Yorkshire Dales

Your black-and-white photography journey begins in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales, where you'll meet your fellow photographers and guide. We’ll start the morning with an introduction to black and white photography, covering key concepts such as visualising scenes in monochrome and focusing on composition, contrast, and texture. You’ll also learn about in-camera techniques for enhancing black-and-white images, including filters and adjusting exposure settings to achieve high contrast.

Once briefed, we’ll head to Malham Cove, one of the most iconic limestone formations in the Dales. The dramatic textures and patterns of the limestone pavement make for excellent black and-white photography. You’ll work on creating solid compositions by emphasising the natural lines in the rock formations and using shadows to create depth and contrast. We’ll also explore how to isolate elements within the landscape to produce minimalist, impactful images.

After a morning of photographing the limestone pavement, we’ll shift focus to the towering cliffs of Malham Cove. The stark beauty of the rock face is perfect for monochrome imagery, allowing you to practice managing light and shadow to capture a full range of tones. You’ll also work on capturing fine details such as rock textures and moss, adding depth to your black-and-white compositions.

At midday, we’ll have lunch at a local pub in Malham. This will be an opportunity to review your shots and discuss what worked well in the morning session while also preparing for the afternoon shoot, which will focus on enhancing contrast and composition in black-and-white photography.In the afternoon, we’ll head to Gordale Scar, a dramatic limestone ravine providing fantastic opportunities to capture rugged landscapes in black and white. You’ll work on isolating textures
and using light and shadow to create high-impact images. We’ll also visit Janet’s Foss, a nearby waterfall, where you’ll practice extended exposure techniques to capture the contrast between the flowing water and the static rocks and foliage, perfect for dynamic black-and-white compositions.

We’ll move to Malham Tarn for a sunset shoot as the golden hour approaches. The low-angled light creates striking shadows and highlights, ideal for black-and-white photography. You’ll focus on balancing the tonal range of bright highlights and deep shadows and experiment with reflections on the water to enhance the textures in the surrounding landscape. We’ll wrap up the day with dinner in a nearby village, where we’ll review your images and discuss post-processing techniques for black-and-white photography. You’ll learn to adjust contrast, sharpen textures, and manage highlights and shadows to create powerful monochrome photos.

We’ll start the day early with a sunrise shoot at the Ribblehead Viaduct, one of the most iconic architectural landmarks in the Yorkshire Dales. The impressive arches of the viaduct against the moody morning sky provide a perfect opportunity to capture solid and symmetrical compositions in black and white. You’ll focus on balancing the dark tones of the viaduct with the bright sky, using the low light of sunrise to highlight textures in the stonework and surrounding landscape.

After the sunrise shoot, we’ll take a break for breakfast at a café in Hawes, where you can review your images and discuss techniques for maximising contrast and texture in your compositions. We’ll explore Hawes and the nearby Hardraw Force, England’s highest single-drop waterfall. You’ll capture the motion of the waterfall against the rugged rocks, using long exposure techniques to emphasise the contrast between moving water and static elements. The village of Hawes offers rustic stone cottages and cobbled streets, perfect for converting into high-impact black-and-white images. After a morning of shooting, we’ll break for lunch at a local pub to discuss post-processing techniques for enhancing the architectural elements in your photos.

We’ll head to Swaledale in the afternoon, renowned for its stone barns and intricate dry stone walls. You’ll work on capturing the repetitive patterns and leading lines created by the walls as they snake through the rolling hills, creating minimalist compositions that highlight the simplicity of rural architecture. You’ll also photograph the weathered stone barns, using different angles to make dramatic, texture-rich black-and-white images. We’ll finish the day at Bolton Abbey, an atmospheric ruined monastery set along the River Wharfe.

The ancient stone arches and remaining structures provide an excellent opportunity for creating contrast-rich black-and-white compositions. You’ll focus on capturing the interplay of light and shadow on the abbey’s architecture to emphasise its historic atmosphere. As the day concludes, we’ll have a final group discussion over dinner at a local pub. You’ll share your favourite images from the two days and receive personalised feedback from the instructor on further developing your black-and-white photography skills. We’ll also discuss post-processing tips, focusing on fine tuning contrast, sharpening, and tonal balance in black-and-white images. (B)