San Miguel Photography Tour

Visit beautiful San Miguel de Allende in Mexico with professional photographers James Wilson and Mark Hemmings, and learn photography at the same time. James Wilson has more than 30 years of professional travel, fine art, and portrait photography experience, as well as a history of offering students innovative fine art photography courses. This will be his 6th trip to San Miguel de Allende.

Mark Hemmings is a professional travel, advertising, and fashion photographer. Mark has led past photography and filmmaking tours to South Korea, England, Mexico, and Hungary. In March 2010 he will lead his 11th international tour to Tokyo, Nagano, and Kyoto, Japan.

Our 7 day adventure in central Mexico will include an exploration of the indelibly beautiful town of San Miguel de Allende, which is now a preserved Unesco Heritage Site. Also included for those interested is a 1-day excursion to visit the Monarch butterflies at the butterfly reserve in the mountainous region of nearby Ocampo. These Monarchs who come from as far north as Canada gather here in the millions. They are clumped on branches of pine trees in special winter hibernation. In San Miguel, everywhere you look is a photograph or a painting. The rustic architecture, flower gardens, ancient churches and Mexican people are great subjects for the lens and canvass. This town has always been a haven for art, music, good restaurants and shopping.

All Photos Copyright James Wilson & Mark Hemmings

Day One – We will all go to visit the Monarch Butterflies in their special habitat in a mountain forest. This will take us until noon, and then we will proceed with our scenic drive to beautiful San Miguel. The vans will stop at times for scenic photography along the way. When we get settled into our hacienda we will all go out for dinner and experience San Miguel's wonderful nightlife, then back to our place for a slide presentation on good composition and image design.

Day Two - After a hearty breakfast we will have an orientation meeting, receive maps and the week’s schedule. We will then proceed to walk around old San Miguel taking photographs that emphasize good composition and image design. We will all visit an old art school “Bellas Artes” just up the street. Within it’s quiet walled courtyard we can take our time, using our tripods, in this visually rich place. After the Bellas Artes we will walk up to the Jardin Central where people pictures and architectural studies are plentiful. We will photograph the “Parroquia”, San Miguel’s famous pink church. There will be free time between 12:30 and 3:00. At 3:00 we all go up and take in the panoramic views of the town, then slowly walk back down the narrow streets creating photographs as we go. After dinner at one of our favorite restaurants we will go back to the hacienda for photo slide shows and instruction.

Day Three - Breakfast, and then off to the botanical gardens for a photo lesson field trip. Here in this quiet location Mark and Jamie will take time with individuals to teach the art of composing and exposing. You will enjoy the unusual flora of this semi-desert garden landscape with giant 15-foot high blossoming cactii. There will be a free time break from 12:30 to 3:00. For those interested, we will visit and photograph the oldest graveyard in San Miguel, a fascinating location full of Mexican traditions and spirituality . We will then meet for dinner at another great restaurant, and then return for a slideshow and talk.

Day Four - After breakfast we all go to visit the wonderful flower show at San Miguel’s beautiful Parque Juarez, to see and photograph wonderful floral displays. We will then have a coffee break, followed by a visit to El Chorro Springs where San Miguel was founded. We will then walk back through town taking in the splendid houses, and visiting various boutiques along the way. The afternoon is free to do what ever you like. For those who desire it, Mark and James will be available during this period for one on one photo instruction.

Day Five – We will all visit Posos, a fascinating old ghost town. We will spend most of the day there, including a lunch at a great restaurant, and exploring the ruins of this old abandoned silver mining town. Upon returning to San Miguel, the rest of the day is free time.

Day Six - For those interested, an historic walking tour of old San Miguel will take place at 10:30. This was very popular with previous students as it was very informative, and makes for good photo opportunities. At 3:00 for those who love art and antiques we will visit one of the best art gallery complexes in Mexico - Fabrica Aurora. As this is our last day, we will all go out to dinner and celebrate a week of observing Mexican culture and learning photography. Finally we will have a fun evening back at the hacienda viewing a slide presentation of the best of all of our photographs taken on this wonderful trip.

Day Seven – Back to Mexico City Airport.

GROUP PHOTOS - SAN MIGUEL '08
by Our Wonderful Participants!

Group Supper