Photography tour in China
| country: | China |
| departures: | 2008: 2 Nov 2009: 6 Sep, 1 Nov |
| price: | From US $3200 (14 days) including domestic flights only. Price includes 10 nts hotel, 2 nts local guesthouse, 1 nt sleeper train, most meals, photography workshops, tour leader, entry fees |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Visit some of China's most incredible sights including the Great Wall of China and the limestone karst scenery of Yangshuo and hone your travel photography skills under the guidance of photographer Ewen Bell.
With time spent in lessons and learning techniques, lots of time 'in the field' practising and review sessions to look over your work you might just become one of the lucky souls who can earn a living from pressing a shutter.
Ewen was recently voted by the Australian Society of Travel Writers as the 2007 Travel Photographer of the Year, deserved recognition for the depth and quality of the work that Ewen delivers to the travel industry in countless brochures, website and print media articles.
With time spent in lessons and learning techniques, lots of time 'in the field' practising and review sessions to look over your work you might just become one of the lucky souls who can earn a living from pressing a shutter.
Ewen was recently voted by the Australian Society of Travel Writers as the 2007 Travel Photographer of the Year, deserved recognition for the depth and quality of the work that Ewen delivers to the travel industry in countless brochures, website and print media articles.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1-4: | Beijing. Starting in the Chinese capital you'll explore laneways, temples, the Forbidden City and the iconic Great Wall. In the evening of day 4 board an overnight train. |
| Day 5-6: | Xi'an. Home of the famous Terracotta Warriors there is also a whole lot more to Xi'an. Visit the bustling night scenes of the Muslim Quarter and the unique blend of old and new of this vibrant city. |
| Day 7-8: | Longji Rice Terraces. Journey to the 'Dragon's Back', a centuries old man-made landscape of dramatic terraced rice fields and experience some of the ethnic minorities that make up China. |
| Day 9-11: | Yangshuo. This part of southern China is home to some of the most amazing mountain scenery anywhere. Limestone karst mountains rise out of the flat rice fields to create a landscape that will amaze you. Spend time cycling around the villages, learning how to cook the local cuisine and capturing some amazing photos. |
| Day 12-14: | Shanghai. The ultimate city of contrast, modern Shanghai is all glass and steel with some amazing modern skyscrapers, while the back streets and markets remain unchanged from centuries past. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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This tour is an opportunity to learn not only better photography techniques but also how to be a responsible photographer when travelling. Great emphasis is given at the start of the tour about always asking permission before taking photos, respecting those that do not wish to be photographed, and not paying people to have their pictures taken.
The local people that give their time and permission to be photographed rarely receive anything much in return. We encourage all our clients to send us pictures that they have taken so that we can give these back to the locals when we next pass through. On all our tours we return many photos throughout the country. In Ping’an at the Longji Rice Terraces we stay in the locally owned Lequn Guesthouse. This guesthouse is owned by Yibeng and Qing, local Zhuang people. Ping’an has seen a rapid increase in tourism and there are now many guesthouses owned by non-locals. We choose to stay with local hosts who are from the village rather than some of their imported competition. In Ping’an our entrance fees go towards improvements within the village infrastructure. We use local transport around the Guilin area which we rent from a local company. Our group size is kept to a maximum of 8 clients. This is a reflection our desire to not be too over powering in our impact on a destination and our understanding that a group of photographers can be somewhat invasive in large numbers. We only run this tour a few times a year and have no desire to bring weekly groups through these regions. Our small office is, apart from accounting requirements, paperless. We deal with customers electronically and do not print brochures to distribute. By remaining only as an online presence we reduce the wastage associated with producing annual brochures. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |