The answer is one: early October. Join us this year!
Let’s start with the day length, which is just perfect: not too long like the summer one when you have to wake up at 3AM to catch sunrise or stay out till 9:30PM to shoot sunset, not too short that you have to rush to do things because we might lose the best light. That’s an underestimated point that makes the whole workshop 10x more enjoyable!
All the hikes/roads are still open – which is really important as it will allow us to explore every part of the park and don’t miss any of the most beautiful locations.
Temperatures won’t be as warm as summer, but they will still be mild enough (considering that we are in the mountains) even for all those of you that really don’t like cold places!
Last but not least – the chances of getting interesting conditions at the golden hour is generally higher: low clouds hanging in the valleys with the peaks rising tall above them, nuclear sunsets due to outcoming/incoming storms and so on – early October is just a great time photography wise!
Dolomites are an incredibly seasonal location – which means that depending at what time of the year you will be here, your instructor will take you to the best locations of that season: some places are only worth seeing in summer, some others in autumn and some others in winter. There’s no such a thing as a “fixed itinerary” here – we will always pick the best spots when we will know when you join us here.
If you’d like to get more infos about the locations – you can also visit our Dolomites Location Guide, that should give you an even clearer idea of the places – and if you’d like to know more about the best times to visit the Dolomites, check this Dolomites Season Guide instead!
Truth is that we never run two identical workshops – due to the weather, due to the light, due to the length of the days at any given time of the year and a bazillion other variables that come into play when dealing with outdoor photography.
Take this general itinerary for what it is – and by any means don’t think that we’ll stick to it at all times!
Time to start our workshop together! On our first day, we will pick you up at the Venice airport around mid-morning, so that we can start our drive to Cortina (our first destination of the workshop, 2 hours drive from Venice) straight away.
Lunch: 12:30PM
After a couple hours drive, we will finally reach the Ampezzo Dolomites, the first part of this mountain range that we will explore and also where we will spend more time: Cortina d’Ampezzo will be our base for these first days.
Before heading to the hotel to do the check-in, we will do a little walk-around downtown for you to get acquainted with the place and enjoy a lovely lunch where you’ll be able to try the alpine cuisine at its best.
Hotel Check-in & Afternoon Break: approx. 2:30/4:30PM
After our tasty lunch together, we’ll return back to the hotel to check in and take a breath before hitting the road again.
Sunset Session: 5/8PM (depending on sunset time)
Our first official photography session together! Since it’s our first, we’ll have a longer session so that your workshop leader can assess your skills and give you the necessary notions to capture the golden light in the best possible way given the weather conditions of that day. The location we will probably visit is called Passo Giau, a high-altitude mountain pass which offers fabulous views all over the surrounding peaks.
Dinner: 8:30PM
It’s been a long day: finally we will have the chance to sit down and have a warm meal with some beer to end it in the best way!
An early wake up call waits for us: we will go out when the twilight glow is just starting to appear, so that by the blue hour we will already be set up and ready to shoot! It’s our first sunrise together – and to start the tour in the best possible way, we’ll visit one of the most incredible locations of the area: the two beautiful lakes of Antorno and Misurina – both very accessible and close between each other.
Breakfast & Morning Break: 8/10:30AM
By the time we’ll be back at the hotel, I’m sure that you will be very much looking forward to having a nice breakfast and a bit of a break to gain some energies back.
Visit and Lunch at the Landro Lake: 11:00AM/2:30PM
Time to hit the road again and visit another lake, called Lago di Landro!
The light won’t be optimal – but this lake (as well as any other location we’ll visit during this time of the day) is considered not as photogenic as the places where we’ll actually be when the best light hits the peaks. It will mainly be a relaxing, peaceful walk with your camera that will end up with an amazing lunch by the lake’s shore.
Afternoon Break/Editing: 2:30/5:00PM
Depending on how tired we are, we might either take another break or do some post-production on the shots taken in the past couple sessions. Or maybe a mix of both!
Sunset Session: 5:30/8PM (depending on sunset time)
Let’s “take the bull by the horns” and face one of the longest hikes of the trip: the walk to the gorgeous Tre Cime di Lavaredo – probably one of the most iconic locations of the entire Dolomites. There are several perspectives from which we can shoot these peaks and the length of the trail will vary quite a bit: your instructor will evaluate which perspective will be the best on that day given the weather, the time of the year and the energy you have left!
Dinner: 8:30/9PM
After returning back from our hike – we’ll have a short drive back to Cortina (20 minutes) where we’ll go have a warm, well deserved meal!
Another day – another sunrise! This time will be the “turn” of the Cinque Torri, Leo’s personal favorite location out of all the Ampezzo Dolomites: Cinque Torri (translated “Five Towers”) are some quite unique rock formations that can be found 20 minutes from Cortina. The hike uphill will take us 20 minutes, after which we’ll get to see the sun rising through the towers: definitely one of the best experiences of the workshop!
Breakfast & Morning Break: 8/10:30AM
By the time we’ll be back at the hotel, I’m sure that you will be very much looking forward to having a nice breakfast and a bit of a break to gain some energies back.
Visit and Lunch at the Dobbiaco Lake: 11:00AM/2:30PM
Another minor location (and yep, it’s another lake!) that it’s worth seeing but probably not worth a golden hour session is the Lago di Dobbiaco – not far from the Tre Cime di Lavaredo. That’s where we’ll have lunch today!
Afternoon Break/Editing: 2:30/5:00PM
Depending on how tired we are, we might either take another break or do some post-production on the shots taken in the past couple sessions. Or maybe a mix of both!
Sunset Session: 5:30/8PM (depending on sunset time)
Today we’ll return back to the Tre Cime – but not to shot those peaks (at least, that’s not our goal for the day); we’ll actually walk on a different trail, a 30 minutes walk to an outlook over the impressive Cadini di Misurina – some of the most rugged peaks you will see in the whole workshop.
Dinner: 8:30/9PM
After returning back from our hike – we’ll have a short drive back to Cortina (20 minutes) where we’ll go have a warm, well deserved meal!
One last sunrise in Cortina (ugh!) before moving on to the next area: we definitely will not waste it! On this morning we will visit the world-famous Braies Lake (Pragser Wildsee), a very accessible photogenic lake that basically doesn’t require any hike at all: the picture with the old house on the lake’s shore and the typical boats is one of the classic postcard views of the Dolomites!
Breakfast & Morning Break: 8/9:30AM
By the time we’ll be back at the hotel, I’m sure that you will be very much looking forward to having a nice breakfast and a bit of a break to gain some energies back. Make sure also to pack your stuff as today we will move from Cortina to Siusi – the next destination of the trip where we’ll spend the next two nights.
Transfer from Cortina to Siusi: 10:00AM/2:00PM
Get ready for one of the most epic drives you’ll get throughout the trip: we’ll cross three mountain passes – all of them stunningly beautiful – and in a couple hours we’ll reach Ortisei, the town where we’ll briefly stop by to have lunch and then keep driving for another 30 minutes to Siusi, our final destination for today.
The reason why we’ve picked Siusi as the town to stay in for the night is because of its proximity with our main sunrise location (the Alpe di Siusi, Seiser Alm): you will thank us later when you’ll get to sleep a little bit more in the morning!
Afternoon Break: 2:30/5:00PM
After an early sunrise and a longer transfer – let’s catch a break and gain some energies for the sunset session.
Sunset Session: 5:30/8PM (depending on sunset time)
Our first sunset in this new area will cover one of the most “picture perfect” views of the Val di Funes, called by many “the most beautiful valley of the Dolomites”: the St. Magdalena Church, with the huge Odle mountains in the background. The walk to the viewpoint will take us around 20 minutes.
Dinner: 8:30/9PM
After returning back down from the church viewpoint – we’ll have a short drive back to Siusi (30 minutes) where we’ll go have a warm, well deserved meal!
Time to see the reason (at least, one of the main ones) why we traveled in this area of the Dolomites: the incredibly beautiful Alpe di Siusi, with its typical wooden cabins scattered all over the high altitude plateau (the highest in Europe!) and the rugged Sassolungo and Sassopiatto in the background. This place is so special that we will actually visit it twice – given its beauty and the multitude of perspectives.
Breakfast & Morning Break: 8/9:30AM
By the time we’ll be back at the hotel, I’m sure that you will be very much looking forward to having a nice breakfast and a bit of a break to gain some energies back.
Visit to Seceda: 10:00AM/2:00PM
As long as you visit at the time of the year when the cable car is open – we will dedicate today to the Seceda, one of the most incredible locations you will see in the Dolomites!
Since we get this question a lot, the reason why we’ll visit here during the day and not at sunrise/sunset (even if it’s a stunning location) is because there are not accommodations on top of the mountain and the only way to be there at the best time of the day is to either camp somewhere nearby, stay in one of the lower altitude places or directly start the hike from the town: either one of the last two options will require some serious hiking to reach the top as it’s very steep, and the cable car is obviously closed during the golden hour times. See the three images in the middle down here for reference.
Afternoon Break: 2:30/5:00PM
After returning back from the Seceda – depending on the time at our disposal (ad the energy we have left!) we will decide whether to do some editing or take a break.
Sunset Session: 5:30/8PM (depending on sunset time)
Another sunset – another church! Tonight we’ll visit the Val di Funes again, this time to shoot the enchanting chapel of San Giovanni in Ranui, another photogenic spot with the majestic Odle in the background.
Dinner: 8:30/9PM
After wrapping things up at the church – we’ll have a short drive back to Siusi (30 minutes) where we’ll go have a warm, well deserved meal!
Last sunrise in the Val Gardena – we will dedicate it to capture again the beauty of the Alpe di Siusi from a different perspective compared to the one of the previous sunrise. You can never get enough shots of this place!
Breakfast & Morning Break: 8/9:30AM
By the time we’ll be back at the hotel, I’m sure that you will be very much looking forward to having a nice breakfast and a bit of a break to gain some energies back.
Transfer to San Martino di Castrozza: 10:00AM/2:00PM
The question we always get asked about this location is: is it worth it? Is it worth to do another 2 hours transfer for just one night? And you know what our answer is? A firm, absolute yes. And every single person, even the most dubious ones, after seeing the locations of the area always agree with us. So enjoy one more ride through the mountain passes and brace yourselves for some other marvelous views!
Afternoon Break: 2:00/5:00PM
After a nice lunch along the scenic roads that lead up to this lovely small mountain town, we’ll finally check in into our hotel for the last night and catch a break before heading out again.
Sunset Session: 5:30/8PM (depending on sunset time)
One last sunset: the place we will shoot tonight is the area around the Baita Segantini, a mountain hut that around it has a small puddle where you get to see the reflection of the Pale di San Martino in all its glory, as well as many other possible foregrounds (specially in summer).
Dinner: 8:30/9PM
One last dinner to celebrate the amazing time we had together – reminishing all the good memories we made and the amazing shots we took!
We are mentioning one last sunrise in the itinerary, even in our very last day: since you’ll probably have to pack things up and get ready for your trip back home, you are 100% free to decide whether you’d like to go for it or maybe just sleep in and get ready a bit later. Our recommendation is to see how the weather looks like, depending also on what conditions we got the previous day and then decide.
Breakfast & Check-out: 8:00/9:30AM
Time to pack everything up, get some “juice” for the trip back home and start our drive back towards the airport!
Drop-off: 11:00AM/12:00PM
After a 2h drive back to Venice, it’s unfortunately time to say goodbye: your instructor will help you take the luggages into the building and wish you a safe flight back home!
– Scroll down, find the “book now” button, fill in your details and follow the process to the check-out. You will be able to leave a refundable deposit (500€ x person most of the times) via credit/debit card, bank transfer or even Paypal.
– Scroll down to the very end of the page to find the contact form or visit the “Contact Us” page to, well.. Contact us! We will be more than happy to help you with any request you have and set up the ideal workshop you have in your mind – and ultimately give you all the details to complete the deposit and secure your spot on the tour.
In either case, we only ask for a 500€ deposit to confirm your spot – we will then reach out around 2 months before your workshop starts with a link to complete the remaining part of the payment. If you booked last minute and need to pay the entire quote right away – we will be in touch as soon as we receive your reservation with the aforementioned link!
Why? So that you to get your own room for yourself without having to share it with anyone else. The single supplement is something we add at cost price (if not less), and as annoying as it might be, that’s something that unfortunately we can’t avoid.
That’s also how we manage to guarantee every workshop departure, even if you are the only participant for that date.
Of course you can opt for the single supplement even if you are traveling with friends and you like to have your own personal space.
– Digital Camera (preferably a DSLR or mirrorless camera, APS-C, micro 4/3 and FF will be more than fine);
– An ultrawide lens (e.g. Nikon 14-24mm, Canon 16-35mm, Tamron 15-30mm, Tokina 16-28mm etc); we recommend a lens with a wide maximum aperture (like f/2.8) in case we might do some night photography.
– A standard zoom lens (e.g. Nikon/Canon/Sigma 24-70mm or 24-105mm);
– A telephoto zoom lens (e.g. various Nikon/Canon/Tamron/Sigma 70-200mm);
– A super telephoto zoom lens (e.g. Sigma/Tamron 150-600mm); this lens is not necessary but we recommend it anyway since it allows to capture the far away details of the landscapes;
– A sturdy tripod that permits to do some long exposure photos, specially at twilight;
– A set of ND filters; these are the only filters we feel to recommend, since they become useful when you need to stretch the exposure time a little bit during some difficult light conditions;
– A camera remote to avoid blurry shots.
To start a Whatsapp chat, simply click on Leo's name down here!
