UKC

I have been dabbling in photography for many years where I think I am now a competent enough landscape photographer with a well enough developed skill set to get good photos, so I have eliminated almost all of the basic mistakes, most of the time.

Disclaimer: None of the pics in my gallery here are worth looking at and not representative of where  I am now.

I was debating about doing some sort of workshop or even 1:1 for a couple of days with a landscape photographer, here in the UK rather than overseas. It's hard to define exactly what I want to get out of it but it's not a case of being taken to a location and told what to shoot but more of a mentoring experience with some technical guidance.

Have any of you guys, even those of you who are quite accomplished done anything like this? Was it beneficial and is there anyone in particular you would recommend?

Ta.

I've done a couple of workshops over the years, though photojournalism rather than landscape photography. 

For me it worked cos I went in knowing the basics and having a bunch of questions that forced a deeper engagement with the tutor. 

At some point you'll know a lot, and what remains are the things you don't know, that you never even dreamed were a thing. To get those answers needs engaged discussion with a tutor willing to share. And if the workshop is a small group, rather than one to one, it'll be all the richer.

As to 'what' to photograph - 'seeing' the photo in the landscape - maybe you can already get a lot from YouTube, books and visits to galleries/museums near you ?

Thanks for the reply.

Not landscape, but I did a cave photography workshop with one of the best, Mark Burkey. It was a subsided course, partially funded by the CNCC/BCA. I’d never done one before, but it was one of the most useful things I’ve ever done.

It really helped that Mark was happy to share loads of technical info and info that he’d built up over a decade of experience. This takes a certain kind of person to do that. Someone who really wants to see you thrive rather than just showcase their own work. A solution based person rather than an artist I suppose.

I can’t offer a person for landscape, but I would defo say go for it.

I have been on several Landscape workshops over the years often with well known photographers. One thing I would say is that I learnt a lot from the other group members by discussing what they chose to photograph and how they composed their pictures. In some cases this was facilitated by the tutor but not always! Being a great photographer doesn't make you an effective trainer. There are now so many people offering workshops that I do think getting a recommendation from previous users is a good idea.

Good luck

Landscape: I would recommend https://deanallanphotography.com/ from personal experiences. Mainly his courses are Scotland west coast based.

Thanks, I'm Inverness based so that is my neck of the woods.

Blatant "plug a mate, but you could have a look at Dougie @ Leading Lines. He does them all round the Highlands and is also a mountaineer, so will take you fun places. 

Dougie's website https://www.leadinglines.net/

He lives in Lochinver and is also the author of https://fotovue.com/shop/books/photographing-scotland/

If you want the best, Alex Nail: https://www.alexnail.com/

Bath based, but always up in Scotland.

His book is exceptional: https://www.alexnail.com/great-wilderness-book/

As is his youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@alexnail

I second all of the above but if you wanted something ad-hoc, I'd be happy to help from the Glencoe/Ballachulish area. I run a landscape photography magazine and am involved in photography competitions and publishing. No charge if you just wanted half a day out and a chat... 

Thanks again. Much appreciated. I know Alex Nail's work well.

Thanks Tim,

That is much appreciated. I might take you up on that offer in a few weeks. Things are in a bit of flux on the work front at the moment but once that settles down I should have a clearer idea of my calendar.

I know your own work from On Landscape & NLPA etc.