Kat Eye Studio

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Brontë Country

I’m in “Brontë Country.” The moors of Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre are very near the town of Hebden Bridge. A short drive away is the Brontë Parsonage, where sisters Emily, Charlotte and Anne lived and wrote their books. Today I went to visit this beautiful countryside, the Parsonage and the town of Haworth with my friend Rhiannon, who came down from Scotland for my visit.

It’s quite a sad story of the sisters Brontë. So much talent, and they all died so young. I think now that I’ve visited their home and seen the countryside, I need to read Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre again. There is something about having seen a place that brings a story alive for me.

On a happier note, walking up the hill through Haworth was quite nice! It’s a beautiful street filled with potted plants on colorful doorsteps. I am in my element!

The first workshop is tomorrow. Wish me luck!

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Hello from Hebden Bridge

Have you ever visited someplace new and felt like it was coming home? That’s how I feel here in Hebden Bridge! I don’t know if it’s because I’m back in Europe for the first time since moving from Italy, or if it’s because I visited with several friends today, but I feel at home here. It’s a lovely little town! I love the stone buildings and the colorful doors.

My journey was fairly uneventful and luckily enough the rains stopped before I arrived. There were many places in the Yorkshire area that were flooded and travel was interrupted for many people on Tuesday, but there were no interruptions to my travel on Wednesday. Thankfully, this time Hebden Bridge did not suffer any flooding. They’ve already been flooded twice this year, and you can see the evidence in the storefronts that are being cleaned out and the sandbags at the doorsteps, ready to be put in place.

Well, I’m off to bed… It’s 11pm here. Jet lag hasn’t been a problem for me yet. I wonder when it will catch up with me? Oh, and I tried Wensleydale cheese for the first time today. Yum. Fabulous!

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I’m Off!

Today’s the day! I’m travelling to the UK. I’m off to find out what’s behind the red door of adventure. I’m eager to get back across the Atlantic. This is my first international travel since returning from Italy over a year ago, and I wonder what new things I will discover?

I’ll be blogging from the road, so you’ll get updates here and there about my experiences.

In the meantime, I have a few Kat Eye things to share…

  • I am excited to be the “Flickr Photo of the Month” for masteringphoto.com with my photograph “Scwinn Approved.” You can see it here.
  • Visit Grow Soul Beautiful, a lovely new site dedicated to the mind+body connection of yoga and photography, for a chance to win a space in the upcoming October/November Find Your Eye course series. Also Sherry Galey, one of my participants in the summer course series, wrote a lovely (and unsolicited) post on her experience with the Find Your Eye e-course. I hope you will follow Sherry’s advice and join us for this next journey!
  • This month’s Photo-Heart Connection will be from England. I wonder how that will affect my connection? Join me October 1 through 7 with your Photo-Heart Connection too.

I think that’s it! You’ll next hear from me on the other side. Yay!

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At a Loss

Um. Hi. I’m at a loss for words today. I don’t know what to write. I’m sure the words will come back soon. They always do.

So I thought I would share another photo from Yorkshire today, since England is still on my mind. And will be, for the next several weeks, no doubt. I can’t wait to get back and capture scenes like this one, from York. Where else might I find a beautiful purple-paned window? Do tell, I want to visit if there are other places like this.

Since I’m at a loss for words here, I’ll also share a link to the interview with me that was posted on We Make London’s blog on Monday. I seemed to find the words for that, no problem.

*Sigh*

Words! Come back! I miss you!!

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Transitions

Shift. Click. It’s as if I am a piece of machinery, moving from one mode into another. From summer mode into autumn mode. It was not intentional. It’s not as if the air temperature is any different, the sun suddenly rises and sets at a different time, or my list of things to do changes. But the rhythm of life changes as we pass the marker of Labor Day weekend. School starts tomorrow. Fall events that were months ahead are now just a couple of weeks away. The feeling of freedom becomes the feeling of commitment and responsibility.

Shift. Click.

This weekend I began to look toward fall. I started focusing on the details of my England trip, now just three weeks away. Three weeks from today. I’ve been making plans and reservations. The realization hit – holy cow, I’m really going to England by myself. I’m really going to teach these classes — people are already registered. I’m really going to meet up with all of these friends from online. I’m really going to do this thing! This idea, this dream, is real. Another transition, from dream into reality.

The Yorkshire Countryside

Shift. Click.

It’s not like this transition wasn’t visible, there on the horizon. It was just always out there, in the future somewhere. It was nebulous, until now. It’s as if my whole being was ready and waiting for the shift but my brain was left behind. Part of me is sitting here, somewhat surprised and reeling from the feeling of transition, while most of me is already moving ahead. It’s time to get the rest of me into the game.

Shift. Click. Summer is over. Autumn is here.

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Dreams of Travel, Connection and YOU!

Do you believe dreams can come true? I do. It’s been a long time dream of mine to combine my love of travel, photography of place and teaching together. I can’t imagine anything better than being able to explore a new place with my camera, talking photography with new friends along the way.

This dream is coming true for me, as I’m announcing my first on-location workshops! Yay! I’ll be offering 1-day workshops incorporating some of the key ideas from my online course, A Sense of Place, in small group settings in Oregon and in England this fall.

I’ll kick off the workshops at my home studio in Corvallis, Oregon on Sunday, September 9. After participating in the Corvallis Fall Festival September 22 and 23, our area’s largest arts festival, I’ll be heading to England (woohoo!!) to teach two workshops.

You’ll find me in Hebden Bridge on Saturday, September 29, exploring the beautiful Yorkshire countryside and in Hampstead (near London) on Saturday, October 6, exploring the city scenes.

You can find all the details about these workshops and registration information here. I’m so excited to take this next step. This is just the beginning, I can feel it.

I hope there is a chance to connect with you in person sometime very, very soon!

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