Transcending Reality Gallery
Countryside, Cuba 2004
® Frank Baudino
It was my second trip to Cuba and I felt I got even closer to the Cubans. I was again impressed by the warmth and generosity of the people. I often entered the homes and lives of strangers and was offered food, coffee and conversation. The life of Cubans centers on love for the family and for their land. This love always overflows and also involves those who visit them. I will never forget these people who have accepted me into their lives. My life was enriched again with this trip to Cuba. Frank Baudino
® Maureen Beitler
What can be said about Cuba that has not already been said by so many? My experience there was short, but intense. The generosity of spirit of the people who had so little was endless. I met strangers who let me into their lives and shared everything they had with me, even if it was just thoughts. Cuba is a beautiful magical place and I think that there we can find what we are looking for. For me, I have found people who have become friends, even if for just a moment or an afternoon. The workshop with Ernesto was like visiting a friend… we took pictures, talked about photography, shared the food. It allowed us to have access to a more intimate experience more quickly. I think one cannot visit Cuba without feeling changed, at least in small parts. Cuba, for me, has been a journey inside… inside people’s homes, their lives, their thoughts and inside myself. Ernesto states that somehow as photographers we are always in search of our lost childhood. That sentence had a profound effect on me, realizing that for years I have been looking for moments of my family and the experience of growing up in a big family that had very little at times, except for the laughs, the stories and the connection between our. Part of this I found in Cuba. Maureen Beitler
® Wendy Chang
® Willard Pate
In 2001, when I signed up for Ernesto’s first ever workshop in Cuba, I had no idea what to expect – both from Ernesto and Cuba. The fact that the images included in this book are part of my fourth Ernesto experience. / Cuba certifies that my first trip was wonderful. Quite frankly, what motivated me to pay for my first workshop was my curiosity about the “forbidden island”. Although I hoped to return home with a decent image or two to show, photography was less of an end and more of a means to visiting an exotic place that was, so to speak, “off limits.” Three years later I continue to travel to Cuba because Ernesto’s workshops represent a challenge and give me a lot. As a teacher, Ernesto helped me grow as a photographer. His precepts – too conscious, secondary elements, transcending reality – apart from being adopted as names for some groups, have become part of my photographic vision. I feel, using an expression of Ernesto, that “the Goddess of photography” smiled at me when I met him as a teacher. I also feel happy with the shared experience with the other photographers who signed up for this workshop. Generally we are of different ages and we come from different professions and different countries, but we share a love for photography that we communicate through our images even when we are unable to speak the same language. Hopefully, I will be able to continue to work with Ernesto in Cuba for many workshops in the years to come. Willard Pate
® Kevin Sweeney
Time stopped in Cuba several decades ago. There are so many traces of the past that permeate Cuban life that it seems not to have been touched by the present. It is a place full of warmth and where you feel connected to others. Cubans have few material things, but they have an abundant spirit for life. No matter what the future holds, Cubans will continue to live life. They will continue to work, play, wait and wonder. When the present arrives on the island, we will certainly have a great desire for the past. My third workshop with Ernesto proved to be the most rewarding both personally and creatively. I enjoyed the conversations and hospitality of many wonderful Cubans who opened their lives to me. Ernesto organizes his workshops both to guide us and to let us explore and experiment. He won’t tell you how to take the perfect photo, but how to deal with a situation alone, and how to use your vision to capture the moment. Aside from my memories and images, I always finish an Ernesto workshop feeling ready for the next adventure. Kevin Sweeney
® Berndt Wandschneider
Assuming that all Ernesto’s workshops in Cuba are the same, I read the detailed program AFTER booking the course and was slightly shocked when I discovered that I would spend six days in Viñales and only four in Havana. Having lived in the city all my life, I generally prefer to photograph “the exciting city life” rather than “the boring countryside.” Other than that, my non-existent Spanish was limited to a few sentences. Kevin was of great help to me during our stay in the casa particular and introduced me to “Spanish for photographers” to Frank, for example: “Señor / a, can you take a photo por favor?” This sentence proved to be very useful! Spoken with my strange accent, it almost always guaranteed puzzled looks – spontaneous, intimate expressions that we photographers appreciate very much. Looking back, I loved the countryside and was fascinated by the amazing people we met. After the workshop I spent another two weeks traveling around Cuba which for me is one of the most interesting countries I have ever visited. Berndt Wandschneider
