LAKE DISTRICT IN AUTUMN
Enjoy the peak of autumn colours in England's finest landscapes with expert guiding, exclusive luxury accommodation and gourmet dining.
This World Heritage Site is a spectacular destination for landscape photography. In early November when autumn colours are at their peak, there is no better place in the British Isles to be with your camera than the Lake District. Our tour will enable you to take your autumn landscapes to the next level.
We will be photographing well-known locations such as Borrowdale, Wasdale, Grasmere, Buttermere and the Langdale Pikes, looking for ways to show them in a different light. In addition, I will take you to lesser-known gems. We will seek out charming waterfalls and Castlerigg Stone Circle in its spectacular mountain setting. The itinerary will be flexible to make the most of conditions. We will use the best sunrise and sunset light and look for opportunities to capture early morning mist and reflections (if conditions are still) as well as saturated autumnal colours, which can look great when conditions are overcast. Several of our shooting conditions are at their best when it is raining!
The tour will involve easy to moderate walks, mostly at low elevations with no mountaineering involved. On this departure we may include one or two hikes of up to two miles (in each direction) with significant ascent. Please contact me for more information and ensure you book on the departure best suited to your ability/fitness.
On one or more evenings we will discuss photographic techniques and review our images. I will provide tuition on composition, using filters to capture moving water, reflections and wet surfaces and on processing images to best effect.
A particular benefit of this tour is that we have exclusive accommodation in a luxuriously-appointed private rented house, with en suite rooms and gourmet meals provided by our resident chef. This tour is fully inclusive of cooked breakfasts, packed lunches and three-course evening meals accompanied by wine, beer or fruit juice. This arrangement provides exceptional dining quality and maximum flexibility to fit meals around our photography schedules.
Group Size: Maximum of six participants, led by Robert Harvey and co-leader Nigel Wilkins.
Recommended photographic equipment: Digital single lens reflex camera, lenses ranging from wide angle (ideally 16mm on full frame) to short telephoto (200mm+), tripod (essential), neutral density filters (ideally 4 stop, 6 stop and 10 stop) and polarising filter. Warm and waterproof clothes, walking boots (essential) and wellington boots (recommended for at least one excursion).
Dates: 3 to 7 November. Meet at lunchtime on Day 1, depart lunchtime on Day 5.
Five day tour, cost: £1,350 (single, twin or double occupancy). Deposit of £650 payable to secure your place, balance due by 31 July 2024.
Included: Accommodation for four nights, all meals cooked by our resident chef, travel from Penrith or Keswick, photographic guiding.
Not included: Transport to Penrith or Keswick.
“The epic vista in many locations - some of which you could have easily spent a whole day on. The variety of subjects, Lakes, Mountains, Boathouses, Jetty’s, Waterfalls, Caves . . along with the tuition and reasons why were were shooting each one when we did was excellent, and helped me to understand how the light at different times of the day, and in different conditions affected each of the locations. The evening meals in Cumbria house were fantastic, with comfy rooms and a drying area, and all en suite, what a find! ”
“We had the desired breadth of photographic opportunity while enjoying comfortable surroundings ... cooking was excellent and ensured we had better food than I imagine was available under any other tour format. Cumbria House was a good base. I much enjoyed the evening session on post-production. Invariably, photo excursions tend to disregard both this and the introductory talk explaining what we were going to do. These were strong plusses to be repeated.”
“Your prior experience of the locations, the best timing and optimum shooting positions, suitable accommodation and general logistics is why I signed up for this and other tours of yours. Given the difficult challenge of the weather, I thought you helped us to get the best out of the locations we visited. In addition, I thought the other participants were a great group to spend some time with. Having a resident chef was a great improvement over the more regimented timing of a hotel ... the evening meals were of exceptional quality for this kind of tour.”
“Extremely well researched venues with attention to the weather forecast. The small group enabled Robert to give time to those needing guidance with their camera settings and composition. Being able to sit together at meal times. Theory sessions. It was fun!”
“The availability of the minibus was essential, particularly as Robert knew the area well and was able to get us to the various locations at the ‘right time’ to avoid other visitors. The flexibility of meal times was also very important, making sure we didn’t miss any good photo opportunities. Perhaps not related to the tour itself, but the group of photographers could not have been nicer, we all got on very well and made it a fun experience ... I cannot compliment Gerard, the chef, highly enough his food was excellent, breakfasts, packed lunches and dinners, everything! ”
“I liked the way the itinerary was thoughtfully re-arranged to make the most of the time available and the photo opportunities depending on daily weather conditions. I appreciated the effort involved in getting us to as many locations as possible, at the optimal time of day, and especially the effort taken to get us to Buttermere for sunrise, which turned out to be quite a challenge. I also appreciated being involved in some of the decision making regarding the itinerary and that everyone’s opinion was taken into account. Robert’s knowledge of the area certainly contributed to the efficiency of moving from one location to another. The number and variety of locations we visited was impressive. I enjoyed meal times together. The number of participants was about right. It was a very pleasant group to spend the week with. The evening spent reviewing a few of our photos and the discussion that followed around different techniques using LightRoom was very instructive ... I also appreciated Robert’s attention and advice in trying to help me make the most of my limited knowledge and equipment. His concern that every member of the group should get the best out of a particular location was clear.”