Having been to Jordan several times, I have absolutely fallen in love with this country – not only for its limitless photographic opportunities, but also because of its rich history and culture, its warm and welcoming people and its amazing food. After my last trip to Jordan, I really thought about not only sharing images from my trip, but also about organizing a photography Workshop with some of our readers to tour, photograph and explore this stunning country. I am happy to announce that I was able to come up with an amazing workshop package: a 10-day photography-only workshop to showcase some of the most scenic places in Jordan and to teach everything I know about travel and landscape photography. In short, it will be an intensive, yet fun workshop that will leave you with the most amazing memories, experience and pictures. The only issue is timing – the workshop will take place from May 10 to May 20 of this year, so I need to know exactly how many people are going within the next 10 days in order to be able to book everything in advance.

Note: Please note that PL workshops typically sell out within 24 hours, so make sure to reserve your spot as soon as possible!

While many of us get attracted to countries in South America, Europe and Asia, few seriously consider visiting some of the countries in the Middle East. The ongoing wars and conflicts in the Middle East and their TV coverage have definitely done their damage in the perception of the region from the West, one must realize that it is in fact a huge region, with a number of peaceful, historic and welcoming countries like Jordan. I have written a whole section on “Safety and Security” on the first page of my article on places to photograph in Jordan and you can see from the article that the country is perfectly safe for traveling. Part of the reason is the travel hot spots like Petra, one of the new 7 wonders of the world, which attract lots of visitors from all over the world, including the USA. In short, it is a modern country, with very educated and open-minded people.

Let’s take a closer look at the workshop schedule / agenda and the places I am planning to showcase during this workshop.

1) Workshop Schedule

As stated above, this will be an intensive, 10-day workshop. We will all depart from Chicago O’Hare around May 10th, 2016 (date to be finalized within the next few days) and spend 10 days touring all the top photography spots in Jordan. The departure back to the USA will be approximately on May 21st, 2016. Below is the short summary of the current workshop schedule, which might go through additional revisions / modifications depending on how we can book hotels and transportation.

May 10: Departure from Chicago O’Hare IA to Queen Alia IA / Amman
May 10: Arrival, hotel check-in
May 11: Amman and The Royal Automobile Museum
May 12: The Citadel
May 13: Jerash
May 14: Dead Sea
May 15: Petra
May 16: Petra by Night
May 17: Wadi Rum
May 18: Wadi Rum
May 19: Mount Nebo / Madaba Church
May 20: Image Review / Post-Processing Class
May 21: Departure from Queen Alia IA, Amman to Chicago O’Hare IA

Please note that a detailed itinerary will be provided after we confirm participation and start making all the travel arrangements.

And now let’s take a look at the photo spots mentioned above.

1.1) The Royal Automobile Museum and the Citadel

After arrival to Amman, you will experience some jet lag, partly because it is a long flight and partly because you will be on a totally different timezone. Because of this, we will need to take things easy the first few days. After arrival, we will be taken to a hotel in Amman (Jordan’s Capital) for checking in. We will spend the next 3 days at the same hotel, while driving around and touring places in Amman. Next day, we will tour the Royal Automobile Museum and the city of Amman. It will be a good chance to get introduced to the country of Jordan, its history, its people and its kings and queens.

Next, we will visit The Citadel, one of the most historic locations on this planet, dating back all the way to 5500 BC!

To see more images of the Citadel, check out What to Photograph in Jordan, Part 1.

1.2) Jerash

Another historic location we will be visiting is the ancient city of Jerash, and its world famous ruins:

Limitless photographic opportunities here as we spend the whole day photographing this huge historic landmark.

To see more images of Jerash, check out What to Photograph in Jordan, Part 1.

1.3) Dead Sea

You cannot leave Jordan without checking out and swimming in the Dead Sea! The lowest point on our planet, the saltiest sea of the world, the Dead Sea is a place you will surely remember for many years to come! It is impossible to express how awesome the feeling of getting pushed out by the water is – you can practically sit on it. So imagine sitting in water and reviewing the images you have taken so far with your camera :) Kidding of course! I would never recommend to do it, as the salt water will instantly kill anything electronic it touches.

This will be a good opportunity to relax and have fun before the heavier and packed trips to Petra and Wadi Rum!

1.4) Petra

Petra does not need an introduction – it is one of the places of the world you must see in your lifetime. We will spend a total of 2 days in Petra, including “Petra by Night”, another must-see event we will be photographing together!

To see more images of Petra, check out What to Photograph in Jordan, Part 2.

1.5) Wadi Rum

We will leave the best for the last – the vast, the colorful, the majestic Wadi Rum. Definitely my most favorite place to photograph in Jordan!

This will most likely be one of the most memorable parts of the trip, because we will be staying in the valley with Bedouins! While you might not have the best comfort, you will get a feeling of what it is like to live in the wild desert and eat some of the most delicious traditional Bedouin meals!

To see more images of Wadi Rum, check out What to Photograph in Jordan, Part 2.

1.6) Mount Nebo / Madaba Church

After Wadi Rum, we will head back to Amman and the last couple of days will be spent going through images and post-processing them. If we have free time, we might check out some additional locations like Mount Nebo, where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land, and Madaba Church, which hosts one of the oldest maps of the middle east:

2) Workshop Size

I always try to keep my workshop sizes under 10 people, because I want to be able to provide as much individual attention as possible. To be able to conduct this workshop, we will need a group of at least 5 participants. As of now, before the post goes live, I already have 2 spots taken, so we will need at least 3 more to join. The registration page will automatically close at 10 participants, so you will need to hurry up and reserve your spot as soon as possible.

If you are trying to figure out your schedule and need a bit more time, please let me know via the Contact Us form and I will hold your spot. You will need to finalize your decision within the next 10 days, because we already need to start booking flights and hotels now. May is a very popular month in Jordan for travel due to warm and pleasant temperatures, so ticket prices will be going up very quickly if we don’t book early enough.

3) Workshop Cost

The cost of the workshop will be $6,000 per person.

Here is what is included in the above workshop cost:

1. Round-trip airfare to Jordan from Chicago O’Hare
2. Visa costs
3. Lodging costs
4. Meal costs in Wadi Rum
5. All transportation costs
6. All entrance fees to the above-mentioned locations
7. Photography instruction

What’s not included:

1. Transportation / airfare from your city to Chicago and back
2. Meals (please note that the hotels we will stay at will have complimentary breakfast included)
3. Travel Insurance
4. Hotel Incidentals
5. Room Service, Beverages, Phone Service, Internet Fees, etc
6. Photography Equipment
7. Extra costs due to unanticipated changes in itinerary (flight delays, closures, etc)

Please note that Jordan is not a cheap country to visit. The above workshop cost was calculated based on the cost of airfare, accommodations, transportation, length of stay and other miscellaneous costs. If you are planning to travel with your spouse, friend or a family member, please use the Contact Us form and provide the details. Also, if you are planning to travel from a country other than the US, please let me know as well and we will work on re-adjusting the cost of the workshop.

4) Workshop Registration

If you would like to register for this workshop, please proceed to the Workshop Registration Page.

At this time, we are accepting a deposit of $2,000 to reserve your spot for the workshop. Please note that this deposit will be non-refundable after 10 days, because we will be booking your airline ticket. If you would like to pay the full amount upfront, you have that option too – simply select both “Deposit” and “2nd Payment” options in the registration page.

Please let me know if you have any questions below!

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