WESTERN KAZAKHSTAN TOUR

I am a full-time commercial and landscape photographer & filmmaker based in Portrush on the Causeway Coast in the north of Ireland. Please take the time to explore my range of work on this website.

As well as guidance on landscape photography I can also give valuable insights into film and drone work. I also specialise in motion timelapse which I can impart knowledge on. See my year long timelapse project covering the 4 seasons in our Mourne Mountains below.

View ‘Mourne’ timelapse film here.

This photo tour is very drone heavy with minimal hiking. Generally we will camp very close to our shooting locations but as always guests are free to explore on their own. For that reason you must be able to walk on uneven ground, rocks and inclines.

On location tuition

Compositional guidance

Understanding the exposure triangle

Advantages of shooting RAW

Understanding light & reacting to the conditions

Capturing panoramas and focal blending

Using Neutral Density, Graduated Filters and Polariser

Understanding depth of field for maximum sharpness

Choosing the correct shutter speed for various results

The importance of composition, leading lines and texture

Histograms explained

After you complete your booking I’ll email a full packing list. We’ll also set up a workshop WhatsApp group chat where all questions can be answered.

The opening and closing nights of the tour we’ll be staying in the Turan Hotel in the city of Aktau, on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

The nights on the road we’ll each have our own tent meaning we’ll be ideally located to catch the best locations and lights for both sunrises and sunsets.

Cancellations with less than 30 days notice will be refunded their fee minus their booking deposit. If I’m able to fill their place the participant will also be refunded their booking deposit. It is not advised to book your transport until we confirm we have adequate numbers for this workshop to go ahead. In the event of the workshop not going ahead, I will refund deposits in full. However, I can not compensate flight costs.

Kyrgyzstan – and Richard Watson’s Kyrgyzstan in particular – is a sight, an experience and an opportunity unlike any this avid traveller and hobbyist photographer has had the pleasure of before.

The country – one only recently opened up with any kind of convenience or real access – still has the remoteness and unfamiliarity that travellers and photographers both crave. “There must be reasons why tourists generally, and particularly those from the West, don’t travel to central Asia, this vast area of the globe”, I remember thinking – in fact it was a main driver of why I wanted to visit. But believe me, I found none. Quite the opposite.

In one day, you can see arid, desert-like canyons and rippled, rocky waves of untouched, folded geometric rock formations that would go on forever were it not for the vast snow-capped mountains that rise to meet the horizon. In the same day, you can be up among those same mountains, with the mood and feeling of the place changing minute by minute as the sun plays with unpredictable beauty on the saw-like edges of the surrounding mountains.

In such a small country and in such a relatively short space of time, experiencing desert, arid rock, alpine, temperate, high mountain and lake-side yurt camps which feel like a brief beach holiday sojourn, is simply remarkable. Some of it is hard work, some of it feels a million miles away from home, and all of it is remarkable.Were it not for Richard’s experience – both as a photographer, his familial connections via his long-term Kyrgyz partner to the country and his many trips there – doing all this in 10 days would be impossible.

Personally, I am not a tour-group kind of traveller. I either go on holidays with friends, with family or ‘travel’ on my own. This has changed my mind. With a group of seven – from six different countries – you expect people pulling in different directions and each with different ideas of what they want. While this inevitably happens, none of it is negative. Each has their own vision, experience and ideas of what they want to see and capture, and Richard was always there – how, I’m still not quite sure – to lend advice and to suggest his idea of the best way of doing things.

The country, tour and set-up is incredible. If you want to see somewhere different, fit in all of the above within 10 days and have the time of your life, I wouldn’t look past this tour. It will change the way you look at photography, central Asia and – quite possibly – the world, and leave you with an insatiable hunger for more. Do it.

"Life-Altering Experience"

If I had to sum up my recent journey to Kyrgyzstan in a few words, I'd go with "life-altering." Before this trip, Kyrgyzstan was just a name I'd never heard before, let alone locate on a map. Yet, I can't express how thrilled I am that I embarked on this adventure with Richard. Planning a trip to a place halfway around the world can be incredibly nerve-wracking, but Richard made it a breeze. All I had to do was get there.

Right from day one, Richard's deep knowledge of the country became evident, and it stayed with us throughout the entire ten-day journey. He had a knack for taking us to the most remote and breathtaking corners of Kyrgyzstan, something that would have been quite challenging to pull off on our own. No need to fret about travel logistics, finding camp spots, or even worrying about our next meal; Richard and the expert guides he had picked had it all covered.

As a professional photographer who usually shies away from photo tours, I can confidently say that I'd jump at the chance to book this tour again without a second thought. It truly was an unforgettable experience that left an indelible mark on my photography journey.

I have just returned from a photography workshop in the Faroe islands led by Richard Watson, and I wanted to mention how good it was. From the minute we landed everything ran smoothly - travel, accommodation and especially the photography. We always seemed to arrive at the right place at just the right time, and this meant great images. If you want "bang for your bucks" Richard is the man for you as the locations just never seemed to end. One great location after another, and each one almost better than the last.

Richard had wisely used the services of a great photographer from the Faroes called Bogi Olsen, and together they made a formidable team. This made travel around the islands a " breeze", with Bogi knowing those out of the way spots that other visitors do not. Richard was always available to offer help and advice with camera settings, and how best to approach a scene and get the best out of it photographically.

In short everyone on the trip had a great time, we all came away with great images, made friends and improved our photography. It would be wrong of me now not to mention the accommodation, this was a very high end hotel and was a really lovely place to come back to after a long day of photography. I would certainly recommend Richard Watson to anyone contemplating a photography workshop, but this was my third trip with Richard so perhaps I am a little biased !

Give him a try, you will not regret it. Wonderful trip and a wonderful photographer.

After my first workshop in Donegal, I knew I had to join Richard again — this time on Harris & Lewis. And once again, it was an unforgettable experience!

I only started photography last year, so I still feel like a beginner. But with Richard, that never mattered. He creates such a supportive and inspiring atmosphere where learning feels natural and fun. Even when the weather didn’t play along, he always found a way to make the most of it, showing us how to work with the conditions rather than against them. I loved exploring new techniques like ICM and capturing the little details that often go unnoticed.

The locations were simply magical - from endless sandy beaches and dramatic cliffs to abandoned fishing huts and Highland cows standing peacefully in the mist. Every place had its own unique mood and story to tell, and Richard helped us bring that to life through our photos.

The group was fantastic - so much laughter, shared passion, and great energy throughout the trip. Thank you, Richard, for your patience, encouragement, and for making every moment count. I learned so much and had the best time - can’t wait for the next adventure!

I thoroughly enjoyed my first photography workshop with Richard in northern Norway. Senja and the surrounding area is a beautiful and relatively untouched place and it was such a privilege to be able to explore the landscapes and scenery with a knowledgeable and experienced guide.

I particularly wanted to join the tour to learn about photography from a professional and understand more about how I can get the best from my photos and experiences. Richard made this happen through his 1-1 and group guidance on how to create a photograph through composition and framing, while ensuring that we all still maintained our own unique perspectives. Every photography location was thoroughly researched and communicated to the group in advance, taking into consideration golden hour/blue hour times, tide times, wind and rain/snow forecasts, aurora forecasts etc. We also made the most of less favourable conditions through editing sessions at our idyllic lodge on a pier overlooking the snowy mountains.

I learned so many valuable lessons from the tour and also had an amazing time while learning. Richard is both a consummate professional and also great craic, an ideal combination for the tour.