Landscape photography workshop planning, execution and analysis

Post Workshop Analysis

just one more shot...

Introduction

A friend and I have just finished leading our first week-long guided photography tour. As the week drew to an end, I started making notes about the planning process leading up to the tour, the tour itself and then the follow-up. I'm making this document available for others who might be planning their own first tour. I'm sure I still have a lot to learn, but hope that prospective leaders can take away something from our first attempt.

Some of the information is site-specific to the Dolomites, other is more generic and will apply to almost any tour like this.

Conception

My good friend and fellow-photographer Matthias Tannert and I try to get together in the mountains for a few days every year to explore new areas and take photos. Two years ago we met up in the western Dolomites to try to capture the autumn colours and mist on the Seiser Alm and to shoot the Seceda ridge line at dawn, but we were too early for good colour and it was also rather mixed weather, but it was then that we started speaking about running a week-long photography workshop together, bouncing ideas for spots off of each other and generally exploring the idea.

Two years on, I don't recall all the spots we discussed, but I think most of them ended up on the list we visited during our first guided tour. All were places that either one or both of us had shot before and felt comfortable leading a group at.

The list included Val di Funes, Seiser Alm, Seceda, Lagazuoi, Cinque Torri, Passo di Giau, Tre Cime and the Misurina and d'Antorno lakes. If I recall correctly the Vajolet towers may also have been discussed.

One critical aspect of the planning was timing. We wanted to be late enough for peak autumn colour if possible, but not so late that we ran into the risk of severe weather or not having anywhere to stay. In the end we lucked out, it snowed about two weeks before we arrived which put the larch trees on the fast-track to turning yellow.

Planning

The first nerve-wracking hurdle was lining up the accommodation. We decided that a group of 8 (2 leaders with 6 participants) would be a comfortable size for us to manage. Plus we all fit in a Ford Transit.

The Seiser Alm is tricky as there are only a few hotels open and not all accept guests for a single night. The Seiser Alm Urthaler was an expensive compromise but put us up on the Alm within an hour of the classic spot for sunrise photography with time to get back before breakfast finished being served.

Rifugio Fermeda above Ortisei was a no-brainer. Matthias and I stayed there on our 2023 trip and knew it was comfortable with good food and again an hour from the Seceda ridge.

Rifugio Croda da Lago was the last piece of the puzzle to fall into place and cost me the most lack of sleep before the tour. This is a relatively small mountain refuge with limited availability.

The Rifugios around the Falzarego pass (Lagazuoi, Scoiateli and Averau) were all closed already in the time window we had chosen. The best compromise I could find was a relatively unknown chain hotel at Passo Tre Croci, which I booked for the last four nights. This would give us good access to the Cortina arena of spots (Cinque Torri, Passo di Giau, Falzarego pass, Misurina, d'Antorno and Sorapis lakes and Tre Cime).

We arranged everything for the 11th to 18th October 2025 and then went to work on the tour description and some photos from our own archives to whet appetites.

Pricing

This was going to be our first time running a workshop and we were very aware that we were unknown players in a big field. We decided to price the tour so that we would cover our own accommodation (half board) and travel costs, meaning that our participants shared the cost of our accommodation between them.

During the summer I saw Instagram adverts for a week-long photography workshop in the Dolomites around the same time for 2/3rds of the price we were asking, but reading the fine-print I noticed that the participants had to arrange and pay for their own accommodation on top; the fee was purely for the instructors.

Description

The description of the tour was the next step and included all the details I thought would be necessary to enable potential participants to decide whether this was something for them: Workshop Description

Marketing

Nerve-wracking hurdle number two was whether or not we would fill the spots.

Word of Mouth - Matthias filled two of the spots almost immediately with a couple of photographers he had met on a solo trip to the Engadin in Switzerland. I also shared the info with anyone who was prepared to listen.

Facebook Groups - I run a Facebook group for local expat photographers in the Munich area where we live and am also active in a couple of UK-based photo groups whose admins were kind enough to let me advertise the tour there. We had one recruit from my group and one from the UK groups. Sadly the latter was unable to attend and we ended up being only 7 people. I'm also active in several Dolomite FB groups and mentioned the tour as often as I could there.

Instagram - beginning to get desperate, I generated an Instagram advert using a story comprising images from the Dolomites a couple of months before the tour. This brought us our last two participants, both of whom were Munich based (where I live).
Next time I would try to direct my Instagram adverts more to my target audience (e.g. UK mountain photography circles).

Lead-Up

Preparation

Months out in an idle moment I put together a table with all the necessary information each day. Next time I’ll probably add information about the (compass) angle at which the sun rises and sets. If it was coastal photography, I would probably add tide times. This really helped speed up the process on the day-to-day. During the tour one of the participants lamented that there wasn’t a clear schedule for the week and so I shared the document with the group.

Example Prep:

Communication

Once people registered and paid a 20% non-refundable deposit they were signed up for the tour. They were asked to inform us of any dietary restrictions that we would need to communicate to the places we were staying.

Two months out and one month out I sent emails to the participants and set up a WhatsApp group to communicate details and where they could ask any questions and to whet appetites with photos of what to expect. We communicated more details about the tour including what they would need to bring as well as recommendations for how much spending money to anticipate. I offered to source any outstanding gear necessary (e.g. sheet sleeping bags and winter spikes). Participants were asked to transfer the remaining money.

Lastly I asked the participants to send me a photo they'd taken in the last months that represents their work to use as an ice-breaker on the first evening.

They were also asked to complete a form indicating pick up points, what aspects of photography they would like to learn, etc.

Running the Tour

First Meeting

After picking up the three Munich-based participants from Gauting at 6 am, we headed down to Santa Maddalena in Val di Funes, arriving at just after 10 am. I'd arranged for parking at the Zanser Alm and we walked the 90 min up to the Geisler Alm for some first images and lunch. After waiting futilely for the best light on the Alm, we drove back down just in time to catch the last rays on San Giovanni before heading over to the Santa Maddalena Viewpoint, where I just happened to bump into James Rushforth leading a group of his own (James is the much-acclaimed author of the seminal book “Photographing the Dolomites”). We took longer than expected waiting for the sun to set on Santa Maddalena and still had an hour back to Compatsch.

We met up with the remaining participants at the hotel and enjoyed a great meal together. Between courses I explained what to expect in the coming days and asked people to share their ice-breaker photos and tell the stories behind them. I also asked people what would make them consider the week to have been a success and what would make them consider the week to have been a failure. One of them turned the question back on us: Success would be helping them to achieve images that they otherwise wouldn't have got, failure would be dissatisfied participants.

The ice breaker worked well, people warmed to showing their favourite images after I explained mine and everyone had impressive images. There were no photography beginners and so it ended up being a tour where Matthias and I were able to share some of our favourite spots with others.

The Sleepless Night

Although I'd slept well the first night after the inaugural meeting, night two was very different. The next day was going to be tough. A pre-dawn climb up to the Seceda ridge - where I wasn't sure about the new turnstile - followed by a 2 h drive, lunch and a 3 h hike to the next Rifugio were all occupying my mind. I still wasn't completely sure of the group's mountain abilities, Matthias wanted to stop on the high plateau before the Rifugio for a sunset shoot and the Rifugio had told us we needed to be there for 18.00 and that dinner would be at 19.00. When had I last checked the weather forecast? All that was racing through my mind in the wee hours as my roommate was obliviously snoring in the bed next to me.

We just about pulled the next day off; dawn on Seceda, Fermeda for breakfast, down to Santa Cristina and over to Passo di Giau for lunch before heading out for Rifugio Croda da Lago. We split the party to ensure that at least two of us were present to check in before the 18.00 cutoff.

Dawn at Lago Federa with the autumn larches was an image that I've been dreaming of taking for around a decade and that dream came true.

The others were exhausted from the day before and so I let them all climb down through the forest with Matthias whilst I hiked back to the van to pick them up.

Taking Stock Half Way

Arriving at Passo Tre Croci for a late lunch after picking everyone up at the trail head, I thought it would be a good idea to take stock of how people were doing and if anything wasn't meeting expectations, whether we could change anything for the second half of the tour to accommodate that.

The negative feedback was mostly linked to the unexpectedly strenuous tour the day before, language expectations (not everyone was a fluent English speaker and having non-German participants meant that announcements had to be repeated in both languages), lack of down-time and the desire for a photo discussion. As ever, though, at least half of the group were completely happy.

Apart from the issues regarding the previous day, we were able to accommodate most of the suggestions for improvement over the next days, though when people were given the chance to have an easy morning, no-one wanted to miss the optional extra sunrise tour to Limedes.

I'd been changing how I described our companions constantly in my social media posts. Were they guests? Clients? Customers? In the end I think that participants is the best descriptor.

Calmer Waters

Having settled in at Hotel Tre Croci, things calmed down a little. There were still minor communication issues to be resolved between Matthias and myself, but we slipped into a rhythm. The flexibility of meal times at the hotel was a huge advantage (breakfast from 7.00-10.00, dinner from 19.00-21.00) and took a huge weight off my shoulders.

Dawn at Cadini di Misurina was a huge hit, partly due to the light conditions and partly due to the variety of motives available.

Blue sky weather is not conducive to great images in the Dolomites and we had little but in the first five days. Making use of the dawn and sunset light saved us, especially once people began to appreciate how beautiful the afterglow colours can be in this region, thanks in part to the pale colour of the rocks. It's important to use a CPL to enhance the colours - so long as you tone it down for those wide angle shots to avoid unsightly dark spots.

Cloudier weather hit on day six, screwing up an evening shoot at Passo di Giau, but dawn the next day at Falzarego (without me - I was so frazzled I needed a morning to myself) more than made up for it. I think my exhaustion was a result of the stress of the previous days followed by the relief of arriving at Tre Croci and the knowledge that we were no longer under pressure to reach a place to stay that night. There were also no more huge pre-dawn hikes left to reach the spots.

I should have asked for local updates on Lake Sorapis as it was pretty dry when the others got there. I'd had to turn back after the secured section of the path as two of our people were out of their depth on the trail. Doing so turned out to be an unexpected blessing, however, as we were rewarded with some great images of Corno d’Angolo, one of the peaks of Monte Cristallo in the late afternoon light.

Friday morning saw us driving up to Cinque Torri (the road is open in the autumn) for a last sunrise shoot. In the afternoon Matthias ran a session on location scouting before we hit the road again to revisit Passo di Giau after Wednesday's wash out.

Sunrise at Cinque Torri: Tofana and Lagazuoi

Feedback Session

Friday lunchtime before our final sunset shoot we held a second picture discussion round followed by an extensive five-fingered feedback session (what was good, what we could have done better, what had gone poorly, what they would be taking home with them and any other little things). We were praised for the organisation, choice and variety of shooting spots and accommodation as well as for how the course was led.

Another thing that was appreciated was that we always arrived at the spots in good time for people to find their compositions and wait for the light. This was greatly helped by the fact that our participants were always punctual and respected departure times.

One idea to take on board was to shoot a location, have a feedback session on the images and then return to the same spot to put whatever was learned into practice.

Those who weren't overwhelmed by the hikes were happy to have been stretched to achieve things that they hadn't considered possible.

A couple of minor points included people feeling like they received insufficient help or tips - despite the fact that we offered this explicitly several times in the first few days.

Lessons Learned

Plans That Paid Off

Knowing the spots and paths that we were shooting at was essential to the success of the tour. We were explicitly praised for our knowledge of the spots and ability to provide shooting advice whilst maximising the participants’ freedom to choose.
Keep posting to social media; in response to photos posted in one of the FB groups I received an enquiry about running a similar tour for a UK group next year.
Provide spots that allow people to be creative. Although some spots have very obvious subjects (Val di Funes, Seceda and Seiser Alm), others allowed people to be significantly more individual in their images (Cadini di Misurina, Lago Federa, Cinque Torri).
Put the participants’ photography first. Success should be determined in the images that they achieve, not in the images you take. Of course if the situation allows take your own images, but if they left their tripod in the room by mistake, lend them yours (fortunately I still had my short travel tripod in the bag). If they don’t feel safe on the path, turn around rather than cajoling them to carry on (safety first!).
Lead by example, e.g. with regards to punctuality, respect and friendliness, it sets the tone for everyone else.
Keep communication clear. Ok, I planned this, but I also need to work on it.
Make sure to bring not only a first aid kit (Compedes were well appreciated) but also a camera first aid kit for the participants (lens wipes, blower and brushes, maybe even sensor swabs).
Research everything. Even though I had hiked up to Sorapis a month previously and it had been full, it wasn’t until we were ¾ of the way up that I heard that there was only a small pond left. On the other hand, one day I went down to Cortina from Tre Croci to buy packed lunch for the crew. The usual supermarket was closed so I had to go to the Cooperative. If I hadn't noticed ahead of time it would have taken 30 min out of the day
Having plenty of bottled water and a few bars of chocolate available in the van at all times was appreciated by all.
Planning the tour so late in the year meant that sunrise and sunset shoots weren't at inhuman times even when a hike or drive was involved.
An 8-seater van (e.g. Ford Transit) counts as a car for the purpose of Austrian motorways, the Brenner Pass and parking in the Dolomites.

Plans I Need To Make For Next Time

Communicate the expectations/challenges more clearly, especially when it comes to the mountain tours.
Develop better communication with co-leader, especially for day-to-day planning. Do this behind closed doors.
Give people some down-time and don't offer too many spots in one day. If you offer more, people will take it and then complain about doing too much.
Develop strategies for targeting future participants more clearly (mountain experience and language).
Arrange the tour so that I have a half-day off in the second half of the week.
Allow yourself a week to decompress after leading a workshop.
Always wait at least half an hour after sunset in the Dolomites before packing your gear up (if there are clear skies).
Include a map and description of the spot each day.
Reverse the direction of the tour (Cortina - > Seiser Alm) to maximise the chances of getting colour on the Alm.
Provide a waiver form/legal disclaimer/Verzichtserklärung/Haftungsausschluss.
Provide a (more) comprehensive packing list .

The Bottom Line

Having (successfully) completed our first week-long photography workshop feels like a significant accomplishment. The idea of turning my photography into something more than a hobby is about 5 years in the making for me and I've been gearing more or less everything I do in terms of photographic and personal development to that end over this time. Despite some self-doubt around the halfway stage, the overall success of this week has left me with the conclusion that this is something that I want to pursue going forward.

My natural leadership style is generally to involve everyone in decision making. This wasn't the best way to lead the group, who wanted more clear direction. Being comfortable talking in front of the group, a lack of defensiveness when challenged as well as my ability to diffuse tension with humour worked very well in this context. My genuine passion for the Dolomites and for photography were well received.

Coming to photography through mountaineering as I have (as opposed to coming to the mountains to take photographs), my niche/focus will always be on adventure photography and the whole experience of being in the mountains as opposed to just visiting them to grab some impressive images. I bumped into a well-known photographer and workshop-leader here back in September and he freely admitted to not being a mountaineer of any sort. His tours focused on relatively easy-to-reach spots, and I've heard the same being said of other established instructors. That is not us.

This was our first workshop. In no way do I consider myself to have learned all there is to know about running such sessions. I am accutely aware of (and thankful for) the fact that we ran into very few problems during the week and so I have not had to tackle much in the way of challenging situations, whether awkward participants, extreme weather, etc. I leave this here for others looking to run their first groups and would be interested in hearing your experience with doing so. If you would have done anything differently, let me know.

All that remains is for me to thank the participants of our inaugural tour: Alfred, Elke, Johannes, Stephan and Vinod, not to mention my co-leader Matthias Tannert, without whom this would never have gotten off the ground. Thank you all for your engagement and essential feedback during the tour. We may have given you some lasting impressions, but I think it's safe to say that we learned so much more from you during this tour than you ever did from us!

The unofficial motto of the tour? "Just one more shot..."