Snowdonia Wild Camping Photography Workshop (4th to 6th July 2025)

Description

Join me between 4th to 6th July to wild camp in the mountains of Snowdonia to capture stunning vistas at sunrise and sunset.

This challenging but rewarding long weekend will see you push your photography boundaries, camping high in the mountains to capture scenes at sunrise and sunset that most will never witness. This is why mountain photography is my favourite kind of photography.

In terms of locations, we will stay flexible with the weather. If we have a good window then our aim would be to camp on Snowdon, Wales highest mountain for one of the evenings. This is a stunning location with fantastic views down the Snowdon Horseshoe. However, Snowdon can often be capped in cloud so I will use my knowledge of locations along with the weather forecasts to ascertain the best location. Whatever the weather though, we will explore some stunning parts of Snowdonia and where possible get high up.

You don’t need to be ultra-fit to walk up the mountains and wild camp, but it’s by no means easy either. You should be prepared for around a 4.5-mile walk up with over 2000ft of ascent, if not more, carrying up to 20kg in your bag. This however is part of the fun and allure, it becomes more than photography, it becomes an experience and an adventure and if the light comes, the effort is rewarded and you’ll wonder why you have never done this before.

In terms of camping, it’s not that much different in terms of hardship than camping on a site. You are just rewarded with much better views high in the mountains! We will only need to think about extra’s like taking enough food & water for the trip and ensuring we are equipped for the weather.

You will be expected to be of above average fitness and preferably have hill or mountain walking experience so you understand the terrain you will be entering.

Upon booking you will be sent an order confirmation. email which includes meeting details, kit-list, discount codes and a questionnaire for you to fill out. This questionnaire just allows me to get information about you so I can plan the day appropriately for the whole group.

We will meet early on the Friday and park up. We will discuss plans and decide where to camp given the weather forecast. Our ideal scenario would be an easier hill/mountain the first night to get used to wild camping and a slower pace for the photography so I can provide ample tuition and the second day would be camping higher up.

On Saturday after returning to our cars from the first camp, it is a good idea to have a bit of R&R before heading up for camp 2, so you will be free for a couple of hours to have a stroll, go get some food or whatever takes your fancy before meeting up again. We will then head up for our second camp which I will discuss on the day. In an ideal world, Snowdon would be our objective from either Pen-Y-Pass or Rhyd Ddu but if we can’t do this I have plenty of other hills with photographic opportunity just as good.

On Sunday we will head down after sunrise and have a debrief in a café before you depart. Usually we are finished around 12:00 which allows those with a longer journey home to get back and prepare for a return to the real world!

Throughout the weekend we will look at techniques such as focusing, using a tripod, use of filters vs exposure blending, composition, working with the light and more. However, being an experience-based workshop we will also look at how to get up mountains, best practices, how to and where to pitch and wild camping etiquette.

I am more than happy to discuss other more advanced techniques on 1-2-1 basis as well as to the group, depending on what is beneficial.

The weekend is tailored around you as much as possible and I strive to give each of you on the course the best weekend possible. At the end of the course, you will have hopefully learnt new techniques and taken away some imagery you will be proud of. I am a friendly and relaxed tutor and I welcome you to keep in touch with me after the course to ask me any questions you may have looked over.

There will be a maximum group size of 4 meaning there will be plenty of 1-2-1 time. I will be on hand throughout the day for any questions and my focus will be on ensuring you have the best day possible.

Loan kit can be provided for this trip if you are without yourself. This includes tent, sleeping mat and sleeping bag. Please let me know before the course. There is a £200 deposit on any kit to cover any mis-use or damages within your control. This will be refunded at the end of the course. It may be the case that the tent you are lent is to be shared with another client. You are welcome to use your own wild camping gear, particularly a tent if you prefer to have privacy but the tent must be up to the job of withstanding mountain conditions. Please email me before booking so we can try and determine if the tent is suitable. We must bear in mind that the more tents we have, the harder it may become to find a pitch big enough to accommodate tents.

Please also note, if the weather turns for the worst, we may need to rethink our options and head down to a hostel or cheap B&B. This will not be included in the price but your safety is always my first and main concern. We will still go out regardless for sunrise and sunset and hopefully be up high where possible.

Please note transport isn’t included due to size of wild camping equipment being too large to fit in a car as well as four people but I am happy to drive as many as I can and the rest should car pool if happy to. I am also happy to take one, potentially two people from Wrexham if needed.

There is a £100 deposit required to secure your place on this workshop with the balance due no later than 6 weeks before the workshop.