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§ Workshop — Foundation
SKIN, SAND AND SILENCE
Ouarzazate, Maroc
Departs · 17 October 2026 · 8 days
SOLD OUT
A photographic descent into raw earth, shifting light and desert silence. Between ancient walls and distant dunes, the body becomes the measure of the landscape, where skin meets sand and photography learns to listen.
This is not a journey through Southern Morocco made to collect places. It is a slow descent into a substance older than ourselves: raw earth, shadows falling sharply across walls, wind shifting the sand and turning every distance into a question.
We arrive in Ouarzazate on Sunday, while the group still carries in its eyes the city it has left behind and the landscape has yet to ask anything of us. This is the moment of welcome, of a shared table, of the first words exchanged. Nine people: six students, Luca, a model and an assistant. A small, temporary community that, over the course of a week, will learn to look with greater attention. We do not set out to consume the desert; we set out to listen to it, allowing it to determine the rhythm.
Monday leads us to Aït Ben Haddou. In the morning, the ksar reveals itself as a body shaped by light: earthen walls, stairways, thresholds and passageways where time seems to have stopped without ever becoming still. Here, photography encounters architecture not as a backdrop, but as a presence. Every portrait must understand where it stands; every figure must measure its scale against the landscape. In the afternoon, we return towards Ouarzazate, to the desert above the Atlas Studios, where the land opens out and cinematic fiction gives way to a more elemental geography. We work with the relationship between body, distance, fabric, shadow and horizon.
Tuesday morning takes us inside the Atlas Studios. This is a place where cinema has built cities, armies, palaces and memories that belong to no single age. Photography does not seek the anecdote of the film set; it looks for the tension between what was constructed to be seen and what, before the lens, can become mysterious once again. In the afternoon, the journey continues towards an abandoned petrol station, a cinematic relic in the landscape, before we leave for Zagora. Evening does not bring the work to a close; it simply moves it elsewhere. The hotel becomes an interior to inhabit photographically—with its swimming pool, its rooms, its subdued light, and the possibility of making rest itself part of the narrative.
On Wednesday, the road carries the group from Zagora to M’Hamid. The Drâa Valley unfolds like an ancient sentence: palm groves, earth, traces of passage, colours gradually becoming more austere. M’Hamid is not merely a geographical stop; it is a threshold. Beyond it, the desert assumes a different voice. Here, we photograph into the night and sleep in the desert, in a state of attentiveness, far removed from the noise of ordinary life. The model is not a decorative presence placed within the sand: she becomes the human measure of the landscape—gesture, silence, clothing, skin and shadow. Portraiture, fashion, glamour and, where the project calls for it, a more exposed image: every choice arises from the same need for precision.
Thursday morning still belongs to M’Hamid. We work for as long as the light and the sequence demand, into the early afternoon. The group then sets out for Merzouga. It is a long crossing, but not an interruption: on board, we rest, review the photographs, talk about photography and mentally reassemble what has been made. The journey itself becomes part of the teaching. By the time we arrive that evening, everything must already be prepared: dinner waiting, the table laid, rooms assigned, no unnecessary searching in the darkness. The group enters the hotel as though stepping onto the next page of a story.
Friday takes us to Erfoud and the works of Hannsjörg Voth: the Escalier céleste, the Spirale d’Or, and the Cité d’Orion. Three monumental presences in the desert, built from earth and turned towards the sky. They are not scenery; they are architectures of thought. Here, the photographic work encounters a larger question: how can a body inhabit the landscape without dominating it? How can an image preserve the mystery of scale, astronomy and matter? The towers, the spiral and the staircase become forms through which photography attempts to speak of that which cannot be measured.
Saturday belongs to Merzouga. The dunes of Erg Chebbi offer the group another kind of light—more fluid, more open. The 4×4 enters the sand, the dromedaries wait, and the wind leaves traces that endure for only a few minutes. This is the day of synthesis: it is no longer a matter of searching for isolated images, but of understanding the sequence that is beginning to emerge. The desert never offers a neutral background; it forces us to choose. Every photograph must understand what it carries within it from the days before: the earth of Aït Ben Haddou, the cinema of Ouarzazate, the interiors of Zagora, the night in M’Hamid, the celestial architectures of Erfoud.
On Sunday, we return to Ouarzazate. But the return is not a simple ending. We come back with a series still taking shape, with images that remain alive and with the responsibility to edit them, place them in relation to one another and remove what is unnecessary. What remains is not merely the memory of a week in Southern Morocco. It is a new grammar: the body as measure, the landscape as presence, light as a form of knowledge.
Because a workshop does not end when the journey is over. That is when the most difficult work begins: understanding what we have truly seen.
§ The Itinerary
The Itinerary
§ Phase 01
Arrival · Ouarzazate
The First Shared Table
Arrival in Ouarzazate, time to settle and an opening conversation over the welcome dinner offered by London Photographic Workshop. The group begins to read the route as a single photographic narrative.
§ Phase 02
Earthen Architecture
Aït Ben Haddou and the Atlas Threshold
Morning work inside the ksar of Aït Ben Haddou, following light across walls, stairways and thresholds. In the afternoon, the body enters the open desert landscape above the Atlas Studios as a measure of distance, fabric and shadow.
§ Phase 03
CINEMA AND THE ROAD
Atlas Studios, Abandoned Frames and Zagora
A photographic session in the Atlas Studios, subject to confirmed access, followed by work around a cinematic roadside relic. The journey continues towards Zagora, where interiors and evening light become part of the visual sequence.
§ Phase 04
THE DRÂA · M’HAMID
The Desert Begins to Speak
The road follows the Drâa Valley through palm groves and earthen settlements towards M’Hamid. We work into evening and, when conditions permit, beneath the night sky, before sleeping at the desert threshold.
§ Phase 05
THE LONG CROSSING
From M’Hamid to Merzouga
A final morning session in the dunes, followed by the long journey east. Time on the road is used for rest, discussion and an initial review of the work before the group reaches its Merzouga base.
§ Phase 06
ERFOUD · HANNESJÖRG VOTH
Architectures Turned Towards the Sky
Subject to access confirmation, we travel by suitable vehicles towards the Escalier céleste, Spirale d’Or and Cité d’Orion. Body, architecture and desert are composed through scale, geometry and the tension between human presence and immensity.
§ Phase 07
ERG CHEBBI
Skin, Sand and the Last Light
A day among the dunes of Erg Chebbi with local drivers and selected dromedary moments. Dawn, wind and sunset guide the final field work as the images begin to form a coherent sequence.
§ Phase 08
Return · Edit
What the Desert Leaves Behind
Return towards Ouarzazate and a closing edit. We examine rhythm, repetition and absence, asking what the photographs have truly understood about earth, body, distance and light.
§ Photo Gear
Photo Gear
Bring your own way of seeing.
Everyone will tell you what to bring. This is better than that. That other thing is essential. In photography, what goes into someone else’s bag always seems to be everybody’s business.
I would start with you: what you want to say, the images you are looking for, the tools you feel at home with. Heavy equipment tires you out. A slower process takes time. Yet a view camera may give you precisely the image you imagined; a collodion portrait may reward all that preparation with the wonder of the person receiving it. For me, that is worth something.
If your photographic journey revolves around unusual or demanding equipment, talk to us. Tell us what you want to make before deciding that travelling with us could never work for you.
Essential Requirements
Tripod
A sturdy, portable tripod is essential for dawn, sunset, night photography and carefully constructed compositions. Carbon fibre is particularly suitable because it combines stability with lower weight.
Ziplock
Last but not least, two of photography’s greatest secrets: Ziplock & Bongo Ties. Simple resealable food bags to help keep dust and moisture away from your equipment, and elastic ties with a small wooden toggle to secure cables, covers and all those little things that refuse to stay put.
Protecting individual pieces of equipment—preferably with two bags—is a light, practical defence when wind carries sand into every opening.
What we bring for you
There are a few wonders in our bags for you, too. Medium format cameras — yes, including the splendid HASSELBLAD X2D II 100C — to pick up and use. We travel with COLORCHECKER, a complete set of LEE Filters and a matte box, SEKONIC meters and PocketWizard triggers. When the project calls for them, we add PROFOTO and BRONCOLO flash, ARRI continuous lighting, MATTHEWS grip and SUNBOUNCE systems for shaping natural light. Tools that make you want to try again, and see what happens when light finally takes the shape you had in mind.
And then there is Luca, your guide: a true fine art photographer — read: a rather unusual photographer. Do not be surprised if view cameras, ultra-panoramic film cameras and other delightful oddities emerge from his bags. Shh… they are part of the experience, too.
Need a backup camera, a particular lens, a tripod, a head or a monopod? Tell us before departure so we can plan what to bring. Our enthusiasm is considerable. Our carrying capacity has its limits.
Bring your own way of seeing, and we will shape the journey to make room for it.
§ Personal Gear
Personal Gear
Over the years, we have developed a welcome package to make your stay as comfortable as possible and help you make the most of your experience. It brings together a thoughtful selection of essentials—things that are easily forgotten or can be difficult to arrange from abroad.
We begin with one of the most important: staying connected.
Your welcome package includes:
Everything is packed in a protective, waterproof expedition dry bag, ready to accompany you throughout the experience.
§ Travel Conditions
Travel Conditions
Southern Morocco is a major international destination, connected to the world through several well-served airports. Our journey begins in Ouarzazate, the threshold between the Atlas Mountains and the desert.
If your departure city does not offer a convenient route to Ouarzazate, or if reaching it would require an additional domestic flight, simply tell us which Moroccan international airport you intend to use. London Photographic Workshop can arrange to collect you there and bring you to Ouarzazate, or—if you prefer to travel independently—provide the practical information needed to join the group, including suitable transport options, trusted drivers and local guidance.
Once the workshop begins, the route crosses Southern Morocco by private road transport, moving between Ouarzazate, the Drâa Valley, M’Hamid, Erfoud and Merzouga. Main transfers will use a VIP van, such as a high-specification Mercedes Sprinter or Vito; desert tracks and remote sites will require suitable 4×4 vehicles with local drivers.
This is a field-based programme shaped by light, weather, road conditions and confirmed access. Early starts, late finishes and one long transfer day are part of the journey. Timings may be adjusted so that photography follows the strongest conditions rather than a rigid timetable.
Atlas Studios and the works of Hannsjörg Voth are not treated as guaranteed open locations. Photography there remains subject to written access, operational permissions and any conditions established by the custodians. If access cannot be confirmed, an equivalent photographic session will be developed without weakening the narrative of the workshop.
Final arrival instructions, meeting points, confirmed transfers and direct assistance will be shared with every participant before departure.
§ Accommodation
Accommodation
The Arrival · Ouarzazate
The journey begins in Ouarzazate, with accommodation planned at the Berbère Palace or a property of equivalent character and standard. The arrival night and the welcome dinner are offered by London Photographic Workshop, allowing the group to meet before the first working day.
The Drâa · Towards M’Hamid
Along the Zagora axis, the proposed base is Kasbah Oulad Othmane or an equivalent locally rooted property. The choice will follow the rhythm of the route and the need to reach the desert without turning accommodation into a detached luxury interlude.
One Night at the Desert Threshold
Near M’Hamid, one night is planned in a carefully selected desert camp or lodge. The purpose is not spectacle, but proximity: to remain close to the sand after the last light and to be present when the landscape begins again at dawn.
Merzouga · Erg Chebbi
For the eastern chapter, the proposed first choice is Sunrise Palace, with Sahara Pearl Hotel retained as an alternative of comparable role. Both keep the group close to Erg Chebbi and allow the photographic day to begin before the dunes are marked by heat and movement.
The Table Along the Road
Breakfast will usually be taken at our hotels, although on certain days it may be enjoyed on the road, as part of the journey. Dinners will be arranged in the selected properties or in carefully chosen places along the route. Lunches will always be local and characteristic: shared either on the road or in a restaurant that belongs to the landscape and culture of the place we are passing through.
The Final Night
When the route returns to Ouarzazate, the final night before departure is also offered by London Photographic Workshop. Confirmed properties and the final room plan will be communicated once the operational route and group requirements have been closed.
§ Safety & Accessibility
Safety & Accessibility
Travelling Together
There is a particular rhythm to photographing in the desert. We begin together, but gradually each person notices something different. Someone stops beside a wall of raw earth; another follows the movement of fabric in the wind; someone else waits for the distance between a body and the horizon to become exactly right.
I want to leave room for these individual ways of seeing. Exploration belongs to the work, and there will be moments when you wish to move a little farther from the place where the group has gathered. You may do so, always in pairs. Before moving away, let me know where you intend to work, and we will agree on where and when to meet again.
In the desert, even familiar distances can become difficult to judge, and wind can quickly soften tracks in the sand. These simple arrangements allow us to follow our photographs freely while continuing to look after one another.
Planning, Discussion & Staying Informed
Each evening, we will sit down together and look ahead to the following day. We will discuss the route, the photographic locations, the ground we expect to encounter, the time we are likely to spend outside and the equipment the session may require. Before leaving in the morning, we will return briefly to the plan and consider any changes in weather, access, road conditions or light.
A plan gives us direction, but it should never close the door to the unexpected. The desert does not become less compelling while we travel through it on the way to our destination. It is always worth remaining attentive to the landscape around us: unexpected encounters are part of the desert, and nothing prevents us from making an unplanned stop or a brief detour to follow a photographic mirage.
I want everyone to understand the day we are setting out into. This is also the moment to say what you think. A route may feel more demanding than expected; the heat, a long transfer or an activity may make you uncertain; you may simply prefer not to take part in a particular session. Whatever the reason, bring it into the conversation. You do not have to justify a concern before sharing it, and another person's confidence need not determine how you feel.
As the day unfolds, tell me about the smaller things too: tiredness, a headache, a blister, discomfort from the heat, a foot beginning to hurt or any feeling that is unusual for you. These signs are easy to dismiss when the landscape and the photography have absorbed our attention. Please mention them while they are still small.
Local Knowledge, Routes & Vehicles
Our journey crosses Southern Morocco from Ouarzazate through the Drâa Valley and M'Hamid, before continuing towards Erfoud, Merzouga and the dunes of Erg Chebbi. It includes paved roads, a long transfer and remote desert tracks. We will approach these environments with experienced local guides, trusted drivers and vehicles suited to the conditions.
Main transfers will take place in a comfortable private van. Where the landscape requires it, we will continue in suitable four-wheel-drive vehicles with local drivers who understand the terrain.
Walking on Earth, Stone & Sand
The surfaces beneath us will change throughout the workshop. At Aït Ben Haddou, we may move through passageways, thresholds, earthen stairways and uneven ground. Around M'Hamid, Erfoud and Merzouga, firm earth may give way to loose sand, stones or sloping dunes. Each surface asks for a slightly different pace and greater attention to where we place our feet.
Sand makes distances feel longer because every step yields beneath the body. Uneven ground requires balance, particularly when carrying cameras and lenses. Wear closed, supportive footwear with a reliable sole, and choose a camera bag that sits securely while leaving your hands free. A walking pole can provide useful additional support, even for those who normally feel entirely confident on their feet.
When something catches your attention, stop before raising the camera. Find a stable position, settle your balance and then begin to compose. The photograph does not become more urgent than the ground beneath us.
When deciding what equipment to carry, remember that every lens must travel with you even during the hours when it remains unused. Bring what you genuinely expect to work with and leave space for water, sun protection and the clothing the day requires. Reaching a photographic position with enough energy to observe it properly is more valuable than arriving with every piece of equipment you own.
Clothing, Water & the Desert Climate
People who live and work in deserts have much to teach us about dressing for them. Loose, breathable clothing that covers the skin and a head covering that protects the head, neck and face are practical companions for long days outside.
Through the many years I have spent travelling in deserts, I have come to appreciate the *tagelmust*, the traditional Tuareg head wrap, particularly when working as a photographer. We may walk for some time with our equipment and then remain almost motionless while a photograph takes shape. A length of cloth that can be adjusted around the head and neck, or drawn across the face when the wind carries sand, remains useful through all these changes.
In dry air, sweat may evaporate so quickly that we barely notice how much water the body is losing. Keep your water somewhere you can reach easily and drink during the natural pauses in the day. During prolonged heat and exertion, electrolytes from food or an appropriately prepared drink may help replace some of the salts lost through sweating.
If feeling overheated is accompanied by headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion, unusual weakness or difficulty remaining alert, stop immediately and tell your companion and me. Rest, shade and cooling must begin at once, and more serious symptoms require urgent medical attention.
Desert temperatures can change quickly. Warm afternoons may give way to cold evenings, particularly when we work after sunset or sleep near the desert threshold. Bring layers that can be added or removed easily, together with protection from wind and blowing sand.
Sun Protection
Desert light can be beautiful long before it feels severe. Cool air, wind or cloud may make a day outside seem gentle while ultraviolet exposure remains strong.
Bring a broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with SPF 50 or higher, offering protection against both UVA and UVB. Apply it generously to all exposed skin, remembering the ears, the back of the neck and the backs of the hands. Renew it at least every two hours, and after heavy sweating or wiping the skin, following the product instructions.
Sunglasses and a secure hat or head covering are equally important. Keep your sunscreen close to your water, where it remains easy to find when the camera has taken possession of your attention.
Field Guide & Communication
Each participant will receive a carefully prepared printed Field Guide: a practical companion for the entire workshop. It will contain essential contact details, emergency information, maps, meeting points and the travel guidance needed for every stage of the itinerary.
We deliberately favour a printed guide over a purely digital one. In places where mobile data, network coverage and access to electricity may be intermittent, a physical document remains reliable, immediate and always at hand.
Radios will be provided in desert areas to maintain communication between participants, pairs, vehicles and the main group. Local mobile phones with Moroccan SIM cards will also be available for emergency calls and local communication.
No device replaces the simple habit of telling us where you are going and when you intend to return. These arrangements are not intended to make the journey rigid. They create the quiet structure within which freedom becomes possible.
Accessibility & Individual Needs
This is a field-based workshop rather than a journey through controlled indoor spaces. It includes uneven ground, sand, occasional steps and slopes, repeated entry into and out of vehicles, early starts, late finishes and one long road transfer. Some remote locations may not provide level access or nearby facilities.
That does not mean every participant must experience the programme in exactly the same way. If a walk, surface or photographic position is not suitable for you, we will discuss the available alternatives and identify another way for you to participate whenever conditions allow.
If you have particular mobility requirements, a medical condition, concerns about heat or balance, or any other need that may affect your comfort during the journey, speak to us before booking. We can then examine the itinerary together honestly and carefully, considering where adjustments are possible and where the nature of the landscape places genuine limits.
A group is made of individuals, each experiencing the same day differently. Knowing what you need allows me to take that into account—and to give you the attention required to make the journey both meaningful and safe.
§ Post-Workshop
Post-Workshop
After leaving Ouarzazate, where raw earth, skin and shifting desert light had become one visual question, the images ask for the companions who learned to listen to that silence together.
I did not include six months of post-workshop contact by chance, nor as a simple service.
Many years ago, I was teaching an online course that could easily have felt impersonal. Instead, when it ended, the group did not want to dissolve. We had never all sat around the same table, yet years later we are still a living community. From that experience came conversations, magazines, books, friendships and shared ways of looking.
It taught me how valuable a small circle of people can be when they have lived and worked through an experience together.
For this reason, every workshop includes six months of continued contact at no additional cost: a private group, image sharing, feedback, and a form of ongoing tuition shaped by cultural prompts — a book, an image, a thought, an exhibition, or an occasion that may open a new direction in the work.
The event ends. The adventure in photography begins.
§ The Light Map
The Light Map
17–24 October 2026. Around Ouarzazate, sunrise moves from approximately 07:31 to 07:36 and sunset from approximately 18:54 to 18:47. The week loses a few minutes of daylight each day, concentrating the photographic rhythm around dawn and the long descent towards evening.
The first light reveals raw earth slowly. At Aït Ben Haddou and across the southern kasbahs, it separates walls, stairways and thresholds without exhausting their mystery. Late light is warmer and more sculptural, allowing skin, fabric and earthen architecture to enter the same tonal language.
The moon grows from first quarter towards full moon across the workshop. Early evenings carry a balanced division between moonlight and darkness; by the final nights, a fuller moon begins to assert itself over the desert, opening possibilities for silhouettes, measured long exposures and the body as a quiet sign within space.
October is generally warm and dry in Ouarzazate, with seasonal temperatures often around 14–26°C. The altitude creates a marked difference between sunlit afternoons and cooler mornings, while wind can carry dust and change contrast with little warning.
M’Hamid and Merzouga require another attention. The dunes respond immediately to wind: edges sharpen, footprints disappear and the surface is rewritten. Midday light can reduce the sand to glare; dawn and sunset restore relief, colour and the fragile geometry of every ridge.
This Light Map follows earth, skin and shadow. It does not promise a fixed sky; it prepares us to recognise the instant when architecture, desert and the human figure begin to share one light.