Recap: Destination Dubai 2017 - The Experience

It really has been quite some time since I did a proper recap of a photography workshop here. Not due to the fact that there weren’t any last year but more due to the fact that things were on a constant move in 2017. I was chasing and realizing goals, dreams and basically reassessing many things in my life. Not to say that my photography and styling workshops and retreats aren’t part of my goals. They most certainly are. Nowhere else am I challenged to think out of the box and to be creative while planning such a workshop or retreat. Nowhere else do I meet incredibly talented and creative people who strive to go after their own goals and find inspiration when they sign up for these events. Nowhere else do I get to work and partner with brilliant and extraordinary people who fall in step with me to provide the best possible experience for all who take part.

Rome Workshop 2016 | The Serenity of the Sabina Hills

Earlier this year in May, I flew south towards Rome for my first workshop this year. Together with one of my most cherished friends and workshop partners Jeanne Horak-Druiff we were going to host and instruct a signature food photography and styling retreat just a stone’s throw away from Rome in the serenity of the Sabina Hills. Sabina's landscape is a tapestry of olive groves, vineyards and ancient hilltop villages, rich in medieval architecture and tradition. The images in this post will envelop you and capture you in the charm this region offers.

Dubai Workshop 2015: Buzzing with Energy!

Dubai this time had a very different aura to it, compared to the past years. For the first time I felt as if the city had a flow, it seemed to groove to a distinct vibe – almost as if after years of searching Dubai had found its character. The city proudly projected a balance it has seemed to have found and this balance and groove was also characterized in the workshop I recently held in Dubai.

Riverside: London Photography and Styling Workshop 2015

London, always such a bustling and hip place, was the location for my second workshop this year. I always love coming here for short visits – perfect to soak up the energy of the city. While London is very much about urban dynamism, I also love the open-wide spaces, leafy escapes and the riverside hideouts this city offers. The perfect place to give just the right beat to one of my workshops.

Imperial: Vienna Photography & Styling Workshop 2015

What a few months these have been! It seems I have hardly sat still long enough to really feel … still. I’ve been loving the movement of the past several weeks especially as I have just completed two workshops. First up in April was wonderful Vienna, a city that in all its poise and ease has something vibrant and full of life to it. The impulse the city gives is imperial and baroque yet there is a touch of simplicity and an uncomplicated aura that one is impressed by surroundings and feels relaxed by the atmosphere.

Dubai Workshop 2014: Modern Classics

Dubai is forever changing! Evolving, progressing, growing – if it’s always for the better is debatable but often there are changes and concepts emerging that really excel. In a city where superlatives are found at almost every corner finding something that really carries that WOW-effect can be hard. Often, for me it is not the mega glitzy or glamorous that stuns in Dubai – it is the passion, the professionalism and the honesty of the people involved in projects and ideas that carries a valuable seal.

Workshop: Helsinki 2014 - The Heat is On!

No two workshops are ever the same. Each one seems to come with its own set of rules, dynamics and chaos. Each one has different challenges and other highlights. When one thing works for one workshop by no means does it mean it will work for the next one. One sells out within days the other takes weeks. I have not yet figured out all the math or the algorithm of how this works and I probably never will. But one thing is for sure planning the workshop keeps me and my partners always on our toes.

Venice Workshop: Inspiration on the Strada del Prosecco

[Stunning Valdobbiadene] 

There is a time and place for everything and those are the times when everything falls into place just perfectly. It did not take very long after our collaboration in the London workshop last year for Jeanne and me to get back in the saddle to plan the next one together. We are a well functioning team and we had a very clear idea of how and where the next workshop would be.
With the gracious team of Nino Franco supporting us things glided off to a smooth start.