I don’t know about you guys but ever since the economic crisis hit in full force (and Tom lost his job) we are trying to look at ways to reduce the costs. Budget shopping is not my strongest point but there are other things you can do to reduce the amount of money spend on household items such as gas or electricity. A few of those are no-brainers maybe but I thought I’ll just give you a couple of recipes that will save you money on your gas- and electricity bill. (well maybe not straight away but in the long run it’s the small things that matter!)
Delicious slowcooker meal
The recipes shown here are golden oldies but it never hurts to repeat a few favorites right?
Read More »
The best French Toast ever
I’m feeling slightly stuffed sitting behind my desk right now typing these words… Stuffed because I have eaten too much and I should be moving around, burning off some of the just consumed excess calories but instead I cannot move… I just have to tell you about the most delicious French toast I have ever, ever eaten… And it was just mere minutes ago… Mere minutes ago when I had this life changing experience… Well ok maybe it wasn’t that dramatic, but it was definitely really really good.
Read More »
I can still vividly remember the very first international workshop I attended in 2011, not even that long ago. Sure I had gone to other workshops before, as I like to talk to like minded people and I feel I always come back from those workshops with new energy and bursting with ideas. People tend to ask me why I go so often. Being a photographer doesn’t mean that you’re done learning. You’ll always learn something new, however small it may be, and you meet all those wonderful new people!
Without those workshops I wouldn’t have met a ton of wonderful foodbloggers in person. Some of them have become really good friends, so that alone was worth the investment. And today, finally after a long time, I have some really exciting news to share with you …
For a while now we have been working behind the scenes on putting together an awesome workshop close to Amsterdam. As you might know I have been giving one day workshops on foodphotography and styling for a while now once a month with the fabulous Alex, but this time we wanted it to be a bit more international and a bit more extensive. Finding the venue location was almost a coincidence than anything else and it is the location that inspired us to do the workshop here in the first place!
Ever since Meeta and I first met at the Plate to Page workshop in Weimar a few years back, I’ve been wanting the opportunity to work together. Meeta is an amazing photographer, a fantastic stylist and lovely person too. Her blog ‘What’s for Lunch Honey” is world famous and has won many prices already. Meeta lives with her husband and son in Weimar, Germany, and we have since met a couple of times. I’m really excited that we will be – finally – working together for this workshop.
Our second instructor is Sandy Neuman for the blog Confiture de Vivre. Sandy also lives in Germany but her blog is all about her passion for France. I had the pleasure of meeting Sandy last year in Germany during another workshop and she is going to show her expertise in designing a beautiful table setting as well as being our kitchen manager for the two days.
It’s a half hour drive away from Amsterdam in a hidden green spot in my hometown, Almere. It’s so secret that I didn’t even know it was there until a few months ago. Our venue is appropriately called ‘The Green Secret” and has some beautifully newly build lodges to accommodate our group.
Below you can find the program of the workshop and details on how to sign up. The workshop is limited to 12 participants only so don’t wait too long!
Day one – Friday 27th September 2013
Brunch
Meet and Greet Brunch with mouthwatering Dutch delicacies in a relaxed atmosphere
Photography Fundamentals by Meeta Wolff & Simone van den Berg
Mastering the camera, natural light techniques, focusing, learning the techniques etc.
Styling Fundamentals by Meeta Wolff
Composition and placement, creating a mood/atmosphere, the right props, color, texture etc.
Styling/Shooting Demo by Meeta Wolff & Simone van den Berg
Styling / Photography session – Group work
Exercises
Enhancing your Images and Workflow management with Lightroom by Simone van den Berg
Welcome to the table by Sandy Neumann
Learn how to lay, set and create an elegant table using everyday material
Dinner: Amsterdam Calling
We’ll treat you to a potpourri of Dutch specialties, taking you through some traditional dishes and crossing-over to more modern interpreted dishes.
Day two – Saturday 28th September 2013
Trip to Organic farm
We will visit an organic farm & a market for an on-location shoot and to shop for lunch
Farm to Table – Lunch & Group work
Shooting a themed assignment followed by a light lunch of tarts, salads, sandwiches
Intensive work on assignment – Group work
Evaluation, discussion & critique on assignment
Constructive feedback, discussion and critique on exercises
Finale Wine and Cheese
Further details:
Ticket price: Euro 660
Includes:
2 day food styling, photography and designing sessions with Simone, Sandy and Meeta
1 night accommodation at the Groene Geheim Lodges
Friday: Meet & Greet Brunch and Dutch Speciality Dinner; Saturday: Farm to Table Lunch and Wine and Cheese
Snacks and beverages (includes alcoholic beverages) during the workshop
All material/equipment is provided for the shooting /styling sessions
Location: Groene Geheim Lodges, Almere
Website: Groene Geheim Lodges
Registrations here using the registration form
Limited to max 12 participants
Payment: Full payment upon registration, no refunds
Please Note: The instructors reserve the rights to modify the programme should the need arise.
And finally let me introduce my fellow teachers in a bit more detail, in case you don’t know them yet
Meeta
MEETA
Freelance food photographer, stylist and writer, Meeta K. Wolff’s blog. What’s For Lunch, Honey? has been nominated for several awards, including finalist in the Weblog Awards 2010 and 2011 for Best European Weblog and can also be found on the Times Online’s Top 50 Food Blogs. Her photography is represented by Wonderful Machine and has been featured and recognized in magazines and websites around the world. Her photography portfolio Meeta K. Wolff Photography (www.meetakwolff.com) offers an insight into her work.
Meeta is also one of the four creators and instructors of From Plate to Page, a series of hands-on and intensive workshops uniquely designed for bloggers and professionals to improve their food photography, styling and writing skills (www.platetopage.com).
Sandy
Sandy is a food blogger and food photographer, who lives in Jena, Germany. Her heart, however still resides in her „second home“ – South of France. She runs the blog Confiture de Vivre where she shares her passion for French inspired recipes, stories of extraordinary people and her approach to life. When she is not baking macarons or trying out new tart recipes you will find her meeting other creative people like her friends the butcher and the baker to create new sausages or bread.Sandy has a passion for decoration, loves crafting and has an entire room for foodstyling-props.She is currently working on the first issue of her e-magazine, called „Fruits Sauvages“, where she will reveal her secrets of hunting artisan treasures.*
Confiture de Vivre:
www.confiture-de-vivre.de/
I can’t believe it’s already more then a month ago since we came back from Laos and Cambodia… I still haven’t even edited most of the photos. Guess I’ve been a little swamped with other things since coming back! One thing I do want to share with you today is a beautiful new book by the fabulous chef Luke Nguyen. I only know mr. Nguyen through his performances in Masterchef Australia. (when will the new season start anyway?? I’m having withdrawal symptoms!) and I remember being impressed by his dishes and his easy and laidback manners. So when I learned there was a book out by the name of Greater Mekong and by his hand, I just knew I wanted it.
Read More »
Spring is in the air!
Sorry, sorry, sorry… I’m a little late with posting this months challenge, but as you might have guessed from the previous post I was juggling too many ideas and couldn’t decide which one would be best for April. Thanks for everyone’s great suggestions here, on facebook and on twitter! I’m pretty sure I’ve stocked up on ideas for the rest of the year at least.. 
Read More »
I need your help people.. My mind is going in all directions when it comes to a new theme for the photography and styling challenge, so I figured who better to ask for a new theme or topic then those who are likely to participate? So…. we’ve had a couple of themes already since I changed it from a Donna Hay Challenge to a more general challenge. Now is your chance to let me know what YOU would like to see as the topic next! Let me know by leaving a comment on the post and who knows we might just go with that theme for the next one!
Read More »
Appetizer
Asian
Bread
Breakfast
Desserts & other sweets
Healthy
