With the simple instruction, "learn to see," Pat and Emi Kanan connect you with the treasures of Tuscany: small villages and farms, grand gardens and villas, charming hilltowns, picturebook wineries and antique olive mills, the jewel city of Lucca, clifftowns hanging over the Mediterranean, majestic cypress trees and tiny wildflowers.

International acclaimed photographers Pat and Emi Kanan have traveled and photographed the world for over 25 years, concentrating on the Old World, including Italy and Tuscany. Their passion for travel and photography has resulted in award-winning photographs, in feature stories on television and in print, and in numerous commissions for homes and businesses. The work hangs in galleries around the world.

Their teaching style is based on their warm and enthusiastic personalities and the encouragement they give photographers to balance technical basics with creative experimentation. Pat and Emi’s workshop will concentrate on composition, simplicity and the ability to capture those rate moments in time, every time. Even if it means climbing a tree to find the perfect shot.

Workshop Activities

Your schedule will be a mix of days spent "at home" at the farmhouse Selva surrounded by the large wine and olive oil estate, and other days on excursions chosen with your artistic eye in mind.

"At Home"

At Selva, your home for the week, you will be surrounded by a wealth of photographic opportunities: vineyards and olive groves, the baronial villa and unrestored rustic farmhouses, gardens and rambling roses, small shrines and imposing churches. You are welcome to use the estate as a canvas for your art.

"Away from Home"

Excursions outside the estate transport you further into the beauty of Tuscany:

• Lucca, with its Medieval center surrounded by Renaissance walls, houses a Roman amphitheater, cobblestone streets, the richest collection of Romanesque churches in Italy, shaded piazzas ideal for sipping cappuccino or enjoying a gelato while you watch Italians stroll by.
• Baroque villas and gardens, with statuary, grottoes, follies, limonaias, classic flowers, herb gardens, designed by the greats such as Le Notre.
• The drama of the Cinque Terre, with colorful towns perched on rock faces over the Mediterranean, tiny fishing boats, and vineyards and orchards growing vertically on steep terraces.
• Beautifully landscaped wineries and olive groves where you can taste both wine and olive oil, while keeping your eye open for exceptional photo opportunities.
• And more . . .

Periodic review and sharing sessions, accompanied by aperitivi and hors d’oeuvres, help to focus on your goals for the workshop.

Other Kinds of Artistry

Meals during the workshop are prepared in the Tuscan style, and you’ll enjoy making your own pizza on our traditional pizza night.

Cooking classes directed by our Italian chef introduce you to the artistry behind the delicious restaurant meals you’ll enjoy as well as the local specialties prepared at Selva. It’s hands-on, up-to-your-elbows participation in preparing dinner, and there is a role for everyone even if it is only putting your hands around a glass of wine!

Some evenings present the opportunity to attend a special event, an artist’s exhibit, a concert in the Duomo, or a local festa.

Web site

For examples of Pat and Emi’s work, visit their web site at www.doorstotheoldworld.com. To contact Pat and Emi about course content or equipment, write them at plkanan@comcast.net.