Once again, it’s time to review the past year and prepare for the new one! And why not as well share with you some of my favourite images taken this year in Asia? And why not as well write another post full of juicy SEO keywords? Yeah, I have no shame! I am talking here about Pics of Asia photography tours! So let’s keep it short and sweet, let’s go!
My 2023 favourite photography tours in Asia
You know it, all my photography tours in Asia are the best! If I didn’t like them, I would either change the itinerary or just stop running them. So it’s very hard for me to say which tour is my favourite. To be honest with you, whether one of my photo tours is great or not is not about the locations, but more about the group dynamic. And I have had some pretty insane people joining my photo tours in 2023.
North Vietnam Reflections photography tour
Starting with the first edition of my new North Vietnam reflections photo tour. This was the first time that I ventured up North Vietnam during the rice planting season. And surely I wasn’t disappointed by the great photo opportunities this tour offered.
North Vietnam photo tour with an insane French group
Later on that year, I went back again to North Vietnam to run my first photography tour in partnership with Regis from Asia Travel Photography. All the participants were French so I had some doubts about the fun of this photo tour! And oh boy was I wrong! One of the craziest groups I have ever taken on a photography tour in Asia. Singing in the bus, jumping up rice fields and of course dinner karaoke! No need to say more, this video will help!
Vietnam Central Highlands photo tour
For someone who loves coffee, what is better than travelling and shooting in the coffee area of Vietnam? 2023 was the year I ran my first photography tour in the central highlands of Vietnam. And I discovered some pretty epic scenes, the way I love them: the coffee factories. People at work, smoke and soft light!
Sri Lanka photography tour
Honestly, the more I travel to Sri Lanka the more I love this country. And this year I found that Sri Lanka was such a perfect place for teaching people photography to my groups. It is busy but not too busy, and the food is just so good! I have decided to modify the itinerary for 2024 and make it longer. More on that below.
Focusing on my photography teaching skills
2023 has been another year where I have focused on my skills as a photography teacher. As my photography has evolved quite a lot in the past years, so have my photography teachings. I won’t talk too much about that as it’s hard to communicate the way I physically teach my photo students, but I am focusing more and more on teaching how to handle very busy scenes. Being based and travelling through Asia, I am often faced with very busy scenes to photograph (like markets, or busy villages). By the way, I have written a brand new tutorial where I talk just about that!
Oh, and I also took my family on a trip to Ladakh over the summer. More on that here.
Lots of commercial photography in Asia in 2023
As you probably know now, the quiet COVID time allowed me to dive back into my commercial photography with my company Danang Photographer. And in 2023 I did some pretty nice commercial photo and video shoots for big brands in Vietnam like the Intercontinental Resorts and Shilla. I have also travelled through Vietnam for some very fun fashion photography with the great team of Metiseko.
I also challenged myself to jump back into the studio and “re” learn how to use lights. I have the chance to have some pretty cool clients in Hoi An that allow me to shoot cool food and beverage projects! By the way, if you happen to be in Hoi An, make sure you go and visit the only real bakery we have here: Em’s Bakery!
A few brand new photography tours in Asia for 2024
Along with my classic photography tours in Asia like North Vietnam, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, I have launched several brand new photography tours.
I have also changed the way I built my tours to simplify the whole process for all participants. I have now included as part of the tour the day before and after the actual shooting days. All my tours now include airport pick-up and the welcome group dinner. They also include the airport drop-offs on the last day. I believe this will make it easier for everyone who just wants to be taken along in a new country and focus entirely on their photography.
Best of Central Vietnam photography tour
After years of running short photography tours in central Vietnam, based around my hometown of Hoi An, I have decided to combine several of these epic photo tours into a giant one: the best of central Vietnam photo tour. From the South coast of Quy Nhon to the lagoons around Hue, I will make you discover the best locations that I have discovered while living here for almost 17 years! If you like sunrises, if you like fish and friendly people, you will love this tour!
Cambodia Photography tour
Another close collaboration with my brother from another mother in Cambodia! I am going to be running my very first photography tour in Cambodia in partnership with Regis from Asia Travel Photography. This is the second time that I am going to run a tour with Regis, and believe me, not the last!
Both of us will also follow up with a photography tour in North Vietnam. If you need a dose of French men then you could book these 2 tours and have almost a full month of us! Can you believe the delight? 😉
India photography tour
Because of some political unrest in Bangladesh in 2023, I had to improvise and switch countries. I took my group to India, particularly to an area that I always wanted to travel to: Mumbai and Gujarat. From these insane 2 weeks there with a very crazy fun group, I have refined a fantastic itinerary for a photography tour in India in 2024.
Starting and ending in Mumbai, this new photography tour will take us to the best photo locations in Mumbai and the remote villages of Gujarat. I believe that this will offer an ideal blend, providing tranquil moments amid rural serenity and the vibrant chaos characteristic of urban landscapes.
Updates itinerary for the Sri Lanka photo tour 2025!
It had been a few years since I felt my photography tour in Sri Lanka was too short. First, it made us move to a different hotel almost every day, which was tiring. I also felt (and my students’ feedback confirmed this) that we could spend more time in some of the best locations in Sri Lanka. And why not add a pit stop in a brand-new location?
The Sri Lanka photography tour will now be a 12-day tour (with 10 days of actual shooting). We are going to spend an extra night in the tea plantations of Nuwara Eliya and Colombo. I have also included a brand new location, between the central highlands and the South coast of Sri Lanka. This remote area is home to numerous local villages, and rice and vegetable fields. This will in my opinion offer us plenty of different photo opportunities.
Oh, and I have also decided to run this photography tour in January of 2025 to make sure the rainy season is long gone by the time we get there. Oh, and Lee Starnes will also be joining this tour as co-leader with me if we get enough participants!
Some of my photography tours in Asia are already almost fully booked. If you’d like to join one of them, visit a fantastic country and improve your photography skills, be in touch! And again, a very happy new year 2024 to everyone!
