Character of Place: San Miguel de Allende

with Sam Abell

Online registration for this program has closed. To check availability, find out about future dates, or if you would like further information, please call 505-983-1400 ext. 111. Also, get the SFW E-Newsletter for updates!

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Course Description

Documenting the visual character of the colonial city of San Miguel de Allende is the theme of this workshop. Accompanied and mentored by esteemed photographer and teacher Sam Abell, participants spend five days and nights intensely documenting the character—and the characters—of this much beloved city. Designed for advanced photographers comfortable working in cultures other than their own, this workshop offers participants the unique opportunity of working with Sam and exploring the concept of character of place.

Festivals happen almost daily at this time of year, and San Miguel de Allende is teeming with energetic photographic opportunities. From pre-dawn hours to dusk and then nightfall, the palette changes to a subtle golden glow as it illuminates the city and the rich culture of this jewel of a city.

Between numerous daily photographic outings, Sam conducts classroom sessions devoted to the principles of a well-seen photograph. He also closely analyzes each participant’s daily assignment images—in both group settings and in concentrated one-on-one sessions. Our shared goal: To deepen our understanding of how meaningful photographic essays are created.

Join Sam in the magical city of San Miguel de Allende this fall for a life-altering photographic experience and the only workshop he is leading for Santa Fe Workshops in 2023.

Additional Information

COVID-19 Update: For all in-person workshops and trips in 2023, Santa Fe Workshops highly recommends that all participants, staff, and instructors attending be up to date with Covid vaccinations (per definition of the CDC). For international trips, local laws will apply, so it is important that you confirm you will be fully vaccinated according to the countries on your trip.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

This workshop is only open to alumni of Sam Abell’s in-person workshops. If you have not studied with Sam at Santa Fe Workshops, his approval is required for admission.

What You Should Know:

Participants need to be technically self-sufficient, as this is not a workshop to learn how to use your gear or editing software. Participants must be able to download, select, and transfer images to their own jump drive for class each day.

Activity Level:

To get the most from your workshop experience, participants should be in good physical (mobility, stamina) and mental health. Come prepared for the high elevation of San Miguel de Allende, long days, and seasonal weather. You must be able to carry your own photographic and personal gear at all times, both on campus and on location. You are responsible for being open and honest about your physical fitness, and we reserve the right to remove you from the workshop if we find your fitness to be less than that which you have described.

Policies:

View Payment, Refund, Withdrawal, and Transfer Policies for this International Program.

Accommodations:

PLEASE NOTE: The hotel is currently at capacity and we are not able to reserve housing during this workshop at this time; please select 'No Accommodations' when registering. If you would like to be placed on a waiting list for a hotel room at Hotel Posada de la Aldea, please use the Comments field on the registration form. Details on housing are below.

For participants wanting to stay at Hotel Posada de la Aldea, double accommodations are $415 per person for 6 nights, Wednesday through Monday, (for couples taking workshops and friends traveling together) or $830 per person, single accommodations for 6 nights, Wednesday through Monday. Additional nights at the hotel can be arranged for participants; please discuss needs with the Administration Office in Santa Fe.

Package Price INFO:

$3,295 (USD) includes tuition, breakfast Thursday through Tuesday, lunch Thursday through Monday, final dinner on Monday, and model/location/materials fees if applicable to the class. Hotel accommodations are not included in the package price; see details above. The package price also does not cover additional meals and personal expenses such as air travel and shuttle from the airport.

about

Sam Abell

Sam Abell is a gifted and insightful teacher, an expressive artist, and a sensitive photographer who learned photography from his father, Thad Abell. Sam worked for National Geographic as a contract and staff photographer, and also as a Photographer in Residence. In 1990, Sam’s work was the subject of a one-person exhibition at the International Center of Photography in New York. Since then he has published three collections of his work: Seeing Gardens, Sam Abell: The Photographic Life, and The Life of a Photograph. In addition, Sam maintains a career as a writer, teacher, and lecturer on photography.

Get to know Sam in our Inspiration Series video »