Dolomites Photography Workshop: Signature Edition
AN 8-DAY SMALL-GROUP PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP IN THE HEART OF THE DOLOMITES
Learn to see, simplify and make stronger creative decisions in complex mountain landscapes, with close field mentorship and a maximum of six photographers.
The 2026 edition is sold out. Join the 2027 priority list to receive the new dates and booking details before the workshop opens publicly.
If a place unexpectedly becomes available for the 2026 edition, I’ll also let the priority list know.
A note from Andrea
I’ve been exploring and photographing the Dolomites for more than 20 years, and this workshop brings together two things I care deeply about: experiencing these mountains properly and helping photographers become more confident in the decisions they make behind the camera.
Mountain landscapes can be incredibly rewarding to photograph, but also visually overwhelming. Peaks, ridges, forests, valleys, changing weather and light can give you almost too much to work with. A big part of our time together is about learning how to simplify that complexity and decide what really matters in the frame.
The Signature edition combines that intensive photographic experience with a comfortable base throughout the trip. After early starts and long sessions in the mountains, you return each night to your own room, giving you time to rest, recharge and be ready to do it all again the following day.
WHY THIS WORKSHOP
The Signature workshop is built around a simple idea: spend eight days working seriously on your photography in the Dolomites, while having a comfortable base to return to at the end of every day.
We travel at the transition into autumn, when the mountains begin to change character. Depending on the year and altitude, we may encounter autumn colour, mist, low cloud, the first dusting of snow, or clear mountain light. We don’t build the workshop around one promised condition. We use whatever the season gives us.
Over the week, we work across two very different parts of the Dolomites. Around Cortina d’Ampezzo, the landscape is dramatic and complex, with steep mountain groups, high passes, lakes and forests. Later, Alpe di Siusi gives us a completely different visual environment of open meadows, scattered huts, trees and distant mountain layers.
That contrast also gives us very different photographic problems to solve—from finding order among steep, overlapping mountain groups to working with layers, separation and smaller scenes in the more open landscape of Alpe di Siusi.
That variety gives us much more to work with photographically than simply collecting iconic viewpoints. We can move between grand landscapes and smaller scenes, wide-angle and telephoto work, familiar locations and less obvious compositions.
And after early starts, long sessions in the mountains and time spent editing together, you return each night to your own room in one of our carefully selected 4-star hotels. The comfort is intentional: it gives you space to rest, back up your photographs, recharge your equipment and yourself, and be ready to do it all again the following day.
“I’ve always struggled with finding strong compositions in the field, but Andrea’s guidance completely changed that. From watching his process to receiving personal feedback, I left the workshop not only with better images but as a better photographer.”
WHAT’S INCLUDED IN YOUR EXPERIENCE
PACKAGE OVERVIEW
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Personalized Field Mentorship
With a maximum of six photographers, you’ll receive close individual guidance in the field as we work on reading complex mountain landscapes, refining compositions and understanding the creative decisions behind stronger photographs.
Field-to-Edit Learning
Field sessions, image reviews and post-processing work together throughout the week, giving you repeated opportunities to make photographs, understand the results and put what you've learned straight back into practice.
Comfort Where It Counts
Seven nights in carefully selected 4-star hotels, with a private room and bathroom throughout the workshop. After early starts and long days in the mountains, you have your own space to rest, back up photographs and recharge for the next session.
Seamless Logistics
Airport transfers, local transportation, alpine taxis, cable cars, park fees and location planning are taken care of, so your attention can stay on the photography.
Meals & Accommodation
Breakfasts and dinners are included throughout the workshop, combining comfortable accommodation with the local food and hospitality of the Dolomites.
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Travel costs to and from Italy
Lunches, beverages, and snacks
Alcoholic beverage (available but not included in the price)
Tourist tax, which varies from €2 to €3.50 per day/person (to be paid in cash at check out)
Travel insurance with trip cancellation coverage and equipment insurance are strongly recommended.
Tips, extras, access to the hotel spa, and anything else not mentioned in “The Workshop Includes” section
PRACTICAL DETAILS
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With a maximum of six photographers, I can spend meaningful time with each person in the field rather than teaching everyone as though they were at exactly the same level.
We’ll work together on the decisions that happen before you press the shutter: how to read the landscape, identify what caught your attention, simplify a busy mountain scene, choose an appropriate focal length and refine a composition until every element has a reason to be there.
The aim is not for me to show you where to put your tripod. It’s to help you understand why one decision may work better than another so you can gradually make those decisions with greater confidence on your own.
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You don’t need to be an advanced photographer to join the workshop, and you certainly don’t need experience with every technique we may use.
It does help to be reasonably familiar with your camera before arriving so we can spend as much of our field time as possible actually making photographs.
Participants normally arrive with very different levels of experience, so the workshop isn’t built around everyone following the same lesson at the same time.
If you’re earlier in your photography journey, we might spend more time building technical confidence, understanding exposure and becoming more comfortable making decisions in the field.
If you already know your equipment well, we can go considerably deeper into the particular challenges of mountain photography: simplifying visually complex scenes, creating separation between overlapping elements, using layers and atmospheric perspective, choosing focal lengths deliberately, working with changing weather and finding smaller photographs within much larger landscapes.
Before and during the workshop, I also want to understand where you feel most confident and where you tend to get stuck. That gives us something specific to work toward during the week rather than approaching your photography with a generic checklist.
What matters most is curiosity, a genuine desire to improve and a willingness to experiment.
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MODERATE
This workshop is suitable for anyone with a good level of fitness. We’ll hike at altitudes between 2,000 and 2,500 m, sometimes higher, on rocky and uneven terrain with some short but quite steep sections, so having a sure footing and balance is really important. The longest hike, such as the trail to Rifugio Locatelli at Tre Cime di Lavaredo, takes about 2 hours with roughly 200 m of elevation gain.
Still, you’ll want to pack light, as you’ll be carrying your camera gear and tripod for up to two hours at a time, and while none of the routes are technical, the altitude and cumulative effort of two hikes per day can make the experience physically demanding if you’re not prepared.
We always move at a comfortable pace, allowing plenty of time to enjoy the landscapes and photograph along the way.
If you’re used to flat terrain, have respiratory or mobility limitations, or are unsure whether your current fitness level suits this kind of activity, please contact us before booking so we can help determine if this workshop is the right fit for you.
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The Dolomites are a mountain environment, and no particular light or weather condition can be guaranteed. We may encounter clear skies, cloud, rain, mist, wind, early snow or several of those conditions during the same workshop.
The same applies to autumn colour, reflections, dramatic sunrises, clear night skies and other conditions we would naturally love to photograph. They are possibilities, not promises.
The locations described in the itinerary give us a strong range of options rather than a checklist we have to complete. If weather, access or safety make another choice more appropriate, we adapt the plan and work with the strongest photographic opportunities available to us.
A TYPICAL DAY
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The workshop is deliberately structured so that what we discuss doesn’t remain theory for very long.
On most days, we’ll photograph during the morning, return to review and process images, discuss decisions that worked or could be improved, and then head back into the mountains for another field session.
That creates a simple learning cycle throughout the week:
Photograph → receive feedback → review the result → understand the decision → go back into the field and apply it again.
In a mountain environment this is especially useful because no two sessions give us exactly the same problem to solve. A clear morning may be about scale and layers. Fog may reduce the landscape to a handful of shapes. Strong afternoon light may push us toward smaller details or distant ridges rather than the obvious wide view.
Instead of learning a technique once, you get repeated opportunities to test the same ideas against different landscapes, light and weather.
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On most days, we start early so we’re in position as the landscape begins to change with the first light.
Sometimes that means dramatic light on the peaks. Other mornings may give us cloud, mist, flat light, strong silhouettes or only brief openings between changing conditions. Rather than waiting for a particular type of sunrise, we’ll work with whatever the mountains give us and look for the strongest photographic opportunities within those conditions.
After the morning session, we return to the hotel for breakfast and some downtime. That rest is deliberately built into the workshop: early starts and mountain photography can be physically demanding, and having time to recover helps keep the week enjoyable and productive.
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Later in the morning, we reconvene to work with the photographs we’ve just made.
Rather than treating post-processing as something separate from field photography, I use these sessions to complete the decision-making process.
We can look at why one composition feels stronger than another, what could have been simplified in the field, whether the original exposure gave us what we needed and how processing can reinforce the mood, depth and visual hierarchy already present in the photograph.
Depending on the group, we'll work with Lightroom or Capture One and Photoshop, covering everything from RAW development and local adjustments to exposure blending, luminosity masks, panoramas, dodge and burn and other techniques when they genuinely help the photograph.
All group processing sessions are recorded and shared with participants, so you can revisit the demonstrations after returning home rather than trying to remember everything during an already intensive week.
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The afternoon gives us the chance to take ideas discussed earlier in the day straight back into the field.
Sometimes that may mean refining something you struggled with in the morning. Other times the landscape gives us a completely different challenge.
As light begins moving across the mountains, we'll work on finding order in complex scenes, separating overlapping layers, using shadow and light to guide attention and deciding whether the strongest photograph is the grand view in front of us—or a much smaller detail hidden within it.
DOES THIS SOUND LIKE YOUR KIND OF WORKSHOP?
The 2026 Signature edition is sold out. Join the priority list and you’ll be among the first to receive the 2027 dates and booking details when the next workshop opens.
WHAT’S ON THE ITINERARY
DAY 1 - 5 EASTERN DOLOMITES / CORTINA D’AMPEZZO AREA
The itinerary below shows the areas and photographic opportunities available to us during the workshop, rather than a fixed shooting schedule. In the mountains, light and weather ultimately decide where we go. We’ll choose each session according to the conditions and where I believe we have the strongest photographic opportunities.
CORTINA D’AMPEZZO AREA | 4 NIGHTS
We’ll pick you up from Venice Marco Polo Airport and travel together to our first base near Lago di Misurina, close to Cortina d’Ampezzo. After settling into our rooms, we’ll head out for our first photographic session that evening.
This part of the Eastern Dolomites gives us access to very different mountain environments within a relatively small area, from the dramatic rock formations around Tre Cime and Cadini di Misurina to the high passes of Giau and Falzarego.
The Tre Cime area will be one of our main photographic playgrounds. Its trails give us opportunities to work with the famous towers themselves, the jagged formations of Cadini di Misurina and the relationships between foreground, ridges and distant mountain layers. Depending on the conditions, we can move between wider views and much tighter compositions as light and weather change across the landscape.
Other photographic options around Cortina include Passo Giau, Passo Falzarego and Lago di Braies, with the locations we choose depending on the conditions.
Giau gives us everything from expansive views around Ra Gusela to longer-lens compositions across the surrounding mountain groups. Around Falzarego, the short walk to Lago Limedes can offer a more intimate combination of water and mountain scenery, while Lago di Braies gives us opportunities to work with reflections, boats, repeating shapes and smaller details as well as the wider landscape.
Another nearby location is the iconic Lago di Braies where floating row boats contrast with the turquoise waters. It’s an easy location where we can focus on composing shots with the peaks reflected in the perfectly still waters or work on abstracts of the boats.
4x4 Alpine Lake Experience
From our base near Cortina d’Ampezzo, Lago Federa is another photographic option we can reach using a local 4×4 alpine taxi.
The lake sits beneath Croda da Lago and is surrounded by forest, giving us a very different environment from the exposed high-mountain landscapes around Tre Cime. Here we can work with the relationship between water, trees and mountain forms, while the surrounding woodland also opens up possibilities for smaller and more intimate compositions.
Vehicle access allows us to reach the area efficiently and spend more of the morning photographing rather than using valuable shooting time on the approach.
DAY 6 - 8 WESTERN DOLOMITES / ALPE DI SIUSI
ALPE DI SIUSI | 3 NIGHTS
After breakfast on Day 6, we’ll leave the Eastern Dolomites and travel west to our final base on Alpe di Siusi.
The landscape here is very different from the steep, rocky environments we photograph earlier in the workshop. Open meadows, scattered huts, forests and the distant Sassolungo and Sassopiatto peaks give us plenty of opportunities to work with layers, visual separation and longer focal lengths. If morning mist develops, the landscape can simplify even further into small groups of huts, trees and distant mountain forms.
The area works well in both morning and evening light, and staying directly on Alpe di Siusi gives us time to explore different compositions as the conditions change rather than approaching it as a single viewpoint.
We’ll stay in a 4-star hotel on the plateau, where we’ll also have time for another processing and image-review session using photographs made during the workshop.
On our final morning, we’ll have breakfast, check out and travel back to Venice, where the workshop ends.
JOIN THE NEXT DOLOMITES SIGNATURE WORKSHOP
Join the 2027 priority list to receive the new dates and booking details before the workshop opens publicly.
WHAT THE PARTICIPANTS SAY…
WHAT WE’LL WORK ON TOGETHER
Mountain landscapes can give you almost too much to photograph.
One of the central goals of this workshop is therefore to help you move beyond simply recording what is in front of you and become more deliberate about what you want the photograph to communicate.
We’ll work on those decisions together in the field, then use our processing and review sessions to understand the results and put the ideas back into practice.
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Finding order in complex scenes
Mountains can contain an enormous number of competing elements. We'll work on recognizing what actually matters in a scene, removing distractions and building simpler, stronger compositions.Creating depth and separation
Ridges, valleys and mountain groups often overlap visually. We'll explore how position, light, atmosphere and focal length can separate those layers and create a stronger sense of depth.Working with scale
Sometimes the vastness of a mountain landscape is the story. Other times a photograph becomes stronger when you stop trying to show everything. We'll work on deciding which approach serves the scene.Choosing what to include—and what to leave out
Composition is as much about exclusion as inclusion. Rather than showing you a finished tripod position, I'll help you understand why certain relationships between shapes, space, foreground and background make one framing stronger than another.Using focal length deliberately
We'll work from wide-angle landscapes through to telephoto images and abstracts, looking at how focal length changes the apparent relationship between mountain layers and helps us simplify scenes that initially feel overwhelming.Reading changing light
Mountain light rarely stays still for long. We'll work on recognizing where interesting light is developing, how it interacts with the terrain and when the strongest photograph may be somewhere completely different from where you originally expected.Photographing weather rather than waiting for it to pass
Cloud, mist, rain and rapidly changing visibility can simplify the mountains and reveal compositions that don't exist under clear skies. We'll work on recognizing those opportunities instead of treating anything other than perfect sunrise light as a failure.Smaller landscapes and details
Not every mountain photograph needs to contain the entire mountain. We'll explore distant ridges, isolated peaks, patches of forest, rock formations, huts, shadows and other smaller elements that can often produce more personal images.Panoramas and expansive scenes
When a scene genuinely needs more space, we'll look at how to build multi-frame panoramas deliberately rather than simply using them to fit more into the photograph.Managing difficult contrast
Mountain scenes can contain very bright skies and deep shadows at the same time. We'll work with filters, multiple exposures and careful exposure decisions when the situation calls for them.Drone photography
Where regulations and conditions allow, we can also explore the very different compositional possibilities offered by photographing the mountain landscape from above. -
Post-processing is where we complete the decisions we began making in the field.
Rather than teaching techniques for their own sake, we'll use Lightroom or Capture One and Photoshop according to what each photograph actually needs.
That can include RAW development, local adjustments, Photoshop layers, luminosity masks, exposure blending, panorama stitching, sharpening and dodge and burn—but the objective is always the same:
to help the finished photograph communicate the light, depth, atmosphere and visual hierarchy that made you stop and photograph the scene in the first place.
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With only six photographers, we spend a lot of time together—not only in the field, but during transfers, editing sessions and meals.
That naturally creates plenty of opportunities to exchange ideas, talk about photography and learn from the way other people approach the same landscape. At the same time, there’s no expectation that everyone has to be social all the time. These can be long days, and having some quiet time is equally important.
What I want to create is a relaxed and respectful group where people feel comfortable asking questions, sharing ideas, concentrating on their own photography and enjoying the experience in their own way.
HOW WE ADAPT TO THE CONDITIONS
The Dolomites rarely follow a schedule, and I don’t think a photography workshop should blindly follow one either.
I’ve been exploring and photographing these mountains for more than 20 years, and one of the biggest advantages of knowing the area well is not simply knowing where the famous viewpoints are. It’s understanding what photographic options we have when the mountains change.
Cloud can hide an entire range within minutes. Mist can remove half the information from a scene. Light may suddenly reach a distant ridge while the location we originally chose remains completely in shadow.
Sometimes the right response is to move.
Other times, the most interesting thing we can do is stay exactly where we are and change the way we see the landscape: switch to a longer lens, isolate a distant peak, work with overlapping ridges, look for details, use fog to simplify a composition or turn our attention away from the grand view altogether.
That flexibility is not only part of how I manage the itinerary. It's something I want you to experience as a photographer.
The mountains are a particularly good teacher in that respect. They force us to stop waiting for the photograph we had imagined and start paying closer attention to the photograph that is actually possible.
The itinerary gives us a strong plan. The conditions decide how we use it.
“Through all of that, Andrea and Sabrina were flexible, reassuring, and inspired complete confidence.”
ACCOMMODATIONS & FOOD
After a full day of exploring and shooting in the mountains, there's nothing better than coming back to a cozy place and enjoying a great meal. For our Dolomites workshop, we’ve handpicked charming, comfortable accommodations in ideal locations—places we know well and have built lasting relationships with over the years. And since we’re in Italy, food is a highlight in itself: you’ll get to experience some of the region’s best local dishes throughout the trip.
In the eastern Dolomites, we’ll stay in a 4-star hotel overlooking the beautiful Lago Misurina. For our main meals, we’ll head to a local pizzeria (one of the best in the Dolomites) where the owner, Angelo, and his family have become good friends over the many years we’ve been dining there. It’s the kind of warm, local connection that adds something special to the experience.
In the western Dolomites, we’ll move to another beautiful 4-star hotel with stunning views overlooking Alpe di Siusi. The food here is absolutely delicious, especially during their traditional Tyrolean-themed dinner night.
These partnerships allow us to offer not just comfort and convenience, but also a more authentic, memorable taste of the Italian Dolomites. Great photography days deserve great food—and here, you’ll have both.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
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You will fly into Venice Marco Polo Airport (VCE), located just outside the city of Venice. On the first day of the workshop, we’ll pick you up directly at the airport and drive together to our first base in the heart of the Dolomites.
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Travel insurance is not mandatory for travel to Italy, but we highly recommend it. So, consider it for unexpected medical emergencies, flight cancellations, or lost luggage.
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You can find all the details about cancellations in our Terms and Conditions. This includes deadlines, fees, and everything you need to know if your plans change.
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We will send you a welcome document when you register. This document will have a full list of all the gear and accessories you should bring with you.
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More details on the meeting point, gear, weather conditions, and more will be included in the welcome document we send upon registration. If you have any questions or anything you’re unsure about, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@andrealivieriphoto.com.
THE TEAM
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ANDREA LIVIERI
Photographer and Workshop Leader
Andrea is a Padua-based, professional photographer, educator, musician, and spirited adventurer. He started exploring the photography medium by capturing images of fellow musicians, their families, and other friends and acquaintances in the music industry. As he continued honing his craft, he merged his love for photography and exploring the outdoors, amassing a body of photographic work featuring exhilarating landscapes and rugged mountain capes from around the globe.
He also leads photography courses, and workshops to teach other photographers his method and help them to bring out their own vision. His work has been published in Landscape Photography Magazine, Outdoor Photographer, Photo Plus Magazine, Digital Camera, Popular Photography and Fuji X Passion Magazine, among others. He also partners with brands like Capture One, DxO, FLM Tripods, Maven Filtes, Nya-Evo Camera Backpacks and Vallerret Gloves.
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SABRINA TOSATO
Photographer, Operations and Content Manager
Sabrina is a photographer and travel writer based in Padua, Italy. Her average day is a mix of weird combinations and her greatest ambition is to make people dream, inspiring them through words and photographs. She manages a travel blog named The Tomato Soup where she offers advice on travel destinations and wild but high-end hospitality.
She has 10 years of experience in travel organization, focused on exclusive and tailor-made itineraries but eventually ended up as a digital marketing specialist. Passionate about the intersection of adventure travels, sustainability, and design, with inspiration and creativity at heart, she has a knack for capturing memorable moments of everyday life. Her work has been published via Afar Media, SuitCase Magazine, Inspired by Iceland, and Feel Slovenia.
Partners
Workshop attendees may receive access to special offers on selected photography products and software.