Photography Tour of Tuscany and the Val D’Orcia
A unique photographic experience among the famous Tuscan hills, villages and the typical flavours of the land of Dante
Living the Val d’Orcia in spring is like entering a picture. In this region where time seems to stand still among the scattered houses and incredible nature, you will learn the art of photography with our two Italian instructors Claudio & Riccardo.
September 30 to October 3, 2022
Photography Tour of Tuscany and the Val d’Orcia
The Val d’Orcia is one of Tuscany’s six World Heritage sites. The valley’s landscape of gentle, rolling hills was the subject of many Renaissance paintings, especially by the painters of the Scuola Senese, The Siena School, mentioned in the Val d’ Orcia’s UNESCO nomination.
The region has everything that visitors to Tuscany come to see and experience, from the powerhouse DOCG wines of Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile to spa towns like Bagno Vignoni, whose “baths” in the public square are fed by springs of Monte Amiata, which marks the southern boundary of the territory. There are abbeys and gardens–and that zig-zagged strada bianca lined with cypresses that has come to be a symbol of this territory and reflects Criterion (iv) of the UNESCO nomination: “The Val d’Orcia is an exceptional reflection of the way the landscape was re-written in Renaissance times to reflect the ideals of good governance and to create aesthetically pleasing pictures.”
During this photography tour of Tuscany, we will stop to photograph the magnificent medieval village of San Gimignano called “Manhattan of the Middle Ages” with its towers and its views. Next, we’ll go to Monteriggioni, a medieval walled city, where we will stay in a typical farmhouse. Finally, at the end of the tour on Sunday, we will focus our objectives on the majesty of Florence, discovering secrets, stories and contrasts until evening.
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
What to expect from your photography tour of Tuscany:
- Stay at a 4 star hotel
- Private minivan with Air conditioned
- At least 3 photography lessons every day, plus extra night shots
- Breakfasts and dinner (dinner not included)
- 4 Unesco site’s in one trip: Firenze, San Gimignano, Val d’orcia e Monteriggioni
- Outstanding views for sunsets and blue hour
ACCOMODATION
During your photography tour of Tuscany, you’ll be accommodated in 4-star hotels, in either private or double occupancy depending on your booking. Each places will be located near these sites: San Gimignano, Val d’Orcia and Florence. Diner & Breakfast are always included. You are welcome to follow us with your car or motorbike if you want.
Note: Shared rooms can be shared with a partner or friend. Don’t hesitate to let us know as soon as you book.
With two professional photographers originally from the region, you will be guaranteed to be at the right places at the right times for amazing photography.
During these 3 days you have these lessons on field:
- Feel comfortable with your camera, learn the basics buttons functions
- Learn rules composition and practice with your camera manual modes.
- Learn how to make architectural pictures, practice with geometry and apply the correct corrections.
- Practice with long exposure, get the perfect shots with tripod and improve the pictures.
- Correct in-camera the colors, practice with RAW, and learn how to choice the best lens for each situation.
- Outdoor photography, use of balanced flash and play with light in sunny days.
- Filter usage and apply to the correct situation to enhance your picture.
- Night photography, and effects (silksea waterfront, lightpainting, lightwriting etc), star trails and astronomic shots.
- HDR and panoramic photo, usage of in-camera options to create the publish-ready image.
- Journal making and smartphone Photography classes.
- Street photography, artist’s effects and panning / tilting effects.
- Learn the best tricks to categorize, select and edit / enhance the best pictures from the trip.
- Get full of suggestions, tips and tricks and explanation on your camera functions.
What is included?
- All photo classes from our instructors during the trip, unlimited questions
- Guided tours in town by our instructors and explanations of each area during the trip
- Welcome drink and tour plan guide with all information’s.
- Transfers from Florence with a private 9 places Minivan equipped with WiFi onboard and air conditioning (or you can follow us by your car or motorbike).
- 3 nights in hotel 4 stars (breakfast included)
- Snack & Refreshment during the tour
NOT included:
- Arrival and departure costs from/to Florence to your home (Flight, car rentals, etc..).
- Lunch during the trip and dinners (in each city we will reserve a “free time “of one hour to have your own lunch or spend time as you want).
- Travel insurance.
- Photography equipment (if you need camera / lenses or other equipment, get in touch with us for a special rental offer).
In option:
- Balloon flight early in the morning. To book your spot, please send us an email after you registered for the trip (romandie@swissphotoclub.com)
Tickets
FAQ’s
Unless otherwise stated in the course description, the group conversations will be in English.
Our instructors are all at least bi-lingual, so we will probably be able to help you in your own language in private, in case of any questions. Please check before registration if you do not feel comfortable in English.
If for some reason you can’t make it on the trip, please email us ASAP by simply sending an email to hello@swissphotoclub.com.
The following conditions apply to cancellations and booking changes for the trip:
Up to 90 Days: 20% of the price is held as cancellation
89 – 31 Days: 50% of the price is held as cancellation
30 – 0 Days: 100% of the price is held as cancellation
Tickets are not for resale.
No. The application is open to everybody who have the passion for photography and learning. This trip is for beginners as well as for pros because we believe that we all have different talents and we can all learn from each other. Even though, a basic knowledge of photography is highly recommended.
Once we receive your payment, we will get back to you with a short survey or a call to get to know your preferences for language and accommodation. As the trip gets closer, we will keep in touch with you again to confirm the trip, introduce the instructors, update you on the progress and communicate the full program.
For shared rooms, we strongly recommend that you book with somebody you already know and are comfortable to share the room with.
If you book a shared room alone, that means you accept to share your room with any other participant regardless of gender or age.
With individual booking of a shared room, your booking can only be confirmed if there is another individual shared room reservation with us. Otherwise, depending on the time and availability, you have the option to upgrade to a private room reservation.
If you decide to upgrade to private room, the conditions depend on the timing of your decision, pending of course on the availability.
Before the trip: Possible by paying the price difference at the time of your decision (e.g. if you bought an early bird ticket but decided to upgrade during normal prices, you pay the difference at normal prices).
After the trip has started: If you decide to upgrade during check-in, if there is room available, you will have to pay the price difference plus 20% of your original payment as penalty.
No. This trip will be organized by and for Swiss Photo Club only.
Children:
Your children must be at least 16 years old to join.
Pets:
We want to offer the best conditions to all the participants. That’s the reason why the pets are unfortunately not accepted.
Allergies and/or food intolerances:
We take seriously your allergies/ intolerances. You should let us know about everything when we’ll contact you.
Additional photo equipment:
We have a partnership with great photography manufacturers. If you need to buy photo gear for your trip, do not hesitate to contact us and we will send you a quote (hello@swissphotoclub.com).
There is no insurance included in the weekend photography trip. Please make sure you have health, travel and accident insurance coverage.
We will ask you to give us a way to get in touch with a contact person of your choice before the trip.
You and your beloved ones can contact all of us during our trip and our team back in Geneva and Zurich.
In case of any special allergies or medical treatments, we highly recommend to contact your doctor before applying for the trip.
Swiss Photo Club does not provide any insurance.
You can either pay via:
- Credit Card (fastest/prefered option),
- Bank Transfer (bank details – purpose: name sept trip)
- Invoice (send us an email with full name and billing address)
- Cash at any post office
If you’d like to pay by bank transfer, you can make it either by e-banking or from any post office (takes one day to reach us):
E-Banking (1 day):
Account owner: Swiss Photo Club
Address: Rue Henri-Christiné 5, 1205 Geneva
IBAN: CH77 0483 5144 2006 1100 1
BIC / Swift: CRESCHZZ80A
Pay in Cash at Post Office (2 days)
To pay at any post office, you can use the red payment slip below:
- Photography equipment for landscape and night photography (body, lenses, tripod, filters, strap, batteries, sd cards, flash, etc.)
- Laptop with Lightroom or Photoshop for the editing session (optional)
- Warm clothes according to weather conditions
You will get a recommended packing list with your welcome information