Internationally renowned master photographer Freeman Patterson will visit South Africa in March to conduct his famous Namaqualand photo camping tour, together with top nature photographer Frank Krummacher of Johannesburg.
I’m looking forward to joining them. We start the seven-day photo camping tour at Namaqualand’s Kamieskroon Hotel, well known for its country hospitality, before heading for the Atlantic coast, where we will camp at Boulder Bay for three nights.
A Canadian, Freeman’s love affair with South Africa began decades ago – he ran his first master classes here with the help of local photographer Colla Swart in 1984 – and his coffee-table book, Namaqualand: Garden of the Gods, is a photographic classic.
Colla, a widely recognised nature a photographer, is now retired and the hotel is run by her daughter and son-in-law, Maryna and Helmut Kohrs. But Freeman still likes to visit. ‘Sit long enough on the hotel stoep and you’ll meet the important people in South Africa,’ he once told Maryna. If you want to up your game as a photographer, Freeman says you need to care – passionately – about things. ‘In my view, no amount of technical knowledge and competence is, of itself, sufficient to make a craftperson into an artist. That requires caring.’ The famous nature photographer says our ability to be creative depends on the health and well-being of our biosphere. ‘Creation and creativity are inextricably linked.’
The central core of his work involves abstracting visual elements in order to recognise their particularity. His master classes help his students to see in new ways, combining, and creating integrated ‘wholes’ into arresting images.
Frank is equally passionate about nature photography and, I’m glad to say, a Nikon man. He’s a co-founder and lecturer at the College of Digital Photography in Johannesburg and you can read his blogs at www.frankkrummacher.codp-network.co.za.
I’m looking forward to spending time informally with these masters. Having their input on your photos is an invaluable opportunity for anyone serious about their photography. While there will be short, informative presentations at the hotel about the photo opportunities at the sites to be visited, there will be no formal lectures, providing for extended shooting time and one-on-one interaction. I hope to see some of Getaway’s readers there.
Dates: 9 – 15 March OR 18 – 24 March 2012
Cost: single accommodation R11 200; shared accommodation R10 300
Contact: Kamieskroon Hotel tel 027-672-1614, email [email protected], www.kamieskroonhotel.com
To see a selection of Freeman’s beautiful images, go to www.freemanpatterson.com
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