At our academy you will get up to speed with your DSLR or Smartphone
This photography holiday is a week for beginners, who would like to understand their cameras better as well as for amateur photographers who’d like some interesting photographic opportunities mixed in with other activities. You can take cooking classes, experience a local Hammam, and go off the beaten track with horses, quads or camels. It’s about getting the mix between learning and downtime, tailored to suit you. We’ve been running photography holidays since 2010 and feel confident meeting all guests’ needs.
SKILLS ACQUIRED AT THE END OF THE WEEK
* Learn all about your camera controls and functionality.
* Learn how to set up your camera for different situations.
* Learn how to use different focal lengths for creative purposes.
* Understand how to manipulate exposure and get off fully auto.
* Gain the confidence to photograph people in different situations.
* Learn how to use light to create visually interesting images.
* Gain insight into evaluating why some photos work better than others.
* Know how to approach editing your own photos.
The Summer school for beginners is a full 5-day programme that will get you up to speed on using your camera and give you the skills to shoot in a variety of situations. Each day you’ll explore a different genre of photography; abstract, architecture, portraiture and reportage exploring a beach at sunset, a country market, a bustling port and a historic medina.
The programme leads you through, step by step, from the camera basics on day one to edit your images on day 7. Working as part of a group offers invaluable learning through looking at the images of others, giving you a better understanding of what works in various situations and how you could have approached things differently. The week is nicely paced allowing you time to also explore other activities.
On reviewing images, we will look at all your photos on the class computer. This way we can get to see the successes but also learn from what didn’t work so well. Unlike most photography holidays, this comprehensive viewing is a unique aspect of the course offering a deep and detailed daily photo review of your images.
Often used as a location for many films and TV series, Essaouira is a visual feast where you can quickly get up to speed in finding subjects to photograph.
Set within a small and easily navigated medina town, the locations on offer include a historic working port, a seascape with crashing waves on rocks, narrow alleyways, colourful doors/windows with old locks, street sellers, beach scenes with camels and horses as well as a variety of inanimate oddities that beg to be snapped. It’s a town that’s in touch with its historical roots and the effects of the coastal climate mean the worn and derelict take pride of place.
Day One – Arrival day (Saturday). Settle into your Riad.
Day Two – Camera Fundamentals Workshop
9:30am – 12:30pm
The morning will be set aside for getting to know your camera’s functionality including all about the priority modes, your exposure triangle of aperture, shutter speed and ISO. You’ll also look at exposure control, histograms and using your exposure compensation button, as well as keeping your camera free from shaking.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 3:00pm
An exercise on the Riad terrace understanding your lenses and how to influence a depth of field (DOF).
3.00pm – 5:30pm
A tutor-led photo session at the famous battlements.
5.30pm – 7:30pm
After uploading your images we’ll take a first look at what you’re getting right.
8.00pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Three – Using depth of field (DOF) & juxtaposition to compose
The focus of today’s tuition will be two composition workshops in the medina and port, thinking about the depth of field, exposure and composition. You will also benefit from one-to-one feedback during the day to assess your progress, providing feedback on your images and taking your understanding a step further.
9:30am – 10:30pm
A presentation on composition and the abstract in photography.
10:30am – 12:30pm
A tutor-led group walk around with cameras.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 4:00pm
Individual free time.
4.00pm – 5:30pm
Your photos from this morning will be uploaded to the workshop computer and viewed as a group with suggestions for the next session in the port.
6.00pm – 7:30pm
A tutor-led photo walk around the port looking for selective views.
8.00pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Four – ‘Portrait’ workshop
9:30am – 11:30pm
A review of the previous afternoon’s photography at the port will be followed by a presentation on portrait photography covering camera set-up, DOF and framing compositional choices.
11.30am – 1.30pm
A tutor-led introduction to Essaouira’s workers: Thuya designers, Argan sellers or a silversmith.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
3.30pm – 5.30pm – Individual Tutorials
Here we’ll upload your morning portrait photos and take a detailed look at the best from the sessions so far, identifying where you would like to improve and covering any technical camera questions you will still have.
5.30pm – 6.30pm
A presentation on reportage or street photography in Essaouira and beyond.
6.30pm – 8.00pm – Sunset time and Silhouettes
A tutor-led sunset photography session along the beach, and a chance to get some good shots of camel and horse riders at dusk using the correct camera settings.
8.30pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Five – Enjoy photographing vibrant colours at a country market
9:30am – 12:30pm
A morning at a local market (souk) practising your street photography and a portrait session at an Argan cooperative 25km from Essaouira.
The afternoon is set aside for an optional cooking class in the countryside and a swim.
8.00pm – A evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Six – ‘Reportage’ Workshop
9:30am – 11:30pm
We’ll be reviewing photos from the previous day at the country market and cooperative.
11:30am – 12:30pm
A tutor-led tour of the port using your telephoto lenses to capture the sales and landing activity.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 4.00pm
Individual tutorials and setting a task for the following morning to find: patterns, curves or collections of things.
4.00pm – 6.00pm
The afternoon is free to explore, relax, take an activity or practise your photography independently.
6.00pm – 7.00pm
A session at the port or on the rocky beach using ND filters to create long shutter speeds and create motion blur on seascapes.
8.00pm – An Evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Seven – Your morning is set aside for individual free time.
4:30pm – 6.30pm
We’ll upload your last batch of photos taken the previous afternoon/this morning and present your week’s highlights.
8:00pm – Evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Eight – Departure day (Saturday)
A final selection of your week’s best photos will be uploaded to your own personal portfolio gallery for you to keep.
Equipment required:
DSLR or mirrorless camera with a standard – telephoto zoom (or prime)lens or a good smartphone.
ND filters(optional).
Weather conditions can also lead to a change in the programme. This photography holidays itinerary is suitable for guests with some previous experience in photography as well as complete beginners.
Link to Darren’s biography.
This photography holiday in 2023 is a week for beginners, who would like to understand their cameras better as well as for amateur photographers who’d like some interesting photographic opportunities mixed in with other activities. You can take cooking classes, experience a local Hammam, and go off the beaten track with horses, quads or camels. It’s about getting the mix between learning and downtime, tailored to suit you. We’ve been running photography holidays since 2010 and feel confident meeting all guests’ needs.
SKILLS ACQUIRED AT THE END OF THE WEEK
* Learn all about your camera controls and functionality.
* Learn how to set up your camera for different situations.
* Learn how to use different focal lengths for creative purposes.
* Understand how to manipulate exposure and get off fully auto.
* Gain the confidence to photograph people in different situations.
* Learn how to use light to create visually interesting images.
* Gain insight into evaluating why some photos work better than others.
* Know how to approach editing your own photos.
The photography Holiday summer school for beginners is a full 5-day programme that will get you up to speed on using your DSLR camera or your Smartphone and give you the skills to shoot in a variety of situations. Each day you’ll explore a different genre of photography; abstract, architecture, portraiture and reportage, exploring a beach at sunset, a country market, a bustling port and a historic medina. The programme leads you through, step by step, from the camera basics on day one to edit your images on day 7. Working as part of a group offers invaluable learning through looking at the images of others, giving you a better understanding of what works in various situations and how you could have approached things differently. The week is nicely paced allowing you time to also explore other activities.
On reviewing images, we will look at all your photos on the class computer. This way we can get to see the successes but also learn from what didn’t work so well. Unlike most photography holidays, this comprehensive viewing is a unique aspect of the course offering a deep and detailed daily photo review of your images.
Often used as a location for many films and TV series, Essaouira is a visual feast where you can quickly get up to speed in finding subjects to photograph. Set within a small and easily navigated medina town, the locations on offer include a historic working port, a seascape with crashing waves on rocks, narrow alleyways, colourful doors/windows with old locks, street sellers, beach scenes with camels and horses as well as a variety of inanimate oddities that beg to be snapped. It’s a town that’s in touch with its historical roots and the effects of the coastal climate mean the worn and derelict take pride of place.
Day One – Arrival day (Saturday). Settle into your Riad.
Day Two – Camera Fundamentals Workshop
9:30am – 12:30pm
The morning will be set aside for getting to know your camera’s functionality including all about the priority modes, your exposure triangle of aperture, shutter speed and ISO. You’ll also look at exposure control, histograms and using your exposure compensation button, as well as keeping your camera free from shaking.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 3:00pm
An exercise on the Riad terrace understanding your lenses and how to influence a depth of field (DOF).
3.00pm – 5:30pm
A tutor-led photo session at the famous battlements.
5.30pm – 7:30pm
After uploading your images we’ll take a first look at what you’re getting right.
8.00pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Three – Using depth of field (DOF) & juxtaposition to compose
The focus of today’s tuition will be two composition workshops in the medina and port, thinking about the depth of field, exposure and composition. You will also benefit from one-to-one feedback during the day to assess your progress, providing feedback on your images and taking your understanding a step further.
9:30am – 10:30pm
A presentation on composition and the abstract in photography.
10:30am – 12:30pm
A tutor-led group walk around with cameras.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 4:00pm
Individual free time.
4.00pm – 5:30pm
Your photos from this morning will be uploaded to the workshop computer and viewed as a group with suggestions for the next session in the port.
6.00pm – 7:30pm
A tutor-led photo walk around the port looking for selective views.
8.00pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Four – ‘Portrait’ workshop
9:30am – 11:30pm
A review of the previous afternoon’s photography at the port will be followed by a presentation on portrait photography covering camera set-up, DOF and framing compositional choices.
11.30am – 1.30pm
A tutor-led introduction to Essaouira’s workers: Thuya designers, Argan sellers or a silversmith.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
3.30pm – 5.30pm – Individual Tutorials
Here we’ll upload your morning portrait photos and take a detailed look at the best from the sessions so far, identifying where you would like to improve and covering any technical camera questions you will still have.
5.30pm – 6.30pm
A presentation on reportage or street photography in Essaouira and beyond.
6.30pm – 8.00pm – Sunset time and Silhouettes
A tutor-led sunset photography session along the beach, and a chance to get some good shots of camel and horse riders at dusk using the correct camera settings.
8.30pm – An evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Five – Enjoy photographing vibrant colours at a country market
9:30am – 12:30pm
A morning at a local market (souk) practising your street photography and a portrait session at an Argan cooperative 25km from Essaouira.
The afternoon is set aside for an optional cooking class in the countryside and a swim.
8.00pm – A evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Six – ‘Reportage’ Workshop
9:30am – 11:30pm
We’ll be reviewing photos from the previous day at the country market and cooperative.
11:30am – 12:30pm
A tutor-led tour of the port using your telephoto lenses to capture the sales and landing of fish.
12.30pm – 2:00pm
A group alfresco lunch.
2.00pm – 4.00pm
Individual tutorials and setting a task for the following morning to find: patterns, curves or collections of things.
4.00pm – 6.00pm
The afternoon is free to explore, relax, take an activity or practise your photography independently.
6.00pm – 7.00pm
A session at the port or on the rocky beach using ND filters to create long shutter speeds and create motion blur on seascapes.
8.00pm – An Evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Seven – Your morning is set aside for individual free time.
4:30pm – 6.30pm
We’ll upload your last batch of photos taken the previous afternoon/this morning and present your week’s highlights.
8:00pm – Evening group dinner at a recommended restaurant.
Day Eight – Departure day (Saturday)
A final selection of your week’s best photos will be uploaded to your own personal portfolio gallery for you to keep.
Equipment required:
DSLR or mirrorless camera with a standard – telephoto zoom (or prime)lens or a good smartphone.
ND filters(optional).
Weather conditions can also lead to a change in the programme. This photography holiday itinerary is suitable for guests with some previous experience in photography as well as complete beginners. You can view images from past workshops on the galleries page.
A link to Darren’s biography.
Weeks are available during July and August for a minimum group of three. Email me for availability.
FEE: £1285