14 Perspectives: A Photography and Culinary Journey Through Italy – Dallas Frisco Photographer – Me Ra Koh
I’ll never forget the first time I went to Italy. A lady wearing a tweed blazer and skirt with a lovely silk scarf rode by me on her bicycle. She had a basket full of bread and flowers in front of her. I thought “People live like this?! What am I doing in Texas?” LOL
Oh Italy! How we love you! Every time Brian and I take our Portrait of Italy group, we feel like we’re discovering Italy’s wonder all over again.
This post is a celebration of all our workshop attendees from the last trip. Every single person has a different perspective in how they see the world.
Seeing each other’s photos throughout the trip would inspire everyone to slow down even more, get low, follow that alleyway, play with shadows while chasing the light across Tuscany.
14 PERSPECTIVES: A PHOTOGRAPHY AND CULINARY JOURNEY THROUGH ITALY
We had every level. Always do! One lady didn’t even bring a camera! She just knew she wanted to experience Italy with us. I thought it would be fun and inspiring for you to see 14 different perspectives of a photography and culinary journey through Italy!
THE VIEW FROM ALISHA
Brian always does a couple hands-on night photography lessons for some of the most iconic bridges in Italy, let alone the world! Alicia, this is AMAZING! You captured the starbursts in the light, the deep blues, and the reflections of light on the water in such a magical way! BRAVO!!!
Alisha is a wonderful photographer! She captured these first five photos. You have to check out Alisha’s instagram by clicking here! Alisha is also a total foodie! I loved watching her eyes light up with every 4 course dinner!
The culinary part of the trip parallels the photography. We plan the dinners to highlight the local region’s cuisine, and we do a special hands-on cooking class at a castle.
WHAT ALISHA HAD TO SAY
“Portrait of Italy with Brian and Me Ra is a MUST (and I live in Italy!)! They take you on an unforgettable journey though Italy hitting tons of highlights and many off-the-beaten-path gems as well. You truly get it all with this trip, delicious food, tons of laughs, and sooooo many great pictures of ITALY!”
We love you Alisha! Look at this girl making homemade pasta from scratch!
THE VIEW FROM ANGELA
I’m super PROUD of the photos Angela captured! Angela joined us from Seattle, WA. She was also a beginner, and we had her shooting in manual by the end of Day One! Yep! We have a special way we teach photography! Look at what she captured!
Angela, I LOVE the details and shadows of the laundry especially!
WHAT ANGELA HAD TO SAY
“A Portrait of Italy gives you a front row seat to the beauty of this country! Me Ra and Brian are the perfect hosts, showing you the exact camera settings to capture the amazing views, the sunsets, the landscapes, the magical alleyways. From busy city streets to tiny country villages, you get to experience all the best of this beautiful country. Including the food! And you laugh way more than you ever imagined!”
Angela and her new buddy at the local food market! Yep, those are carrot spiral earrings. 🙂
THE VIEW FROM VALERIE
Valerie brought her smartphone. Yep! She didn’t even bring a camera. After a painful divorce, she came to fill up her tank, renew her creativity and make new friends along the way. Valerie didn’t know anyone before she arrived in Rome. Look at the BEAUTIFUL photos she got with her phone!
When I saw this pink door photo, I made her take me to this spot! PINK DOORS!!! THE BEST!!!
I also love how she let herself experiment with composition and storytelling. Look at the different stories happening in this single frame!
WHAT VALERIE HAD TO SAY
“My word for this trip was SAVOR and I savored every single detail. One year post divorce and I feel the most free and full I have felt in years! While I didn’t come for the photography portion I learned so much about how to see things in a whole new way. I also believe each individual on this trip have now become life long friends. I would give the tour a 10 Star Rating if I could and I hope to never miss another one.”
Valerie, I LOVE THIS PHOTO OF YOU! You are BEAMING, girl! And I LOVE the portraits behind you! It’s like you’re in the company of great women! Where was this? Once again, I don’t even remember seeing this! LOL
THE VIEW FROM CHERIE
We met Cherie for the first time on this trip. She flew in from North Carolina, and we were all fast friends! Cherie was also a complete newbie at photography. She and her late husband had always dreamed of coming to Italy together. This trip was a healing journey for her heart. I loved watching Cherie wander the little villages in Tuscany finding unexpected healing in every step.
Her lemon photo from the market is the best! Makes me want to go right now!
WHAT CHERIE HAD TO SAY
“This trip was so well planned, perfect accommodations and the most amazing wine and food. I came on this trip only knowing my roommate and left with 14 new friends!! Love, love, loved this trip and hope to make this an annual trip with Me Ra and Brian Koh!! 100% 5 stars!”
There is such a special backstory to this photo of Cherie! It deserves it’s own special post. Stay tuned. xo
THE VIEW FROM JAMIEANNE
Have you ever dreamed of wandering through Italy, taking photos of just the doorways and windows? Meet Jamieanne! She is your kindred spirit!
Jamieanne is a mom of three little ones. Her husband surprised her with this trip. This girl was BEAMING every morning. She took her camera, the daily photo exercise and wandered till her heart’s content.
At the beginning of the workshop, I told everyone how I felt like something was going to be restored within themselves. This was a photography and culinary journey through Italy, but it was also a journey for the soul. I could cry at what was restored within Jamieanne. Read her beautiful words below.
WHAT JAMIEANNE HAD TO SAY
“Besides getting to live out that long held wish to see Italy, this trip was so good for me in that I really got to see myself having an adventure, having fun, having the stamina to do it. Earlier this year I had started a certification program to teach Essentrics, a type of stretching & strengthening program that has helped me a lot. But I was having trouble moving forward with it. Once I got back from Italy, I really felt the momentum of this trip giving me the push to refocus. I feel a lot more capable. And I’m moving forward with it and having fun!”
The BEST photo of you Jamieanne! Takes me right back to that day! xoxoxo
THE VIEW FROM KAREN
Karen has been on our Portrait of Thailand, Portrait of Greece and our 2-Day CONFIDENCE Photography Workshop for Women. She’s become family! Karen LOVES capturing locals and people in general. Portraits is her thing!
It’s always so much fun to see what local characters caught her eye.
I LOVE this moment she captured of Lisa during the hands-on cooking class! Our chef didn’t speak much English, but we had a wonderful time still learning and communicating!
WHAT KAREN HAD TO SAY
“Thousands of pictures, thousands of laughs, and learning so many new photography tips on each and every trip. I go back home with a sense of renewal and gratitude for everything I got to experience and all the new friends that I just made! Thank you Me Ra and Brian!”
Karen is always capturing GREAT moments of the rest of the group! But I got one of her too! 🙂
THE VIEW FROM KERRY
Kerry was a little nervous about coming because she didn’t know anyone. Rightly so! It’s a big deal to fly across the pond not knowing anyone in the group. Little did she know, she was about to meet a whole new group of lifelong friends! I LOVE her photo below of Venice after sunset! Kerry, this is STUNNING!
One of the oldest bookstores in Europe is down a hidden alleyway in Venice! I love the perspective Kerry captured!
WHAT KERRY HAD TO SAY
“I was nervous to join a group with some who had traveled together several times, but this was the kindest, most encouraging group of people I have ever had the pleasure of spending time with. So happy I had this opportunity to grow my photography skills and my heart on this trip!”
Kerry, I just love this photo of you! I can’t remember who captured it but it’s so beautiful! I had to include it! It’s the quintessential dream photo of capturing Tuscany!
LOVE this photo too, Kerry! You gotta have a Spritz when you’re in Italy!
THE VIEW FROM LISA
Lisa first came to our 2-Day CONFIDENCE Photography Workshop for Women over ten years ago in Chicago. I’ll never forget the time she raised her hand and said “I’ve been taking photos for a magazine but feel like I should learn how to get out of auto mode before they find out.” LOL! THE BEST!!! Lisa has such a wonderful eye for composition.
Since Portrait of Italy is both a photography and culinary journey through Italy, one of our creative exercises is to capture local food. Isn’t it fun to see the different ways each person did this? I love how Lisa captured a local Venetian cooking up seafood!
THIS PHOTO!!! The play on light and shadows! And the pigeon in mid-flight below is incredible! Lisa, I LOVE this shot!
WHAT LISA HAD TO SAY
…I wish we could tell you what Lisa said! But this girl hasn’t sent us a review yet! LOL! However, I think it’s safe to assume she gives the trip 5 stars because she and her husband were the FIRST to sign up to go back and do it all over again next year! LOL
THE VIEW FROM SUE
Sue first came on our Portrait of Thailand trip a handful of years ago. She was a beginner but not anymore! She joined our Portrait of Greece trip TWICE! And look at what she captured in Italy!
Sue went after all these amazing twilight shots! I love the composition of all the gondolas at the end of the day.
The BEST is when she showed us photos of all her favorite travel photos printed big on her walls back home. It’s so rewarding to capture travel photos you are super proud of and then get to see them everyday! So proud of you Sue-Bee!
WHAT SUE HAD TO SAY
“I have always wanted to go to Italy with Me Ra Koh & Brian. The timing for me didn’t work until 2023. The group quickly became a small family of photographers. It is a well rounded tour of the most beautiful cities and small towns. It is fast paced and slow paced at the same time. We traveled a lot but took the time to eat the most delicious meals (4 courses and quick pizza in a Piazza), sit on the steps eating gelato, make our own pasta for lunch at a castle.
Photography is not the only thing you learn while on the trip. You learn about the culture of the places, the people you see, the people you are with and the most of all about yourself. You start to see things through a lens of optimism and joy
The trip is magical. Everyday is the best day until you get to the next and it outranks the day before.”
WHEN HUSBANDS JOIN US
We often have a few husbands come. They always say they’re not the photographer. Or, they’re okay not taking photos “just along for the ride”. But Brian and I can’t help but make sure they have a camera in their hands! We’re in ITALY! Before we know it, they’re getting into it! I love seeing them leave their daily stresses behind, and get lost in creativity and explore Italy through the lens.
But what they go home with is the BEST! Their feedback below makes me want to jump up and down and cry happy tears all at once! 🙂
WHAT AARON HAD TO SAY
“I started this trip, with my wife, not knowing anything about taking photos except for how to use my iPhone. I now have mastered high f-stop usage for creating a starburst effect and learned how to look at my surroundings through the eye of a photographer.”
Aaron’s use of shadows and lights with this shot is incredible! You can’t get something like this being in auto mode. We walked him through how to shoot in manual, controlling his light, and BAM! Pretty awesome for being a newbie! And we LOVE his awesome wife, Becky!!! (loved this photo of you and Jamieanne!)
Aaron and Becky had such a great time, Becky brought her 14 year old daughter on our Portrait of Thailand trip! Then she and Aaron joined us for Portrait of Greece! And they’re signed up to experience Italy with us again!
WHAT OSCAR HAD TO SAY
“Brian and Me Ra Koh put an amazing trip together. The planning that went into the details was amazing and far exceeded any expectations. The photography was fun and interesting, little did I know restoration was the plan. I do feel restored. Thank you Brian and Me Ra. I can’t think of one single thing that should have been done different.”
Oscar planned to just enjoy the culinary part of this trip. But Brian got a camera in his hands, showed him a few things, and LOOK AT THIS!!!!! I LOVE the composition of this photo! From the laundry in the top third to the people on the gondola in the bottom third! OSCAR!!!! SO GOOD!!!!
WHAT YVONNE HAD TO SAY
“Best trip ever! Great friendships, lots of laughs, and memories to last a lifetime. Thank you Brian and Me Ra! Everything was perfect, no need for change.”
Yvonne, Oscar’s wife, is the sweetest. She is often the first at breakfast having her coffee. Her heart is so BIG. She often checks in with different people to see if they had enough to eat or how they slept. She oozes kindness. I LOVE this photo that she captured with the two colored walls and bicycle. Quintessential Italy in one photo. Beautiful Yvonne!
The biggest compliment of all is when people join us for the next trip! Oscar and Yvonne came with us to Portrait of Greece this last year! They had their own Rising Phoenix Experience as a couple to celebrate their marriage! THE BEST! They are such a special couple!
JOIN US: PORTRAIT OF ITALY 2025
Have you loved seeing all the perspectives of our photography and culinary journey through Italy? Isn’t it so fun?! I’ve had the BIGGEST smile working on this blog post! Each of us sees the world through our own creative eye. Taking time to nurture that creativity impacts our life in endless ways, Jamieanne’s testimony is such a great example of that!
Do you dream of Italy? If chasing the light through Tuscany, 4-Course Dinners, wandering through beautiful, cobblestone villages, and laughter till your face hurts sounds AMAZING…
ONLY 4 SPOTS LEFT FOR 2025
CLICK HERE to get one of the last spots! We only have 4 spots left!
Whatever level you are; beginner, advanced or pro, Brian and I got you! Expect to make friends for a lifetime and be swallowed whole by awe and wonder! This is ITALY!
WE COULD NEVER FORGET…
TERESA!!! Thank you so much, Teresa, for being our amazing assistant! You are such a gift to us all! (except when you and Brian are laughing late at night on the bus, LOL)
These pants!!!! If you could only see my smile right now! LOL All I can say is… #AMAZINGINSANEBESTFINDFORTHETRIPEVER
DO YOU DREAM OF ITALY?
CLICK HERE for all the juicy details on Portrait of Italy: a photography and culinary journey through Italy
Yep! This is me bending over because I’m laughing so hard, I’m trying not to pee my pants. Be prepared! LOL
Thank you, thank you, thank you, Me Ra, for this beautiful walk down memory lane from our trip to Italy ……it took me soooo long to go through this because I had to read every single word and stare at each and every photo. WHAT A TRIP of a lifetime this was ….one that I’ll never forget. You guys are the BEST:)
You’re so welcome, Karen! I can you see you reading every word and soaking up each photo. What an AWE-some, transformative time we had together! As I was working on this, it felt like just yesterday! We LOVE you guys!