Food Styling & Photography Workshop Registration Open... Finally!

After yesterday's hiccup with Blogger and being forced to delay our planned registration date, I am finally here with good news. Registration is now open!



Just as a reminder... The workshop includes 4 days of cooking, styling and photographing food in a stunning manoir nestled against a stone cliff overlooking the beautiful Dordogne river. The workshop will run from Sunday evening, October 2 through Thursday, October 6.

The workshop fee of $1950/person covers 4 nights accommodations in a luxurious bed and breakfast, 4 gourmet breakfasts, 4 lunches, 1 dinner, transportation during the workshop, 3 days of hands-on instruction with Aran and 1 day of sightseeing in the area. There is a supplemental charge of $400 if a single occupancy room is requested; keep in mind these are extremely limited.

HOW TO REGISTER:

1. Send an email to: stephmodogetaways@gmail.com indicating your intent to register for the workshop. Please include the following contact information: name, mailing address, email address, blog/professional website, and your preference for either double or single occupancy.

2. If/when we are able to place you, you'll receive an email from us with a little paperwork for you to sign and return. After paperwork is completed, you'll receive an email from us confirming the good news (!!!). If you are not able to secure your spot at this time, we will be sure to add your contact information to a waiting list.

3. If you are able to secure a spot in this workshop, and receive an email from us indicating so, then we will pass along a PayPal address for sending payment. A full payment, at this time, is required to secure your placement.

4. A detailed itinerary will be issued to the 6 participants via email within 48 hours of registration.

Ready? I can't wait!

Postponing Workshop Registration Date

Dear readers,

Due to the technical issues that our blogging platform Blogger has been having the last 24 hours, Stephanie and I have decided to postpone the workshop registration date until tomorrow Saturday, May 14th at 11:00am PST, 2:00pm EST.

We were only granted access to our blogs approximately 20 minutes ago and were unsure if we were going to be able to post all the registration details, so we had to make the decision to postpone it until tomorrow.

You can read all the details for registration in my previous post (that Blogger deleted yesterday, which I was able to restore).

I am sorry for the inconvenience that this may cause and we will see you here tomorrow!

Update: My Food Styling & Photography Workshop in France

I am so excited to finally be able to announce more details on the food styling and photography workshop that I will be hosting in France's Dordogne region this upcoming October.

The feedback and reaction after the first announcement have been incredibly positive. I have received many emails from readers eagerly awaiting for more details and interesting in learning how to register for the workshop. Thank you all for your kind words and patience as Stephanie and I were finalizing details regarding lodging and the logistics of it all.



The workshop will be limited to 6 people, which will allow for me to spend one on one time with each participant and to create a relaxed learning environment.

The workshop will take place on October 2-5, 2011 at the Manoir de la Malatrie where attendants will stay. Each day I will discuss my own process of procuring, styling and photographing food. There will be visits to local markets and we will learn about local artisans.

The workshop includes 4 days of cooking, styling and photographing food in the beautiful manoir nestled up against a stone cliff overlooking a lazy river. The cost is $1950/person (based on double occupancy) and covers 4 nights accommodations in a luxurious bed and breakfast, 4 gourmet breakfasts, 4 lunches, 1 dinner, transportation during workshop hours, 3 days of full instruction, and 1 day of sightseeing in the area.

I will focus on my approach to food styling. Selecting and prepping ingredients, cooking and styling food for the camera, how to compose a shot, and how to communicate a story through props.

Then, I will discuss my food photography philosophy by understanding your camera's manual settings, how to find the best source of natural light, and how to manipulate it to create a mood.



We are happy to announce that registration will be open on Friday, May 13 at 11:00 a.m. PST (that's 2 p.m. EST). This is how registration will take place:

1. Right at 11:00 a.m. a post will go live indicating an email address where you'll need to send your intent to register. Please make sure you are online at this time if you are interested in attending this workshop as we are operating on a first-come-first-serve basis.

2. Once you hear back from us via email, you will be required to sign a liability form and return it to us via fax, email, etc.

3. Once payment is made and requested forms are signed, your spot will be secure. At this time you'll receive an email from us confirming the good news. If you are not able to secure your spot at this time, we will be sure to add your contact information to a waiting list.

4. A detailed itinerary will be issued to the 6 participants via email within 48 hours of registration.

You can also read the announcement on Stephanie's blog. She has been hard at work getting all the pieces of the puzzle together. Thank you Stephanie!

I hope you are as excited as I am!

Saveur Magazine 2011 Best Food Blog Awards

I am so honored and thrilled to know that Saveur magazine has nominated Cannelle Et Vanille for their 2011 Best Food Blog Awards in the Best Food Photo category.

The photo in question was this pear, apple and fennel salad that I blogged about back in November. It is one of my favorite recipes as well.

You can vote here. To vote, you must register first. Anyone in the world can register, but you must selected the United States as your country of residency (Saveur notify us that they are working on updating this form). Voting is open until May 12 and the winners will be announced soon after.

There are so many friends and amazing blogs nominated that, honestly, I am simply ecstatic to be listed amongst them.

Thank you dear readers and good luck to all!

A Free Food and Travel Photography Class with Penny De Los Santos

The Power of Food Photography from Penny De Los Santos on Vimeo.

Penny De Los Santos moves people.

If you love food and travel photography like I do, watch the video above and tell me this isn't the most inspiring piece you have seen in a while.

I get this way every time I get to spend time with Penny. I was lucky to have her teach a workshop here last year and ever since, she has become a close friend. She is a constant source of inspiration for me, both personally and professionally. I have seen the effect she has on others as well.

Everyone is swept away by her passion and commitment. I witnessed it last year at BlogHer Food where she received a standing ovation after her session. Remarkable.



And all this to tell you that you could also be a part of all this, and for FREE!

Penny is teaching a FREE 3-day class in Seattle beginning on May 13th at 10am PST (hosted by Creative Live). She is looking for a few audience members to attend the class so if you are interested, please watch her video or visit her post for more details. The class will also be live-streamed, so if you cannot attend in person, you could follow online.



This really is a tremendous opportunity and a gift to all of us. I hope you can join!

All images courtesy and copyright of Penny De Los Santos and cannot be used without permission of the author.

Announcing My Food Styling & Photography Workshop in France

And it is April already, which means there are only a few days left until my parents return back home to the Basque Country.

Where does time go?

It also means that all the new projects that I am really excited about this year are fast approaching. Yesterday, I turned in the second chapter of my cookbook. A sigh of relief and really looking forward to feedback from my editor.

And then, there is the France workshop!



It was a few weeks ago when Stephanie Brubaker of Stephmodo contacted me. "Would it be crazy if you hosted at workshop in our newly renovated maisonette in Dordogne?" she asked. "Crazy? How about fabulous!".

I am so excited about the opportunity to do a 3-day hands on food styling and photography workshop where we will be visiting local markets, cooking with local ingredients and then photographing it all. All in an intimate setting, which will allow all of us to really learn and explore.



The workshop will take place OCTOBER 2-5, 2011 in the Valley of the Five Chateaux. The number of participants will be limited, so stay tuned as we will have sign up information and more updates in the next couple of weeks.

Stay tuned!