In my last post I mentioned that I’d be contributing to Nix Davies’s HARVEST installation, which opens this week.

We celebrated its launch last night with a banquet made predominately of food I’d been growing over at our Urban Farm, the remainder of which was left in the space to provide a visual connection with the thought of “Giving in Abundance”.

While predominately vegetarian in nature, the meat that was served was sourced through Simply Wholesome from small scale farmers, tracing its origin from farm to fork.

50+ guests arrived to enjoy homegrown, wholesome food over drinks, the beautiful setting provided by Nix and her creative collaborator, Amy Ellenbogen at her LET THERE BE LIGHT studio over in Sidestreet Studios in Woodstock.

Sadly my photos tell only half the story as I spent much of my time in the kitchen preparing dishes for our guests, but none-the-less they give insight into what was an incredible evening.

HARVEST opens on Thursday, 24th January 2013 at the LET THERE BE LIGHT studio, Sidestreet Studios, 48 Albert Rd, Woodstock.

Image courtesy of Kristin Rogers Photography

A while back I had the opportunity to enroll in an on-line course with The Define School, which tout themselves as an unconventional online school for the evolving photographer and was blessed to have been able to sign up for Kristin Rodgers ‘The Inspired Home’ course.

I’ve been a huge fan of Kristin’s work and how she manages to juggle being a homeschooling Mom, wife and working photographer.

Her Instagram feed is adorable (@kristinrogers) and her family snapshots are like paging through an engaging novel, making you feel like a long lost friend.

I’m privileged to have been part of her first class where we spent 4-weeks unpacking the subject of ‘The Inspired Home’. Yes, the first two weeks were quite practical, covering topics like iPhonegraphy, her workflow and how she gets her signature style, but I probably learned as much or more working through the psychology of what it means to be a present parent in weeks 3 and 4, than the technical aspects of the course.

I was wary of how it would all work, but found the process to be a complete joy. Kristin engaged with us through a private forum and we would have a week to upload our homework for critique. What made it extra special is that there was so much input from fellow students and we developed a great sense of community.

We’d share our photos, thoughts and questions throughout the week and Kristin would address them daily where possible, so you have SO MUCH MORE input over the 4-weeks, far more than you could cover in a 1-day ‘hands on’ course that you could spend as much or more on.

I’ve made a few great friends out of it and it’s great to see post course that we are still being inspired by each others pics, comments and feedback as we share our own Inspired Home journey.

I can’t recommend Kristin’s course enough, and as funds and time permit I’ll be engaging in future courses with The Define School.

Registration opens tomorrow for their January classes and I suggest that you look into it if you want to further your photographic prowess.

I thought I’d leave you with a few of the pics I took over the 4-week course, capturing moments of my own Inspired Home.

This weekend the family and I decided to get away from the suburbs and hit the country, so far removed from the burbs that we left our computers behind and disconnected from all forms of social media for a few days.

We stayed at a little self-catering place called Klein-Watervalplass (Small Waterfall Farm) in the Hemel en Aarde Vallei (Heaven and Earth Valley), owned by our lovely host, Rick.

We spent two nights in ‘The Milking Shed’, which as the name implies is a converted, well, milking shed. It’s a simple 2 bedroom affair with an open plan living room and kitchen. Solar power heats the bathroom and for those desperate for interactivity there is a TV with basic DSTV channels (not that we watched much as it was part of the technology break) and if you ask nicely you can use the WIFI, again, something I only did at the end of our stay.

The farm boasts horses, ponies, alpacas, pigs and chickens, much to the glee of Nathan who bounded around after the chickens, spying on the laying hens and collected eggs from outside our door, which I in turn whipped into breakfasts. The rooster decided to wake us at 3am, but it’s something we took in our stride as we are used to our own backyard hens.

As the name implies there is also a small waterfall and plenty of space to hike in the Fynbos covered mountains. Both kids in tow, along with Max, the local farm dog, a sprightly Jack Russel we trekked there and back admiring the views.

I must admit the technology break was harder than I thought and I’m acutely aware I need to change a few things in my life to be less dependent on it, to stop and literally smell the roses, on in this case, the proteas.