Getting to Varenna
Staying on Lake Como
The workshop
All registered participants will receive our Lake Como: Light of the Italian Lakes orientation booklet with detailed instructions on how to get to Varenna, what to bring in terms of photographic equipment and clothing, and more information about how the workshop is structured. Our booklet is teeming with good ideas about where to find the best cappuccino and gelato, what books about Lake Como you can read before you come, how to politely ask a stranger if you can photograph her or him, and extensive details about local restaurants, pizzerias, frullerias, & lakeside cafès.
Varenna is one hour north of Milan, easily reached by train. If you fly to one of Milan’s 2 airports, Linate & Malpensa, you can get to the central train station in Milan by shuttle bus. From there you can get a train to Varenna. In our Orientation e-booklet, we will give you exact instructions & links to other sources of information.
Parking in this tiny medieval town is difficult but not insurmountable.
It is an excellent idea to arrive in Europe a few days before the workshop begins to get over jet lag. But there are no available rooms at the Villa Cipressi (it is fully booked a year in advance), so you will need to find your own lodgings. One possibility is the Eremo, an hermitage turned into a hotel with spectacular Lake views. Other suggestions near the Villa Cipressi include the Hotel Royal Victoria, the Hotel du Lac, & the Albergo Milano.
In late August the weather on Lake Como is very pleasant: daytime temperatures on average are in the low-to-mid ‘70’s and there are an average of 7 hours of sunshine a day. Night temperatures are in the high 50’s to low 60’s. Rain & sudden thundershowers are always possible. Heat & humidity at the end of August are unusual, but all the rooms have air conditioning and windows bringing fresh breezes from the lake.
Our Lake Como workshops have been taking place at the beautiful Villa Cipressi since 1990. Our seminars are held in ground floor classrooms with terraces overlooking the lake. The villa’s bountiful buffet breakfasts, eaten indoors in a Renaissance living room or outdoors in one of the gardens, are a great way to start the day.
This little village has only one car road through it and many cobblestone footpaths, most leading down to the Lake. The Passerella, a long walkway that winds along the Lake, takes you by a rich assortment of places to dine, enjoy a cappuccino, or simply sit in a little park and take in the views.
Ferry boats set out regularly for many ports along the Lake, including Bellagio, Tremezzo, and the city of Como. Day trips to the villas and gardens, such as the Villa Carlotta, the Villa Melzi, and the ancient Abbazia di Piona, are highly recommended.
Hiking trails up into the hills will bring you to the Castle and village of Vezio, mountain taverns, with lookouts high over the Lake.
Varenna has two ATM machines, called Bancomats. Moreover, you can pay for almost everything with credit cards.
Varenna’s restaurants are inexpensive, compared with other restaurants in Italian cities, and there are numerous little lunch cafès & pizzerias along the main square and beside the Lake. We will tell you about these in our Orientation E-Booklet.
There is a small market that has fresh fruit, delicious cheeses, juices, prosciutto, and other staples. There is also a salumeria with a good wine list.
First and foremost, dress for comfort and wear comfortable shoes! In our orientation booklet we’ll give you much more fashion advice, including what to wear if you get invited to a party at George Clooney’s villa.
A delightful woman named Erica runs a laundry business in the village: you bring clothes in during the morning and pick them up the next day—or a few days later if you request ironing or dry cleaning.
Varenna is a quiet center of calm at all hours. In fact, the lights at night and the dawn light are exhilarating times to photograph. Using good sense, you can wander and photograph at night without fear. The villagers know us well and take delight in the photographs we take of them and show them later. We have many friends in Varenna, and this deepens participants’ experiences.
Yes, you can have a single if you register early enough, as we have a limited number of singles. For lodging choices and prices, visit the Registration page.
Yes, Workshop guests are welcome to join us. A companion fee of $2,950 includes double occupancy lodging at the Villa Cipressi, breakfasts, all group meals, and field trips.
We do an excellent job of pairing roommates, and many participants form deep friendships with those with whom they have shared the experience of rooming together.
Each bedroom has a number of electrical outlets, as well as a private bathroom with hair dryers. Electricity in Europe comes out of wall sockets at 220 volts alternating at 50 cycles per second, and this would fry a device like an electric shaver or a clothes iron made for use in the States. (Electricity in the U.S. comes out at 110 volts, alternating at 60 cycles per second.) However, most digital gear is constructed for use in both the U.S. and Europe, so you will need only a simple 110-220 plug adapter for each laptop cord and external hard drive cord. Our classroom is equipped with 220 extension cords and power strips. Wireless Internet is available at the hotel.
Our orientation booklet will give you a complete list of essential equipment and recommended accessories to bring to Lake Como. The bottom line is that you will need to bring a digital camera that shoots in the raw format and a laptop computer with Lightroom 4 installed (the free 30-day trial will work well). If you’ve registered for the workshop & would like some advice about what cameras, laptop, tripod, lenses, etc. to buy, email George.
You couldn’t have chosen a better workshop. We are very patient, experienced instructors with years of photo experience in both film and digital media. We are skilled at leading new photographers, as well as experienced pros, to new levels of mastery. We will also offer optional sessions geared to those with different levels of experience.
Through years of giving these workshops, we know that once you master basic techniques and learn new ways of seeing, new photographers can make images as powerful as those made by more experienced artists.
No way. Lightroom 4 is a cutting-edge application, and George Jardine is the acknowledged master of teaching it. George’s sessions will reward participants at all levels.
We guarantee that we, with the help of Varenna’s light and life, will offer inspiration, challenges, substantive critiques, and incredible learning experiences. In addition, participants learn an enormous amount from each other. Every professional and serious amateur who has participated in this workshop has told us that their vision and the quality of their work has both expanded and deepened because of it. Be sure to read some of the participant evaluations located here.
Absolutely. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom is cross-platform. Our faculty and staff will help you work with your images with Lightroom 4 on your own computer.
Our schedule will alternate between classroom/group critiques that usually occur in 2-3 hour sessions as well as afternoon or day field trips to explore the vicinity. You will have lots of free time each day when the light is perfect for shooting, as well as a full free day to do with what you will. Our class field trips will take us to a special spot, but once there you can choose to explore on your own, as you like.
The schedule builds in time for optional smaller group sessions that teach techniques geared to different experience levels. The instructors give assignments, and everyone participates in group critiques. On the last full day, photographers give a final presentation on a theme, chosen and refined by you with our coaching.
After you register, we’ll send you our E-Orientation Booklet with much more information about what to bring so that you can enjoy Lake Como and the workshop to the fullest!
You can bring any cameras you like, from a shoe-box pinhole to a Polaroid 20x24. But you must bring a digital camera that is capable of shooting Raw format files. You’ll discover what a splendid tool a digital camera is for connecting with Italian life and culture.
You’ll also need to bring a laptop. Digital shooting with its immediate feedback generates a free flow of ideas and a different kind of interaction between photographer and subject, especially in Italy. We’ll teach you the Italian phrases you need to make new friends. Your photographic ideas will come to life as you shoot.
Participant opinion is very important to us, and we’re proud of the accolades we have received through the years. We have had participants return to Holly’s Italian workshops many times, both because of the beauty of the settings & because learning & expanding one’s horizons never stop. Please visit our testimonials page for a summary of student comments.