Meet K.H. Klein

Fine art photographer and Director of the Gallery dePaul, 226 North Arch Street, Lancaster, K.H. Klein, agreed to lend her professional artistic eye to AAA Central Penn’s Places I’ve Been Photo Contest.

"Good travel photography shouldn’t be a picture of what the place looks like, but should evoke a sense of place," Klein said.

"I think photography is telling a story and I think all of the photography chosen tells a story of what the photographer was feeling at the time," she said. "Composition and exposure are important but evoking that sense of place is what pulls the viewer in. It’s the difference between documenting a place and the poetry of a place."

If Klein seems familiar, it may be because she is the photographer who led a creative workshop in Paris sponsored by Gallery dePaul as one of AAA Travel’s popular Special Association Groups last year. That was so successful, she will take a group to Tuscany from September 12-23.

A Workshop in Tuscany will be a "creative adventure" designed to encourage participants to explore new ways of expressing themselves through photography. Focused on the creative, rather than the technical aspects of photography, the workshop is open to anyone interested in the creative process.

"There is no prior experience needed, and no expensive camera equipment required. What we are looking for are ‘adventurous spirits’ who are interested in learning to see more creatively," Klein said.

The home base will be Florence, the capital city of Tuscany. The participants will also travel through the legendary Tuscan countryside for day trips to Lucca, for the monthly flea market, and Market day in Siena. "There will be opportunities to experience the essence of Italy everywhere you look," said Klein.

Each day there will be a "visual challenge," which each participant will be encouraged to explore in his own way, and although the concept will be illustrated through photography, any media is encouraged. "In Paris, we had photographers, painters, a writer and a ceramic artist, and it all worked beautifully," said Klein.

Additionally, each participant will have a daily meeting with Klein to refine their specific creative direction and discuss suggestions for the next day’s work.

Klein was a high school art teacher and a fiber artist for 30 years, during which time she started studying photography. Currently she is working on her Master’s of Fine Arts degree in photography.

In 2005, she attended a workshop that sparked peoples’ interest in travel and photography. The combination of her teaching background and artistic gifts made her a perfect leader for such a workshop. She turned to Craig Haberle of AAA Central Penn to make the travel arrangements for the workshop. "Craig crosses every T and dots every I," Klein said. "I’m excited about the workshop in Tuscany. I’ve been to Italy 12 times. I can speak Italian." And no doubt this trip will evoke some warm feelings. "The first time I was in Italy, I was in a photographer’s workshop," Klein said.

For information about A Workshop in Tuscany, contact K.H. Klein at 717-299-1631, email khklein@gallerydepaul.com or visit www.gallerydepaul.com/workshops. Or contact Craig Haberle, CTC, AAA Travel, at 717-898-6900, extension 2228.