When I visited France this past June, one of our destinations for the styling and photography workshop, called The Academy, was a farmers market in Bergerac, France.
Bergerac is located along the Dordogne River, about 75 miles east of Bordeaux. The architecture is a beguiling mix of medieval buildings and the newer structures from the 19th century.
When we first arrived in town, it was raining so my friend Natalie and I ducked into a coffee shop and enjoyed some conversation. Once the rain stopped, we were ready to explore this farmers market which was situated around the main church.
DESPERATE FOR YOUR MORNING COFFEE?
I loved the ingenuity of this coffee vendor. He put everything on wheels for his coffee cart and came to those in need of their morning coffee. The little boulangerie in the background made delicious pastries. I started the morning with a croissant then returned for ham and baguette for lunch. I don't eat much bread at home, but when in France...
OH, THE PRODUCE!
The produce was gorgeous in its appearance and how it was displayed. From my appreciation of this farmers market I am compelled to visit more local farmers markets.
WORKING ON MY PHOTOGRAPHY SKILLS
One aspect of the styling and photography workshop that I really appreciated was the challenge to practice. Later I would get to share some of my work with Heather Bullard, the professional stylist who runs The Academy.
Not only did I have the encouragement to learn some new skills, but we were in France. Talk about inspiration!
I took around 1500 photos while in France - in a little over a week. You know it takes 100 photos to get 5 good ones!
The one thing I am learning, though, is that it is OKAY to take all those potentially "wasted" shots because you start to internalize what makes for better composition compared to the ones that aren't so great. I actually learn so much by seeing the contrast.
DOGS (les chiens) OF FRANCE
Aren't these dogs adorable? They were very sweet too! Since I was away from my family for 12 days, I was on a quest to send photos of French animals to my daughters. I sent them everything from cats to cows, and these dogs of course.
We have probably all heard of food trucks, but that is a cheese truck behind the crates of lettuce and cherries. So many cheeses!
PEOPLE IN THE MARKET
Another fun challenge for photography is catching the life of the market in the people who work or shop there.
My goal was to capture this life in the most natural way as possible, trying to avoid those posed shots.
THE BLUE VAN - MY INDULGENT SHOT OF THE DAY
I usually include one shot in each post that I consider indulgent. The photo below is a little unfocused as far as composition goes, but I LIKE IT! Something about the blue van, with the produce in foreground and the people and buildings in the background just appealed to me. Some would say it has too much going on, but I think it tells many stories in one glance. So thanks for allowing me to indulge myself.
That is it for now. I have about 100 more photos of this market, but I will spare you those practice shots having shared the best ones.
The next blog post, in a week or two, will be about the Medieval town of Saint-Émilion.
Have any questions or comments? Please send them to my email - valerie@hillandvalleydesign.com or my Instagram @hillandvalley.design - I love to hear from you!
