Spirit of Place: San Miguel de Allende

with Sal Taylor Kydd

October 7 – 11, 2024

Package Price $2995.00

International Deposit $1500.00

Course Description

This workshop invites you to explore the rich cultural heritage of San Miguel de Allende and capture its essence, energy, and unique character with your camera. Sal Taylor Kydd is known for her emotive photographic style, and she guides participants in developing their own artistic vision and storytelling abilities.

As we visit sites of cultural and visual interest, we explore the concept of “spirit of place” and how it influences the way we perceive and photograph our surroundings. You are given ample time to develop your own distinctive style, sharpening your observational skills and your eye for details, textures, colors, and patterns. We capture these elements through composition, lighting, and perspective while exploring how the play of light and shadow evokes mood, depth, and dimension.

Working with models we delve into different storytelling techniques and create compelling visual narratives that reflect the essence of San Miguel de Allende. We also engage in constructive group discussions so you can receive valuable feedback from Sal and fellow participants.

As you learn about series development, sequences, and juxtapositions, you gain insights into your strengths, areas for improvement, and ways to continue developing your photographic voice. You finish the workshop with a cohesive body of resonant visual stories that go beyond documentary to capture the ethereal quality of place.

Additional Information

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

Advanced Amateurs, Professionals

What You Should Know:

Working knowledge of digital workflow, basic familiarity with photography principles, and manual mode on your digital SLR, mirrorless camera, or advanced compact camera. Participants must be able to download and select images using image editing software for class sessions.

Special Notes:

Participants should plan to travel to San Miguel no later than Sunday, October 6. Workshop check-in will be on Monday morning, followed by breakfast and a brief orientation. The workshop ends on Friday evening with a final dinner and image presentations.

Visit the San Miguel Campus page on our website for details on accommodations, meals, transportation, and more.

Enrollment for this San Miguel workshop is limited to 10 participants.

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.

Participants should be able to engage in moderate outdoor exercise for up to an hour or more at a time including walking on uneven terrain such as cobblestone walkways and roads, dirt, and loose rock.

Policies:

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

Accommodations:

For participants wanting to stay at Hotel Posada de la Aldea, double accommodations are $440 per person for 6 nights, Sunday through Friday, (for couples taking workshops and friends traveling together), or $830 per person, single accommodations for 6 nights, Sunday through Friday. Additional nights at the hotel can be arranged for participants; please discuss needs with the Administration Office in Santa Fe.

Package Price INFO:

$2,995 (USD) includes tuition, breakfast Monday through Saturday, lunch Monday through Friday, final dinner on Friday, and model/location/materials fees if applicable to the class. Hotel accommodations are not included in the package price; see details above.

about

Sal Taylor Kydd

Sal Taylor Kydd is a Maine-based photographic artist and writer who uses various photographic media in a personal narrative that explores themes around memory and belonging; combining her poetry with alternative processes of photography and object-making.

Sal’s fine art photographs have been exhibited both domestically and internationally, including the UK, Barcelona, San Miguel De Allende, Portland, Boston, and Los Angeles; and she has been featured in numerous publications, including Shots Magazine, Don’t Take Pictures, Lenscratch, Diffusion Annual, and The Hand.

Sal has self-published a number of books combining her poetry with her photographs. Her books are in private and museum collections throughout the country including The Getty Museum, MOMA, Bowdoin College, The Peabody Essex Museum, and the Maine Women Writer’s Collection at the University of New England. Sal’s latest book, Yesterday, produced by Datz Press, is a limited-edition book of poems and photographs that explores our sense of loss around the pandemic of 2020.

Originally from the UK, Sal earned her BA in Modern Languages from Manchester University in the UK and has an MFA in Photography from Maine Media College in Rockport, where she now lives with her husband and two children.

Website: saltaylorkydd.com