6 Day American Southwest Photography Workshop

The adventure begins bright and early on day two! After breakfast, you'll travel towards the Death Valley National Park in California – the driest and hottest location within North America. Located on the border of California and Nevada, this famous arid desert destination is well-known for a number of spectacular sights.

Our first stop will be at the Mesquite Sand Dunes. This vast expanse has been made quite special over time by the interaction of strong winds amidst the mountainous landscape. Here, the sands have gathered to form 30 metre high (100 foot) dunes. We'll capture the enchanting light and the movement of the wind as it whips across the sand, making for a surreal sight.

In the afternoon, we'll make a brief stop at Furnace Creek, before heading to Zabriskie Point. The undulating eroded landscape here offers many compositions. We'll take our time exploring it in detail, before getting ready for a sunset session at Badwater Basin – an expansive salt flat with incredible textures that look brilliant beneath the sunset light.

We'll then return to Las Vegas for dinner and settle in for the night.

On day three, we'll rise early for a sunrise session within the Valley of Fire State Park. We'll explore an isolated section of the park on the Fire Wave Trail, where the scenery is characterised by breathtaking red and orange-coloured sandstone, glowing beneath the sunlight. We'll take our time making the most of the leading lines as we practice important composition techniques in photography. We'll then hike to the Elephant Arch and Mouse's Tank, before packing up and continuing the journey towards Page in Arizona.

Once we arrive in Page, we'll check in to our hotel where we'll be based for the next two days. There will be some time to freshen up, before we make our way out to a sunset session at the spectacular and easily-recognisable Horseshoe Bend. This is where the meandering Colorado River forms a wonderful loop as it snakes across the landscape. We'll capture this iconic image from a panoramic viewpoint.

On day four, we'll have a brief discussion over breakfast about photography techniques before we head towards the magical slot canyons of Arizona. We'll go over everything you need to know about safety, so you can ensure that you'll have a safe shoot.

The highlights of the day will be the soaring natural arches of the Rattlesnake Canyon, as well as the magical geology of the Upper Antelope Canyon, where rays of light bounce off the dusty red walls.

In the afternoon, we'll head into the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park, where we'll photograph the otherworldly rock formations known as the Toadstool Hoodoos while the sun sets ovehead.

On day five, we'll have breakfast followed by a masterclass post-processing session, during which you'll have the chance to seek critique and valuable feedback on the photos you have already taken.

After lunch, we'll have a private photo tour of the best kept secret in Arizona – the protected Secret Slot Canyon. Here, swirling smooth curves are highlighted by rich colours amidst beautiful beams of light as sand trickles in from above. It makes for a number of stunning compositions, particularly with a wide angle lens.

Later in the evening, we'll journey back towards Las Vegas, where we'll check in to our hotel for the night. There, we'll meet for one last dinner as a group where we'll no doubt have a wonderful time going over all of the vivid memories that we've garnered from this incredible adventure.

This will be our final day. When the time is right, you'll take a transfer back to Las Vegas airport, where you'll be able to fly home or onwards to your next destination with memory cards full of fantastic images from the breathtaking American Southwest.