Maximized for a Full Immersion Cultural Photography Experience

We have designed these travel photography workshops to immerse you in photography and northern Thai culture. Intrepid photographers can come to improve their skills. The environment is friendly, encouraging and designed for amateur photographers at any level.

Kevin and Pansa will build your confidence in your creative and technical skills. We’ll also provide you with a huge variety of cultural photo opportunities. Many are unique to our photography workshops and off the beaten track. During our workshops you will learn to capture the most stunning travel photographs.

Our unique workshops provide opportunities to photograph people and places you won’t find on regular tours.

Our groups are small, a maximum of six people. Your leaders are both professional photographers. We have an intimate knowledge of the culture and photography.

The locations are varied and diverse. Both in rural and urban settings in and around Chiang Mai, Thailand. You will learn and/or reinforce photography techniques with on-site tutoring from both Kevin and Pansa. Or you are free to photograph and enjoy the sessions without teaching. As time allows there will also be optional image reviews. These will focus on how you can improve both technically and creatively.

Our five-day workshop is spread over 6 days (4 full days and two part days.) We will meet Chiang Mai, Thailand on the afternoon of the first day for introductions and orientation.

Our itinerary includes four sessions with beautiful Thai models in traditional costumes. We will work with you and interact with the models, set up the lighting and find the best backgrounds. One session with a model we will also be working with an elephant. Other locations may include temples, a waterfall, tropical forest, etc.

We also visit one of our favorite locations for photography, Baan Thong Luang. This is an “eco-agricultural hill tribes village”. Pansa and I have been visiting here for many years with our photography workshops. We have built up some lovely relationships with the people there. This village provides the best opportunity to photograph northern Thai ethnic minority people. Here they wear traditional clothing and live in customary homes. Our relationship with them means they are relaxed, so you will get better portraits of them. If you are not sure about visiting this type of location, please take a look at this article on the subject.

Two evening sessions of computer post-processing and image culling are included. There’s also the opportunity to have a traditional Thai massage. We can include this on one or more evenings.

All meals are included. We prefer to eat Thai and introduce you to amazing dishes you may not encounter as a tourist. Soicy or not, the choice is yours.

We have designed our Thai Culture Workshop to provide a wide range of photography opportunities. These are unique experiences.

Our Thai Cultural Experience Photography Workshop is limited to six participants. (Please contact us if you have a non-photographer partner who would like to join you.)

Itinerary

Day 1
Pick up and Orientation

We will pick you up at the airport and get you checked into your hotel room. In the evening we’ll enjoy dinner together and our introduction and orientation session. The first night is in Chiang Mai.

Day 2
Elephant, Model and Ethnic Minorities
Pick up is at 7:30 am. We will spend the morning at a boutique elephant camp. Photographing with an elephant and a beautiful model wearing a traditional Thai costume.

The afternoon session is at Baan Thong Luang, the hill tribes village. Here we can make portraits of the people and also photograph them producing their arts and crafts.

After this we drive to Suan Sook Homestay. Our home.

Day 3
Traditional Thai Models
Our models for the day will be ready for our first session in the morning. We’ll head to a nearby location for an exotic session of photography that will be truly memorable.

We take a relaxed break for lunch to give ourselves and the models a rest. Then we make our way to the second location for our afternoon session.

We’ll enjoy dinner at a local Thai restaurant on the river side. Back at Suan Sook we can spend time looking over and discussing the photos you’ve taken.

Day 4
Doi Inthanon National Park
We spend the day up the mountain. Doi Inthanon is Thailand’s highest peak and a national park. It provides stunning environments for creative photography. In the park we’ll have opportunities to photograph in the forest, along walkways, viewpoints, waterfalls and the Royal Project gardens.

Back at Suan Sook in the evening we’ll relax and look at the photos we’ve been making.

Day 5
Weekend Market and Outdoor Studio
After a delicisous Thai breakfast we’ll visit a local weekend market. Here you’ll get a real taste of rural northern Thai life. The atmosphere at the busy market is relaxed and friendly. You’ll have lots of opportunities to spontaneous connections with the locals to create wonderful street photos. We might get a few looks from the locals as we’ll be well off the beaten tourist path.

We drive up into the hills in the afternoon to a Karen hill tribe village. I’ll set up my outdoor natural light studio for a special portrait session. With some luck we may be able to convince some of the older men to show of their traditional body tattoos.

Day 6
One More Model
Pick up is at 8 am. Our morning session is at Wat Don Quian with another costumed model. This temple has a pillared walkway around three sides, making it a great shooting location.

Lunch and goodbyes.