an exhibition on that earlier trip.
Once I had collected the piece of pottery I wasn’t expecting to go back to Kilkenny, lovely and all as it is, any time soon. However I spotted a tweet about a photography workshop for bloggers and when I checked the link and read more about it, I knew it was something I wanted to do. And quelle surprise said workshop was to be held in Kilkenny. So back I went the Sunday before last to a delightful farm in Bennettsbridge a picturesque County Kilkenny village.
The workshop was given by kind and talented Suzanna Crampton. She welcomed us to her beautiful farmhouse with pots of tea and coffee and plate loads of biscuits. We started the day looking at some of her stunning photographs while she talked us through the principal elements of photographic composition. We then went outside to wander around the magical gardens surrounding the farmhouse, shooting images as we went, before returning indoors at around one o’clock for a delicious home-cooked lunch.
Lunch over we went back outside and Suzanna talked again about photography and we took more images practising what we had just learnt. We also got the opportunity to get up close with some friendly Zwartables sheep which Suzanna breeds on her farm. For information about this noble breed click here.
We finished the workshop indoors; we had tea, chocolate cake and scones while Suzanne gave us all feedback on our photographs. She was extraordinarily generous with her time given that the workshop was due to finish at four and it was closer to six before she had examined all the very many images we had all taken.
My brian is *not* sponge-like so I tend to take away just a few bite size pieces of information from classes and workshops I attend. Suzanna’s workshop was excellent and she gave us lots of helpful tips and info. Two things, I learnt, that stuck in my mind are: the desirability of taking lots of images of the same scene to increase the likelihood of getting just the right shot and the importance of patience in photography. I was also glad to have some revision on the rule of thirds (putting points of interest in a photograph off-center, at about the one-third marks from the top, bottom or either side, makes the image aesthetically pleasing).
Just Add Attitude 
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Hosting a photographic workshop in a farmhouse: what a brilliant idea. I bet the food was delicious. 🙂
Francesca, thank you for your comment. Yes, the food was delicious. The farm was beautiful, filled with ancient trees and paddocks with vistas of the mountains so it was a great place to take photographs.
What a wonderful day and you came away with really good information! The food sounded good too… 🙂
It was a great day. The food was really good, as was the tuition and it was nice to meet some fellow bloggers. 😉
Sounds like a very nice experience, B. And I totally agree, the importance of patience in photography cannot be stressed enough! 🙂
Stefano it was an excellent workshop and I was very pleased I went to it. And I definitely need to be more patient when it comes to photography! 😉
it sounds and looks like a wonderful day out
It was. Beautiful setting, check; excellent tuition, check; delicious lunch, check; the chance to meet interesting fellow bloggers, check.
Some wonderful photos here – love the one of the sheep 🙂
Thanks. The sheep were very photogenic! 😉
You clearly got a lot out of the workshop. The photos are lovely.
Thank you. I did get a lot out of the workshop including the realization of how much I still have to learn about photography. *sighs*
A lovely spot in the country, good food and learning something new…it sounds like the perfect day.
Karen, the farm was a peaceful and meditative place and as an added bonus I learnt a bit more about photography.
Fantastic! A beautiful locale with some useful learning attached. Perfect combination. 🙂
You have summed it up perfectly Kathryn.;)
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