Private Workshop in Iceland
3 Days of Private Landscape Photo Tutoring in stunning winter landscapes
Private Winter Photo Workshop in Iceland
If you’ve always wanted to get private lessons from me in the most beautiful country for landscape photography, this is your chance. In 3 days and 3 nights, I will teach you everything I know. No secrets, no holding back.
You’re joining me on a 3 day trek towards the rugged Snæfellsness peninsula, where we will focus on creating unique art. From minimal natural abstracts to stunning, high quality aurora composites. The moon won’t trouble us, because it’s new moon this week. Even if the Icelandic weather gods throw clouds at us, I will bring aurora images on my laptop to show you how I process them and even combine them with twilight foregrounds.
This workshop is intended for more advanced photographers, but it really does not matter what your ‘level’ is. I’d be happy to help you with basic settings and tips on composition. Just as long as you have a good time and you get the images you are looking for.
What’s Unique about this Photo Workshop?
It’s a private workshop in Iceland, led by award-winning landscape photographer Daniel Laan.
Winter photo lessons in Iceland!
All the personal attention and privacy you need.
Includes post-processing sessions, with all the latest trends explained, including compositing. I will teach at your level and slightly above to make you better than you currently are.
Includes breakfast, accommodation and transfer to and from the airport!
3 days and 3 nights stay in hotels and guesthouses.
Includes *ALL* Photoshop video tutorials by Daniel.
Why Choose a Private Photo Workshop with Daniel Laan in Iceland?
Ask me anything at any time
Spending quality time with a professional is the fastest way to move your images to the next level.
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High Chance of the Aurora Borealis
We're in Iceland right after a new moon. It’s dark most of the day in winter and far enough from light pollution. All of these factors are aimed at having the best chances of seeing the northern lights.
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Develop your Vision
This workshop is about watching me approach landscape photography in the highest detail. You will not only learn by copying my technique, but I will show you what to look for in order to get original images yourself.
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Like Photographing with a Friend
Despite this being a workshop and working hard to get the picture, I love having fun in the field. There’s zero pressure to perform, no schedule to adhere to and nobody to judge you. I’m here for you and making your images better.
This Workshop in a Nutshell
Bookings: Scroll down and use the booking form.
Dates: February 22nd - 25th 2021
Available Seats: Max. 3
Workshop Leader: Daniel Laan
Language: English (of Nederlands)
Price: 1999 EURO per person (includes private room)
Registration Deposit: 800 EURO (Full amount due 30 days prior to the workshop).
Arrival: Keflavik Airport, February 22nd, no later than 1 PM
Departure: Keflavik Airport, February 25th, flexible departure time (we stay near the airport on the last day).
Included: All tuition. Transportation between Keflavík international airport (KEF) and photo locations along South Iceland and Snæfellsness. All transportation between workshop locations. Entry fees where applicable. All lodging (private rooms). Breakfast. Post-processing sessions. All Laanscapes processing videos.
15% Discount on F-Stop Gear Camerabags & ICU’s.
Not Included: Flights to Keflavík Airport and associated costs. Private insurances, taxes, duty and visa fees. Lunch or dinner and any personal items including (alcoholic) beverages, snacks, souvenirs and travel insurance.
Corona Virus Information
As we move closer to the date, we will provide additional information surrounding Covid-19 here. If you’re fully vaccinated, you don’t have to worry. Should Covid measures absolutely require us to postpone the tour, we will do so if there is no other option.
Itinerary: Highlights of the Iceland Photo Workshop
We will be visiting many different (frozen) waterfalls, glacier lagoons and venture into lands that aren’t well mapped. Not all these locations are listed here though. However, we would like to introduce you to some of the highlights that are included on this workshop.
Day 1: Arrival, Kirkjufell & Snæfellsness
After picking you up at Keflavik airport, we’ll spend our days in Iceland on the peninsula of Snæfellsness, where the iconic triangular mountain is located. Kirkjufell has been featured in many different films and TV-series, including A Games of Thrones. The mountain is probably adorned in snow by the time we arrive, given the road is cleared. We’ve booked you into a great seafront hotel, where we spend two nights.
Kirkjufell looks stunning any time of the day.
Day 2: Snæfellsness in Detail
Now that we’ve bagged our first iconic landmark, it’s time to pay a little more attention to the finer aspects of landscape photography. This day is largely spent by getting to know what makes you tick, so that we can tailor the workshop more towards what you need to make original works of art in a landscape that has been photographed so much. I will guide you to a few other not so famous locations that day. This really is a unique Iceland photo workshop!
Frozen waterfalls can be a great subject. You’ll see a lot of them on this tour!
Day 3: Canyons, Lava Fields and the Drive back to Keflavik
We’ll spend additional time on Snæfellsness, shooting wide landscapes as well as getting in more tight spaces. There are a couple of slot canyons that I would like you to see for yourself. You do need wellies (rain boots) and crampons for this, but a comprehensive list of what to bring will be sent out before the start of the workshop anyway. The point is that you’ll see places and spaces which have not been photographed that much before, as well as some places like the famous black church and the hole in the cliff. Whichever has your preference, I will get you there.
For the last night, we’ll stay at the hotel next to the airport. Flights generally leave early in the day from Iceland.
Payment & Reservation
For workshops, we accept bank transfers, PayPal, Apple Pay and credit cards. Additionally, we can send you a payment request (like Tikkie) for Dutch banks. Use the form below to start your booking. Use one of the checkboxes to reserve a private room and/or pay everything upfront.
Cancellation and refunds
Unfortunate things can happen to anyone. Therefore we handle a refund policy when you have made reservations for this workshop but can’t make it in the end due to whatever the circumstance. Based on the full fee of the workshop, we strictly handle this schedule to cover the costs made on our end.
Cancel 60 days before the start of the workshop or more: Full refund minus € 200 service charge.
45 days or more: 75% refund
31 days or more: 50% refund
Less than 31 days: No refund
Iceland’s Weather and Volcanoes
In 2010, Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull (hey without spelling correction!) volcano ground European air traffic to a halt. In 2019 - about halfway into our workshop in autumn, hurricane-force winds prevented air travel altogether too. Luckily that did not happen upon arrival or departure. Iceland is notorious for its ever-changing weather and forces of nature. So while we do have our fingers crossed for seeing the northern lights, we are at the mercy of the old Norse gods.
The dates are subject to change if extreme weather or natural disasters prevent our workshop from happening.
Image by Thorsten Weber.
Physical requirements for the Iceland Winter Photo Workshop
Most of our destinations are easily accessible by our car and on foot, but snow and ice can make any terrain treacherous and physically intense to traverse. You don’t have to be a marathon runner, but we do ask that you are in reasonable physical condition to be able to keep up with the group and deal with the cold and demanding climate of the arctic.
Please do not come on this trip when you have a heart condition, suffer from epilepsy or severe asthma or when you have a bad leg. This will hinder our ability to show you everything we have in store, but more importantly, it will jeopardize the positive experience of your fellow participants.
What to Bring
We provide an extensive checklist of what sort of gear to bring to prepare you for the workshop. As for photography equipment: any camera with interchangeable lenses will do. Bring two lenses: a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens. We primarily use focal lengths of 14-24 and 70-200mm. Should you want to bring additional lenses, then we first recommend to bring additional focal length. A super telephoto of 100-400 or even 150-600 is excellent to capture details of glaciers, waterfalls and misty mountains. That’s already a heavy bag, but should you want to bring even more, then fill the gap with a 24-70 or prime lens. Also bring a rain sleeve as a barrier against snow and waterfall spray; a plastic one would suffice.
Daniel is an f-stop ambassadors and you can get a 15% Discount on all f-stop Gear Camerabags & ICU’s if you book this workshop. You can bring your new bag to Iceland!
Additionally, a tripod and big memory card and extra batteries are mandatory. Contact us for clothing or other equipment suggestions.
Required Photography Level
As long as you can control the basic settings of your camera and know how to swap lenses, you’re more than welcome to join us. We’ll teach composition primarily and want to focus on taking pictures, not talking about cameras. Cameras are tools to us, so if you’re struggling with your camera, bring your manual!
Indemnity Waiver
All participants are required to sign this standard document before the start of the workshop. Find it here. You will be asked to sign and return it after you’ve booked.
Your Instructor:
Daniel Laan ~ The Netherlands
Moody, ominous landscape photography is as much my passion as it is my career. For more than a decade now, I've had the mindset of developing a specific dark and moody style of photography that shows a part of myself through my images. I have a deep appreciation for the landscape, the weather and find something of beauty in trivial subjects. You could say that I have an instinct for inbound northern lights, having captured the Aurora Borealis successfully as far south as the Netherlands.
With a degree in design and visual communication and over 15 years of experience in Photoshop, it's my goal to train you to look at the landscape differently. While explaining everything from pre-visualizing to exporting for the web or for print, we uncover a truth. That the stunning landscape of Iceland, isn't there to take home with you. The most important aspect is not to bag the best locations, but to appreciate your surroundings; to become aware of things that others walk straight by.
It is with this mindset that I will make you a better artist; and that is something you can take home with you.