Destination Norway

Photograph Norway's majestic fjords, accessible cities and quaint villages

© Arlene CollinsThis workshop is conducted by NORDphotography www.nordphotography.com, where its director Elisabeth Aanes will be our guide. Our adventure starts in Oslo, where we spend two days photographing this very accessible city. Situated at the base of the Oslofjord, Oslo is a cosmopolitan city with art galleries, historic museums and a vibrant nightlife. In the summer the locals live outside frequenting its many cafes and parks. Oslo is an ideal location for you to perfect your street photography.

We then travel by train to our home base Gammel Kleppe farm located north of Oslo near the town of Otta. Gammel Kleppe is one of Norway's best-preserved farms from the Viking era and will immediately take you back in time, with its historical atmosphere. The farm is situated on top of a hill with breathtaking views over three major mountain ranges, Jotunheimen, Rondane and Dovre.

At the farm formal classes will cover various techniques for producing dramatic landscape photographs and where you will learn how to light an environmental portrait using wireless compact flash units. Afternoons and evenings are reserved for demonstrations and for working on your shooting projects.

Our next destination is the small town of Flam located alongside the Sognefjord, the world's longest and deepest fjord. The name Flam, means "little place between steep mountains". This region provides many photographic opportunities such as, riding the Flambanen train to photograph the surrounding scenery or take a hike up the mountain for a different vantage point of the town or cruise the fjord and finish your day in town photographing Flam's residents.

A short drive from Flam is Solvorn. This region has two rugged national parks, the Jotunheimen National Park know for its mountains, waterfalls, rivers and the Jostedalsbreen with its glaciers. Each park offers diverse scenery for you to photograph. After two days in this area we make our way back to Gammel Kleppe Farm, where we conclude our adventure with a final critique and farewell dinner.

With Elisabeth as a resource, you will gain access to events, activities, subjects and locations usually only familiar and primarily accessible to the local population.

Who Should Attend

This workshop is for serious intermediate and advanced photographers who have a working knowledge of their camera and want to perfect their street photography and landscape photography skills. This is an opportunity to work closely with local Norwegian photographers while developing a new body of work. Participants should be motivated and capable of navigating in a foreign cultural.

Required Equipment

Participants should bring their camera, lenses and laptop computer, all instruction manuals, flash light for night shooting, notebook and writing utensil, and optional but highly recommended a tripod and a flash unit.

Travel

Participants should plan to arrive in Oslo on Saturday May 26, 2012. In Oslo we spend out first three nights at the Rica Hotel. From May 29 to June 3 we are located at the Gammel Kleppe Farm, Flam and Solvorn. On Monday June 4 we return to Oslo at 2:40 pm. Plan to depart Norway either that evening or the following day. If required you are responsible for your hotel on June 4th. See the itinerary for the travel details.

Visa
U.S. citizens are exempt from obtaining a tourist visa to Norway.

WORKSHOP FEE

The workshop fee is $5,100 for a single room and $4,550 for a shared room, and includes all accommodations, workshop classes, round trip transportation from Oslo to the Gammel Kleppe Farm, all meals at the farm, transportation to and from Flam and Solvorn, and our guides and location assistance.

Not included in the fee are meals in Oslo, Flam and Solvorn, international travel arrangements, including flights, visas if required, airport transfers, personal expenses and medical and trip cancelation insurance.

A $600.00 deposit is required to secure your place in this workshop, payable through Maine Media Workshops. You will then receive an email from NORDphotography with a link to their PayPal service, where you pay the balance of the workshop fee.

Nordphotography requires a minimum of 7 participants for this workshop to run. If for some reason we are not able to reach our minimum number of participants, the workshop will be postponed/canceled and you will receive a full refund of money paid. We ask that you do not book a ticket to Norway until NORDphotography has confirmed that the minimum number is reached. Enrollment is limited in this workshop, Once you have been accepted your participation is important to us - we are counting on you to attend. Space in this workshop is limited as the Gammel Kleppe Farm has a small number of rooms.

For more information, contact either:
Arlene Collins: studio@arlene-collins.com
Elisabeth Aanes: post@nordphotography.com

Itinerary

U.S.  Participants Schedule

Fri. May 25 Depart the US for Oslo, Norway
   
Day 1   Oslo      Rica Hotel
Sat. May 26 Arrive in Oslo and check into the Riga hotel
   Early evening group orientation meeting followed by dinner

Day 2   Oslo       Rica Hotel
Sun. May 27  Morning class and afternoon city walking tour, and own your own     explore the Ibsen Museum, Munch Museum, Henie Onstad Art Center,
   The Fram Museum - The Polar Ship Farm and the DogA - the      Norwegian Center for Design and Architecture, lunch & dinner on     your own and evening group photography shoot  (B)

Day 3     Oslo       Rica Hotel
Mon. May 28  Morning class and spend the day shooting in Oslo and explore its harbors many attractions such as the Nobel Peace Center, the Town Hall, the Castle and stop to photograph along the Aker Brygge walkway. In the afternoon continue exploring such sites as the OCA - Office for Contemporary Art Norway, a foundation created to exhibit contemporary Norwegian art, Vigeland Sculpture Park, the Kon-Tiki and Viking Ship Museums. Lunch and dinner on your own (B)

Day 4  Oslo - Otta     Hotel Gammel Kleppe Farm
Tue. May 29 Depart Oslo at 2:17 pm via train for a 3 hour ride to Otta,
   then it is a 30-minute bus ride to Vågå and Gammel Kleppe Farm      Evening group dinner and orientation meeting (B & D)

Day 5  Vågå       Hotel Gammel Kleppe Farm
Wed. May 30 This morning we have class and we will review your work from Oslo, after lunch and this evening you have free time to photograph in the local countryside. (B, L &D)

Day 6   Flam       Hotel Flam
Thu. May 31 This morning we depart the Gammel Kleppe Farm for a scenic drive over the mountains to Flam. On route we will be stopping to photograph this amazing landscape. We will stay the night in Flam. (B)

     
Day 7 Flam - Solvorn      Hotel Walaker
Fri. June 1 Flam is a charming town, located by the Sognefjorden the longest fjord in the world. Around the Fjord you can photograph from several vantage points such as from the Flambanen train, or hike up the mountain, or from a cruise ship and still have time to practice your environmental portraiture in town. After spending most of the day exploring and photographing in Flam we then take a 2-hour drive to the town of Solvorn, where we will spend the night. (B)

Day 8 Solvorn - Vågå      Hotel Gammel Kleppe Farm
Sat. June 2 Flam is a charming town, located by the Sognefjorden the longest fjord in the world. Around the Fjord you can photograph from several vantage points such as from the Flambanen train, or hike up the mountain, or from a cruise ship and still have time to practice your environmental portraiture in town. After spending most of the day exploring and photographing in Flam we then take a 2-hour drive to the town of Solvorn, where we will spend the night.

Day 9 Vågå       Hotel Gammel Kleppe Farm
Sun. June 3  today is our final day at the farm and after breakfast students will edit their work and prepare for our group show. This evening is our farewell dinner and party. (B, L & D) 

Day 10  Våga - Oslo  
Mon. June 4   11:38 am depart Otta for our train ride to the airport/Oslo. 
   2:40 pm arrive Gardermoen Airport
3:10 pm arrive in Oslo (B)

NOTE: you may have to overnight at the airport hotel or in Oslo on June 4th for an early morning June 5th flight to the U.S.

Accommodations

Oslo: The Rica Hotel www.rica.no
Gammel Kleppe Farm http://english.gardshotell.no/index.php?p=21-21-19
Flam: The Flam Hotel http://www.flamsbrygga.no/en/
Solvorn: The Walaker Hotel http://walaker.com/Default.aspx?tabid=5258

The above is subject to change.

Terms and Conditions for Destinations Workshops

1. Reservations & Payments

A deposit as indicated on the registration page is required to confirm your reservation for the workshop.  Final payment in full is due 45 days prior  to the date of departure for your workshop.  Maine Media Workshops + College (“Maine Media”) reserves the right to cancel a reservation if full payment has not been received by the due date.

2. Cancellations

All cancellation notices must be received in writing and will become effective as of the date of the postmark, or upon receipt of an email providing notice of cancellation. If you provide written notice of cancellation  60 days or more prior to the departure date for your workshop, your deposit, and any additional payment, will be refunded in full, less an administration fee of $55.00. If you provide written notice of cancellation less than 60 days prior to the departure date for your workshop, your full deposit will be forfeited; any additional funds paid to Maine Media for the workshop will be refunded.  No refunds of any amount will be made to persons who (i) fail to provide written notice of cancellation, or who (ii) begin a workshop, but fail to complete the workshop.

3. Basis of Rates

All prices are quoted in U.S. dollars; all payments must be made in U.S. dollars.

4. Insurance

It is strongly advised that you purchase Trip Cancellation, Baggage, Emergency Medical Evacuation, and/or Accident and Sickness Insurance Protection. Camera equipment, computers, and baggage are carried entirely at the owner’s risk. Maine Media shall have no responsibility for any lost, damaged, or delayed property, or for an individual student’s medical needs, accidents, injuries or illnesses.

5. Itinerary Changes

The itinerary for your workshop is subject to change without prior notification.

6.  Passports and Visas

A valid passport is required for all travel. You are required to notify Maine Media as to the nationality under which your passport is registered. If you are a U.S. citizen, Maine Media will notify you if your destination requires a visa.  Non-U.S. citizens are required to contact the appropriate consular office for entry requirements for their workshop. Participants are responsible for obtaining their passports and visas. To participate in the workshop, you must have a passport that is valid until at least six months after the date on which your trip is scheduled to be completed.

7. Medical Issues

All participants must be in good health.   You must advise Maine Media of any health condition, physical condition, or emotional or mental condition that may require special attention or that may adversely impact the other participants in your workshop. All students are required to complete a “Waiver of Liability” form and submit it at the time of registration.  This document may be found on the course description page.

8. Liability Waiver

Every participant is required to sign Maine Media’s Waiver of Liability before departure for their workshop.   Click here to download.

9. Responsibility & Photography

To ensure a safe photographic experience, you are required to obey local customs and be considerate when photographing people or sensitive locations.  The faculty member for your workshop has the right to expel any person from the workshop for behavior that is in violation of the law; that is disruptive; or that compromises the group’s safety or enjoyment.  No refunds will be made to any person expelled from a workshop. Maine Media shall have no obligation to pay any costs incurred by a person as a result of that person being expelled from a workshop. 

Sign and Return Waiver Form