Thank you very much for expressing your interest in my upcoming UK tour 2020 and my fun outdoor dog photography workshops. I call them “Mastering outdoor dog photography” and the most important thing to learn is to have fun!

I have been surprised and delighted at the response from you, with over 400 filling out my expression of interest form.

Given that number, it will be a challenge for me to do one tour, so I've decided I will do a series of trips, starting in March 2020 and ending in September.

My itinerary for locations is as yet undecided, with the exception of me visiting the Norfolk area in March and Scotland in May. Areas I visit will depend upon demand so let me know if you want to go ahead asap.

“My philosophy in my dog photography is always happy dogs enjoying life. The workshops should be highly enjoyable for them and also for you, too. It’s an experience that I hope you will enjoy and treasure as much as the images themselves. Even better it can now be in your special place, near your home.”

THE WORKSHOPS
For my trip I will not be organising group workshops. I will be offering a day's 1-1 workshop with you. If you like, you can share the cost of the workshop with up to three friends and their dogs, but this will be up to you to organise. You will book the workshop with me, I will liaise with you and then you can either have a 1-1 with me, or share the cost with a friend, or up to three others. All dogs that attend my workshops must get on with other dogs. If you don’t have a dog you can arrange for a friend to bring some ‘models’.

TRAVELLING THE UK
I have had interest in my tour from the most southern to the most northern parts of the UK and I am very happy to travel anywhere and everywhere to meet you. I'm extremely excited to be seeing new locations and meet as many dogs, and people who love them, as possible.

WHEN?
I'm starting my trips from March 2020 onwards. My plan is to head out at the end of each month for a few days to a week or two.

LOCATION
It will be up to you to suggest locations you would like for your workshop. This is something that can be arranged much closer to the time and I am very happy to advise on what makes a good location. Once you pay your deposit, or book the shoot in full, I will send you my "Planning your workshop" guide which will help you decide. If you are bringing a dog you know what they like, where they feel comfortable and safe and will have a good time. But your preference may also depend on the time of year. So have a think about this - you don't have to decide now. I will meet you at your home and we will come up with a plan for the day - we will also do some theory/explanation and also some post-production. So it is a mixture of being at your home and out on location.

HOW IT WORKS
Because of the high level of interest in my tour/trips I'm going to be operating a rough "first-come-first-served" policy. In terms of payment I will be offering the ability to pay either a £100 deposit or the full cost of the workshop. 

COSTS
For my tour/trips I will be selling my workshops on an all-inclusive basis. This means you pay a set price and you will get the day with me, plus two 8-page information booklets that include all the content covered, plus a specification sheet which gives you a starting point for settings for various situations. You also get any "after-care" and advice you may need by email or phone. You can also join my new private facebook group “Mastering outdoor dog photography”, which is exclusive to those who are doing or have done a 1-1 workshop with me.

There are no extras and no travel fees to pay - it's an all-in-one cost no matter where you are.

SO WHAT ARE THE COSTS?
It costs £350 for the day's workshop. Time-wise this is roughly about 8 hours and we tend to schedule a start time that means we finish in time for sunset. So this will change as the sunset time changes throughout the year. The costs includes the day’s workshop, of course, but you will also have access to my private facebook group “Mastering outdoor dog photography” which is exclusive to people who have done a 1-1 workshop with me.

HOW LONG ARE THE WORKSHOPS?
They last roughly about 8 hours. 3-4 hours for the first part (the ESSENTIAL skills session), then a break, then 3-4 hours for the second part (the ADVANCED skills session). Sometimes we change location half way through to get variety but also to rest and get refreshments. We can also do some post-production tuition half way through if there is a suitable café or pub to sit in for a couple of hours. Likewise, if we are based from your home for the day we can do plenty of theory/learning inside and then practical outside too, in your garden and also on location. The day is yours so we are entirely flexible.

WHEN DO YOU NEED TO PAY FOR THE WORKSHOP?
Deposit
You can pay a deposit of £100 at any time. This means I will guarantee visiting you when I am in your area. I have gone down the route of arranging one area in the country per month and I go out for about a week or so. If I have not listed your area then please contact me asap as I can still try and find a time to see you. Exact dates are arranged one the full fee has been paid. PAY DEPOSIT

Pay full cost of the workshop
You can pay for the full workshop now. This means that I will liaise with you to agree a specific date you would like me to visit. This is of course subject to my availability so the sooner the workshop is paid in full the more chance I will be able to get to you at a time of year that you prefer.
BUY FULL WORKSHOP

WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL SKILLS?
This part covers:

- Making the best of lighting
- How to engage your dog and keep them interested
- The use of angles, including "shooting from the hip"
- The importance of background, setting the scene and the rule of thirds

WHAT ARE THE ADVANCED SKILLS?
This part covers:

- Shutter techniques – capturing dogs at speed
- Aperture techniques – creating beautiful portraits
- How to photograph more than 1 dog at a time
- How to photograph dogs with people
 

DO YOU NEED A FANCY CAMERA?
No, not at all. But you do need a camera where you can adjust aperture and shutter speed settings.

On-location workshops are great fun and you get to spend time in the great outdoors with dogs enjoying themselves. What could be better?!

BAD WEATHER
Yes, this is Britain and the weather does not always play ball, but I do workshops all year round and there can be inclement weather at any time of the year. I work with both sunshine and clouds and my preference is to get the best light towards the end of the day. Sunrise is good too. If I have planned a workshop and the weather turns out to be pouring with rain we will simply have to postpone. It's part of my job I'm very used to. Should this happen I will liaise with you to try and visit you at the earliest opportunity.

REFUNDS AND CANCELLATIONS
If you have paid the deposit this is refundable at any time, up until you have paid for the workshop in full. Once the workshop has been paid for in full the deposit is non-refundable. This is because I will have spent time planning, and possibly paying, for accommodation, in your area.

WHAT NEXT?
You now have 4 options:
1. You're not ready yet to commit to booking a workshop, so you can stay subscribed to these emails and you can think about it another time. I will keep you on the list and send you messages from time to time about my trips.
2. Pay a deposit, liaise with me to get a month or months in the diary you would prefer a visit.
3. Book and pay for the whole workshop now and we will arrange a specific date for me to visit you.
4. You have decided it's not for you - you are able to unsubscribe from my tour emails and you will no longer hear about them.

If any of this is unclear then please contact me and I will be more than happy to answer any of your questions. Feel free to call me on 07810 516120 if you would prefer.

Thanks and I very much hope to meet you soon!

Best wishes,
Rhian