Would You Attend a Workshop in Newfoundland?

**r.e.** · 22-Aug-2007, 11:42

I'm in the process of purchasing a lodge in Newfoundland and I'd like to know whether there would be interest if we offered photographic workshops.

Some background...

The lodge is located on the North Atlantic Ocean on the Bonavista Peninsula at the mouth of a salmon river. The film version of The Shipping News was shot nearby, so if you have seen the film, you have a pretty good idea of what the area looks like. Photographic subject matter includes extremely rugged coastline, sea stacks, fishing villages (including small ports that were abandoned due to a resettlement programme several decades ago), fishing boats, lighthouses, moose, whales (Humpbacks, Finns and Minkes), icebergs and sea birds (Bald Eagles, Puffins, Great Black-backed Gulls, Kittiwakes, Northern Gannets, Shearwaters and Black Guillemots). Activities, apart from going out to see whales, icebergs and birds, include fishing for salmon and sea trout (these are brook trout that spend part of their time in salt water), hiking (the Skerwink Trail is about three miles away and there are many other trails in nearby Terra Nova National Park), seak kayaking, scuba diving (wrecks and scallops) and cultural activities such as attending productions by Rising Tide Theatre: www.risingtidetheatre.com/

This web site contains information on the area as well as a map: http://www.thediscoverytrail.org/eng...ery/index.html

Newfoundland is in a unique time zone which is 1.5 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time. The lodge is about a 2.5 hour drive from St. John's, which in turn is a 3 hour flight on Continental from New York. Service from London is in a state of flux. There is currently a direct flight, which takes 5 hours, although it may soon be necessary to fly from London to St. John's via Halifax. One could also take the ferry (4-5 hours) from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia to Argentia, Newfoundland, and then drive. If one wants to visit the French islands of St. Pierre, Miquelon and Langlade, one can take a short flight from St. John's or a ferry from Fortune, which from the lodge is about a 4 hour drive down the Burin Peninsula, to St. Pierre. The ferry takes an hour.

If we offer photographic workshops, our intention is to engage first-rate leaders. The question is, would there be interest in workshops and, if so, what kind? How many days should they run? What is the optimum group size? What time of year? I'd also be grateful for information on what highly-skilled workshop instructors charge.

Thanks.

P.S. If the moderators conclude that this is a commercial post of the prohibited variety, they should of course feel free to delete it.

**Eric Rose** · 22-Aug-2007, 12:05

it's to bad it cost so darn much to get to the "rock". It's cheaper for me to fly to Thailand from Calgary than go to Newfoundland.

**r.e.** · 22-Aug-2007, 12:22

Eric,

Continental's web site just gave me a quote of $433, inclusive of taxes, for New York-St. John's return. I asked for a quote, at random, for a departure of Sept. 21 and a return of Sept. 30. Not dirt cheap, but perhaps not unreasonable. Flying to Newfoundland isn't quite the same thing as flying to Fort Lauderdale.

I should make it clear that this thread is exploratory. We happened to be on the Bonavista Peninsula two weeks ago, fell in love with the area and decided to buy the lodge on the spur of the moment. We haven't entirely decided whether to run it as a summer residence or as a lodge. If the latter, I thought that it would be interesting to float the idea of photographic workshops and see what the reaction might be.

**Peter Collins** · 22-Aug-2007, 12:53

No. It is not possible until I retire. That, at best, is three years away. The amount of time and/or money due to distance from Ann Arbor to travel by either car or plane preclude such a destination.

**David A. Goldfarb** · 22-Aug-2007, 12:58

I guess a major factor would be--who is leading the workshop, and is it a "workshop" or a "photo tour"?

I usually think the draw of a workshop is the instructor and the skills that will be covered, and the location is secondary. In the case of a photo tour, the location comes first, and if one learns something about photography in the process from the leader who is usually a professional photographer acting as a kind of tour guide/instructor, that's a bonus.

Occasionally I've signed up for an inexpensive "workshop" as an easy way to get access to a location--which is to say, a workshop that would have been better described as a photo tour. If I really want to learn something about photography, though, I'm willing to pay a bit more for a workshop with a skilled instructor, which I would regard as something more serious, and the location would be secondary.

**bob carnie** · 22-Aug-2007, 13:14

By attendig Foto3 you will come in contact with some very excellent teachers who could help you with some of your questions.
I have taken the ferry to Newfoundland and you are right it is a magical location.I do not see any problem with your dream of combining the property with good teachers to persue photography related courses.
I wish I had the scratch to do what you are doing.
good luck

**Michael Mutmansky** · 22-Aug-2007, 14:24

Well, sure, as a destination, I think NF is high on my list of places to see before the end. I spent time on CBI and wished I had the time to take the ferry over, but that didn't happen on the last trip.

I think that photo tours will be more logical, rather than workshops, as the destination is worthwhile on it's own, and it's a bit far reaching for a regular process/technique workshop.

Shipping News was a very enjoyable film, BTW. Well worth the time to watch for anyone who doesn't know what NF is like.

Here's another place that would make a GREAT workshop/tour/artist's colony...

http://www.primelocation.com/interna...GWDU999000184/

Anyone with $2.5M?

---Michael

**r.e.** · 22-Aug-2007, 18:08

I wholly agree that this is a place to make photographs rather than a place to learn about scanning or digital or wet darkroom technique.

I think that a workshop, or tour if one prefers, would be more about aesthetics. On a technical level I could see a workshop about macro.

That said, I know a couple of people who print for Magnum photographers, one in Paris and one in New York, and I know that they would love to come and hang out and maybe teach a bit. We'll see.

But fundamentally, Newfoundland is about being outdoors in a remarkable place, where one wakes up at dawn and is dead to bed by about ten.

Maybe it would be better to use the word retreat. I could see welcoming a group of photographers who are largely self-directed, but have a great place to stay, logisitcal support and the benefit of local knowledge and contacts.

I got some colour negatives back today (I'll get the rest tomorrow) that were taken with a Mamiya 7 and a 150mm lens that I purchased a few months ago from Ken Lee, They are photos of Humpback Whales, all at the minimal shutter speed of the camera of 1/500, and if I am reading the negatives right (I'll scan them tomorrow morning), I think that it just might be possible to photograph Humpbacks with a handheld 4x5. That would be very cool.

Thanks so much for the input.