Photo workshops in Cuba : New Years Eve - From December 29th

Photographic tour for groups of 2 to 7 passionate photographers.

My photography workshops in Cuba are designed to guide small groups of between 2 and 7 travelers who seek to know the country deeply while enjoying their fondness for photography and seek to improve their photographic level.

I am not a travel photographer who works in several countries, on the contrary, I am a professional photographer focused on teaching and working exclusively in Cuba, I have designed this photo tours after more than 20 years living intermittently on the Island.

This end-of-year trip focuses on more a hidden Havana and the countryside where we will visit a very humble farming community that’s far from the city and tourism.

It is a special time for the end of the year celebrations as many Cubans are on vacation and the streets are full of people in a relaxed and festive atmosphere, a special time to practice street photography and portray street portraits.

The trip lasts 7 nights and 8 days, and we will spend 2 days (1 night) in Viñales, the Cuban countryside at a time where the best tobacco in the world is about to be collected and its green leaves fill the landscape.

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Not only will we do an intense cultural immersion in the less visited Cuba, but we will also focus on telling stories with our photographs, many travelers I have guided these years and who initially sought to "take beautiful pictures" but have fallen in love with the Photographic edition to choose correctly the photographs that tell a story, came to Cuba as photographers and left as storytellers.

It is an intense and fun trip, full of cultural, personal and photographic anecdotes. If you are looking for a trip with strict schedules, maximum punctuality focused simply on making beautiful photos THIS IS NOT YOUR TRIP, Cuba is different from the rest of the world, it is a country where you dance improvising a lot and I usually say that we have to understand photography as a Cuban dance: a simple activity, cheerful, fun and loaded with a great human and social component.

An exclusive US legal Photo tour to Cuba for 7 travelers  with a great amount of cultural and photographic activities led by Louis Alarcon in collaboration with Locally Sourced Cuba.

Louis organizes these workshops almost every month. Here you can find our entire offer of photo tours in Cuba from 2017 and 2018 

 

Some of the Tour Highlights

- Take outstanding photos of Cuban people and activities away from the tourist scene.
- Learn about the forbidden pictures.
- Capture the interior of Cuban houses.
- Get expert tuition on a camera´s configuration, proper lense use, etc.
- Enjoy and work like a professional who knows how to choose the best pictures.
- Tell stories with your series of photographs.
- Visit an Afro-Cuban priest and photograph Afro-Cuban dancers.
- Discover a boxing gym of a former Olympic Champion.
- Find the Che Guevara Graffiti route in Havana.
- Take portraits of farmers, photos of landscape in Vinales village, visit to their special farms and "tobacco houses".
- Experience the Havana´s life and Malecon scenes, including sunset in the right place at the right time.
- Walk around agrifood colorful markets
- Cuban architecture.
- Get lots of surprises in our daily photo tour
- Rest in official Cuban houses.

 

More possible activities : Markets in Havana, Outlying districts (no tourism there), Boxers training, Old Havana (I like to call “the new old Havana”), Graffiti and paintings on the walls of Che Guevara & Callejón Hamel (special street painted), Religion: visit a house of a “Santero” (Afro-Cuban priest), Colonial houses (old furniture and old Cuban owners), Outdoor Architecture (Buildings with charm), Panoramic photography from the other side of the city, Malecon life, Sunset in special places, One of the most special and high terraces in Havana, Tobacco factory , Charming streets (street photography and contact with the people are two of the strongest points of this photo tour), Portraits, Review and analysis of pictures, Fototeca de la Habana Vieja (National photography institute), Visits to photographic expositions, Looking for changes in the new Cuba, Hemingway route (Hotel – bodeguida and Floridida Pubs where the writer was living in Cuba), Old Cuban cars, Cuban parties, Afro-Cuban dancers, Visits to painters in our day to day, Retro amusement park, Family houses, Contact with Cuban photographers and other professionals, Old Gyms in Havana.

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Photo tour to Cuba in December 2018 and January 2019

ITINERARY

Day 1 – ARRIVE IN HAVANA (D)

Today is the photo tour arrival day and we will organise an airport transfer to your accommodation in Havana. This will be your first opportunity to meet with Louis and your guide to discuss the itinerary.

This evening will also present the perfect opportunity to take a walk along the Malecon with your hosts, feeling the sea breeze and seeing all that the city has to offer.

 

B,L,D – denotes Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.

Day 2 – HAVANA (B,L,D)

Today you will have your first opportunity to capture the lively street theatre of Havana Vieja. Louis and your guide will take you to streets not often frequented by tourists as well as the main squares and points of interest.

Today Louis will also share with you tips about taking photos in Cuba, including the Cuban personality with photographers and the people and places you shouldn’t photograph. The focus today is on Cuban culture and Cuban people.

You will also have the opportunity to photograph colourful markets, courtyards and terraces as well as a vintage gym which provides a very unique atmosphere.

During the day Louis will ask you to share with him you photos, so you can discuss and analyse, as you can see in this link with photos of our previous travelers.

Day 3 – HAVANA (B,L,D)

Today the focus is on Afro-Cuban roots and Afro-Cuban religion.

You will visit an Afro-Cuban priest and get the opportunoty to take photos of Afro-dancers during their daily performances.  You will visit the colourful streets of Callejon de Hammel to view Salvador Gonzales Escalona handiwork as a famous cuban painter, muralist and sculptor

In the evening during sunset, we will visit the Malecon and the Prado intersection. Making sure we are in the right place at the right moment, in the right light!

Day 4 – VINALES (B,L,D)

This morning we will be up early and on our way to the rural township of Vinales. We will have lunch at the Los Jazmines look-out point and you will be blown away by the natural beauty of this area.
Accompanied by Louis and you local guide, you will learn all about the special lifestyle in this area.

The evening provides a fantastic opportunity to enjoy local music amongst the warm and friendly locals.

Day 5 – VINALES BACK TO HAVANA (B,L,D)

This morning we will be up early again to journey into the heart of the valley. Hear we will meet farmers who are preparing their morning coffee and meet the local wildlife amongst a sea of green back-drops.

You will have the opportunity to go inside the houses of the locals, getting to know the families as you share a local “criollo coffee”.
Be ready to capture memorable portraits and daily scenes of this special part of Cuba.
Take photos of the beautiful Vinales valley until your heart is content and visit a Tobacco farm to see a cigar rolling demonstration and learn more about the local industry.

In the afternoon you will travel back to Havana with Louis and your guide.

Day 6 – HAVANA (B,L,D)

Today we continue to focus on street photography, exploring new areas of the city.

We will focus on the Classic American cars that cruise the streets as well as external colonial facades and families on balconies.
We will visit a Cuban family in Havana to learn more about daily life and meet a former Olympic Boxing champion at his own Gym.
You will also visit the San Jose Market meeting well known painters, sculptors and artisans. This is a great opportunity to view and buy cuban art, finding many photographic opportunities that mix paintings with people.
Louis will always be there to review your work, offering advice and assistance to help you improve as a photographer.

Day 7 – HAVANA (B,L,D)

Today we will follow the Che Guevara route in Havana. There are many graffiti works of Che Guevara in Havana of which some are hidden and others are not.
While strolling the Che Guevara Route you will visit other points of interest and visit a popular Cuban photographer to learn more about their work and photography in Cuba.
We will end the day with a special farewell dinner.

 

​Photo tour to Cuba in December 2017 and January 2018

PRICING:

Price:  US$ 3,395 - ( 2 - 7 travelers)
Individual supplement : 280 $

Price: non-photographers is USD$ 2,895

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INCLUSIONS

8 days, 7 nights
Accommodation (7 nights) in official Casa Particulares in Havana (Cuban B&B’s)
Breakfast in casa partitular (our private house)
Tuition : Louis Alarcon
Local English-speaking guide
Private, set Photo Sessions
All  local ground transportation in Havana and Vinales
Admission to all public buildings and visits listed in the itinerary.
Coordination of all listed activities
Meals

EXCLUSIONS

International Flights
Airline baggage fees.
Travel Insurance (required).
Local Tips for guides and drivers.
Individual house / expenses (minibar, room service, laundry fees, etc.)

Locally Sourced Cuba is the specialized agency that manages and sells my photography courses in Cuba; here’s all the detailed information to make your reservation.

Locally Sourced Cuba Tours also offers affordable licensed people-to-people Private Cuba Tours, through our partnership with the US-based Educational Adventures Company. This is a fantastic way to experience our authentic, local and personal tours, legally and hassle-free!

REGISTER

Mails : ​bookings@locallysourcedcuba.com  and  photographingcuba@gmail.com

 

Louis Alarcon has recorded a great amount of videos during his photo tours around Cuba. Here you can see some of them, and discover exactly what the style of these photo tours in Cuba is like, as well as get to know what the trip you are about to experience will be like.

Photographing Cuba by Luis Alarcón. Workshops and photo tours in cuba from Louis Alarcon on Vimeo.