NEW! London Urban Photography Workshop
SEE BELOW FOR 2025 DATES
I am excited to bring this new workshop to you - two day-long tours of some of the best photographic spots in London. Our capital is arguably the best place in Britain to do urban photogpahy, with a wide range of dramatic scenes, and wonderful architecture.
To begin with I am running this workshop over the weekend of November 8th-9th. From next year the workshop will run in February as well as November. At these times of year the sun does not get too high in the sky, which makes light conditions more favourable. Also, sunrise and sunset times make golden and blue hour photography more convenient.
To see the sorts of images you will be able to achieve on these workshops, please peruse the gallery below of my own images. To see images taken by attendees on a trial run of this workshop, view this gallery.
The number of attendees is limited to three, in order to ensure plenty of access to each shooting spot and to make sure you get as much guidance from me as you want. I can also model in some of the shots if desired (you can see me in some of the images on the Manchester workshop page).
London has lots of potential for interesting and arresting photography, both 'straight', and creative (using intentional camera movement, collage, and/or multiple exposure).
In the workshops we can focus on straight or creative styles (or both) depending on the interests of the attendees. We will also shoot during daylight and night time to get a wide variety of light and colour conditions.
After the workshop you can also participate in a post processing Zoom session, in which I will demonstrate how I would edit your images.
SCHEDULE
There are two days, lasting 6.5 hours in all and including a break for food and drink at a cafe. The schedules for each day are given below. They are flexible, however, according to the interests and energy levels of the attendees. You can book for just one day, but you are very welcome to book both days if you wish.
Saturday:
- Meet on the north side of London Bridge, brief orientation
- London Bridge/Thames/Shard Views, including the staircase down to the riverbank, and the Trapezoid (see above)
- Cross London Bridge for reflections and architectural shots
- Walk to the Scoop for various views including the Scoop, Tower Bridge and the City skyscrapers
- Nearby 'More London' for stunning views of the Shard and Tower Bridge, as well as the fantastic modern architecture
- Break in a nearby cafe for drinks, snacks, and chat
- Tower Bridge for blue hour shots of the Thames, and iconic buildings on both sides
- Light trails on Tower Bridge
- Walk to the City for more iconic architectural views, including the Lloyd's Building, the Leadenhall Building, and the Gherkin
- A visit to the stunning Leadenhall Market (if time allows)
Sunday:
- Meet at the east end of Westminster Bridge, brief orientation
- Shots of the bridge and Houses of Parliament, and the classic view through the archway
- Shots of the Covid Memorial wall, passersby etc.
- Cross the bridge and on to Parliament Square for iconic views of Big Ben and the famous red telephone boxes
- North side of Big Ben for a different view (multiple exposures work well here)
- Back onto Westminster Bridge for long exposure shots of buses passing by, with Big Ben in the background
- Walk to Leake Street, an underpass with probably the best display of graffiti in the UK - as well as the artists themselves at work
- Short walk to the Pret a Manger in Southwark for breakfast/coffee/tea and a chat
- Walk (or Uber if preferred) to the Tate Modern
- Views of the Main Hall (multiple exposure works well here)
- The classic concrete curving staircase at the Tate
- Views of the Millennium Bridge, above and below, with St Paul's in the background
- Cross the bridge to St Paul's
- Classic views of St Paul's, as well as reflections in the water feature and reflections inside the shopping centre
- The lovely steel/glass staircase inside the shopping centre
WORKSHOP DATES 2025
Saturday 8th November, 12.30-7.00pm - 3 places available
(sunset 4:02pm)
Sunday 9th November, 6:00am-12.30pm - 3 places available
POST PROCESSING ZOOM SESSION
You can also take part in a 2-hour post processing tuition session via Zoom. This will cover both straight and creative image processing in Lightroom and Photoshop. You can send me your images and I will demo my approach to editing them.
I will record the session and send you a copy so you can review the techniques at your leisure. Dates will be arranged at the convenience of the attendees.
FEES
The fee is £195 per person per day.
So to book both days, the fee is £380 per person.
You can also book for two people only, at £300 per person; for two days
the fee is £600 per person. This means that there will only be two of you on the workshop, not three.
Note, VAT does not apply; these are the total amounts.
Post processing: £25 per person for the 2-hour Zoom, with a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 4 attendees per session.
Please contact me for enquiries or to make a booking.
MAKING PAYMENT
Payment is due on booking. I will hold your place for 48 hours until you have made payment. This can be by Paypal or bank transfer.
Please note, I do not accept payment by cheque.
CANCELLATION POLICY
If you cancel up to 14 days before the workshop you will get a full refund. If you cancel up to 48 hours before the start of the workshop you will get a 50% refund.
What You Will Need
1. Camera
2. Tripod (needed for blue hour/night shots)
3. Medium range lens (I use my 18-55mm lens on a crop sensor camera - on a full frame something like a 24-70 would be suitable).
4. Wide angle lens (I use an 11-16mm lens) - very useful for many of the shots
5. Knowledge of how to use/alter camera settings, e.g. mode, manual/autofocus, ISO, aperture, focal length, live view, white balance, exposure delay, exposure compensation