Why you should attend my Day of the Dead photo expedition this year in Oaxaca
Discover this Photo Expedition and join us this year to the Day of the Dead 2023 in Oaxaca
Day of the Dead 2017, Oaxaca
This year the usual photographic expedition that has been very successful in recent years that we offer in Oaxaca on the occasion of Dia de Muertos returns with many added strengths. With the idea of better presenting this experience, I decided to write here 10 good reasons not to miss the DAY OF THE DEAD PHOTO EXPEDITION 2023:
1 – A TRUE PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
I teach my students to work as a photographer who recounts an experience of this type should always do: we do not use models, as others do, nor do we push situations to bring an image home. With me you work like a true street photographer, always trying to create good quality photographs. We will have the most diverse photographic opportunities, ranging from portraits to street photography. We will focus on creating visual stories, producing great photos in a direct style. The participants will come home from this workshop with a different awareness, and will be able to read the images, choosing the good ones to present a photographic work.
2 – DIA DE MUERTOS IN OAXACA WILL CHANGE YOU
As it did with me. Oaxaca in Dia de Muertos is something unique. First of all I tell you: forget the idea of a sort of Halloween in a Mexican version. Here we are talking about a celebration that derives from Mexica and therefore pre-Hispanic cults. Photographing the night in the ancient cemetery of the village of Xoxocotlan Santa Cruz put me in a very special state of mind. The perception of life and death has totally changed in me in 2015. This will not be a simple journey or just a workshop for the participants, but a very important stage in their lives.
3 – OAXACA
That's right: only Oaxaca, understood as a city and as a state (they are homonyms) and its people, its extraordinary cuisine, its unique atmosphere. Guys, now I'll tell you something. They sent me to Oaxaca to scout for the first photographic expedition: I was supposed to spend three days there photographing to get the photos that we would then use for promotion and obviously explore and learn about the state of Oaxaca. The first day we arrived tired at the hotel. Two hours was enough for me on the second day to make my wife say, while we were sitting at a table in a bar: I want to come and live here. We haven't fulfilled this dream yet but we both have it in mind as a life project. It's not normal to fall completely in love with a city in two hours. And you know what? Every time I go back to Oaxaca, I feel at home.
4 – OAXACA CUISINE
Did you know that in 2018 Oaxacan cuisine took first place, surpassing even French and Italian cuisine? Attention: we are not talking about Mexican cuisine, but that of Oaxaca. Oaxaca alone. And I can't wait to see your faces as you savor a tlayuda or a mole from Oaxaca.
5 – OTHER VICTORIES OF OAXACA
In addition to the culinary recognition Oaxaca has recently achieved:
Top spot as a destination for weddings.
Second best city in the world according to travel + Leisure magazine.
Among the 21 most impressive destinations in the world according to National Geographic.
First place in Taekwondo at the National Olympics at the hands of Tuxtepecano Willian Arroyo.
The best trombonist in the world: Faustino Díaz.
The new best actress of Hollywood: Yalitza Aparicio.
First place in the world dance competition in Russia: representation of the dance of the feather and Flor de Piña.
First place in the youth triathlon in Australia: Cecilia Ramírez.
Top place to study nursing degree.
First Place in National Song: Bistly Madai.
First Soprano Mixe: María Reyna
National Children's Voice Award: Tik Tak's Ship
First place in national papaya production, second to Piña and Mango.
Third place in the world fashion competition: Diego Alcázar.
6 – THE KIND OF EXPERIENCE WITH US
But what kind of photographic journey will it be? Oaxaca is a city that I deeply love and that I know very well, and this is to the full advantage of this photographic expedition. The trip will not only include the city of Oaxaca, we will also go to different small towns in the state of Oaxaca. In addition to working hard, we will have a lot of fun while working on our visual stories of the many events that will enliven Oaxaca day and night. We will provide you with all the necessary information before departure and we will make sure you experience one of the best trips of your life.
While others tend to dazzle with activities that have little to do with the culture of Oaxaca and Dia de Muertos, we are particularly interested in offering a true experience, profitable from a purely photographic point of view and therefore that cannot be separated from the human experience.
We will avoid all those carnival-like aspects that are typical of those who, coming from outside, think that Dia de Muertos is a sort of Halloween in a Mexican version. Our highest cultural reference is and remains the approach of Mary Ellen Mark who in Oaxaca offered her workshops during the Dia de Muertos celebrations.
The fact of living together for more than a week in a private house tends to create a cohesive work group oriented towards great results, under my guidance.
7 – OUR PHOTOGRAPHERS WILL BE PART OF A TRULY UNIQUE EXPERIENCE
With this trip THE STREET PHOTOGRAPHY CHANNEL will be involved by making video footage of the trip and making the experience even more fascinating, knowing that our photographers will become part of a community of people interested in visual art.
8 – THIS EXPERIENCE INCLUDES A CONTEST
Well yes. To make this trip even more special we thought of creating a competition reserved for its participants. On the final day of the photographic expedition, the author of the best photograph (chosen by me) will be rewarded with a camera.
One more reason to participate in this photographic expedition.
9 – THE JOURNEY INCLUDES PARTICIPATION IN AN EDITORIAL PROJECT
We will publish a printed book containing our photos, mine and those of the participating photographers. In this way you already know that by participating you will have the responsibility to do a good job and in fact, you will be working on a project. This gives a complete, different dimension to this photographic journey.
And then... and then who knows. We are thinking of a photographic exhibition in an art gallery.
10 – A JOURNEY WITH ALEX COGHE
Yes, the tenth good reason is me. Do you know why? Because I am a real street photographer. No pretense or staging: direct photography is what I promise you, made with passion and enthusiasm, truly humanistic photography. Every day there will be a part that we will dedicate to reading the images and I will follow each of you, to make you come up with a work that is an expression of your inner voice, not mine. I don't teach a method of taking photographs and I don't want to create my own imitators. I will also follow you after this photographic journey, because being my pupils means continuing to work together to help you achieve real and important results with photography.
BOOK YOUR SPOT AND YOU WILL NOT MISS THIS UNIQUE EXPERIENCE:
JOIN THIS MAGICAL EXPERIENCE IN 2024
These 8 days in Oaxaca with Alex Coghe during the traditional celebrations of Day of the Dead (Dia de Muertos) are a fantastic expedition and human experience.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS NOT AN EXPERIENCE FOR TOURISTS. WE ARE TRAVELLER, PHOTOGRAPHERS, OBSERVERS, WRITERS, VIDEOGRAPHERS, FLANEURS. DON’T EXPECT A 4 OR 5 STARS HOTEL, OUR FOCUS IS TO OFFER A REAL TRAVELLER PHOTOGRAPHER EXPERIENCE WHERE THE ADVENTURE SPIRIT IS ESSENTIAL PART OF THIS EXPEDITION. ALEX WILL EAT WITH YOU, HE WILL PHOTOGRAPH WITH YOU AND HE WILL SHARE THE FULL EXPERIENCE WITH YOU. THIS IS NOT A WORKSHOP WHERE YOU PAY THE VACATION TO THE LEADER OR THE BIG NAME IS THEN REPLACED IN REALITY BY MINOR PHOTOGRAPHERS, LIKE MANY AGENCIES DO IN PHOTOGRAPHY EXPEDITIONS.
OCTOBER 28TH- NOVEMBER 4TH, OAXACA DE JUAREZ (OAXACA), MEXICO
THIS EXPERIENCE IS RESERVED TO A GROUP OF MAXIMUMM 4 PARTICIPANTS. BOOK YOUR SPOT TODAY.
EARLY BIRD INSCRIPTIONS UNTIL APRIL 30, 2024 DISCOUNT PRICE 3000 US$
DEADLINE IS SEPTEMBER 30, 2024
Tuition in English, Italian, Spanish language.
Max. 4 students.
***BEST SELLING EXPERIENCE MAKING THIS WORKSHOP IN OAXACA SINCE 2015***
Join acclaimed street photographer Alex Coghe and take your photography to the next level.
Alex will review your work and during the workshop he will guide you, taking photographs together, in classic places of the city and the surrounding villages, but also in places not beaten by tourists,.thanks to his experience and knowledge of Oaxaca, a place that Alex loves and which is a bit like his second home. Without neglecting the possibility of taking photographs of all kinds from portraits to documentary, this workshop will focus on street photography, a genre that Alex dominates and of which he boasts an experience of over 15 years that has led him to photograph in different places in the world, even in those considered the most difficult and dangerous.
During this intense and full immersion experience, Alex will identify your photographic inclinations but he will also inspire you to go outside your comfort zone, trying several approaches and techniques with the end goal to make you a better photographer, with a personal vision.
Thanks to the daily reviews you will have the opportunity to learn how to read a photograph and how to recognize the elements making a good photograph . Alex also will show you techniques to shoot at night in the festivities around Oaxaca, with or without a flash. He will show you how using the flash or choosing extreme exposure combinations, working on shutter speed, can be used creatively to give you images with a strong emotional impact.
Thanks to his experience and his character, as an open and cheerful person, Alex will make you experience the workshop with a good vibe, with moments full of fun, and therefore it is certainly a workshop where the learning of the proposed subject is put at the center but always with the attention to live this experience well, in friendship and where human contact plays a fundamental role.
This workshop is for all levels. A laptop and SDHC memories are required to all the participants. Any camera is accepted.
THE COST INCLUDES: Tuition, e-books, certificate, exclusive print, professional portfolio review, mentoring program, FEATURE on THE STREET PHOTOGRAPHY CHANNEL on YouTube.
PLEASE NOTE: WE DON’T PROVIDE ANYMORE ACCOMODATIONS BECAUSE WE WANT TO AVOID PEOPLE THINKING TO DO A VACATION AND NOT INTERESTED IN THE WORKSHOP. WE CAN RECOMMEND HOTELS ON THE LOCATION OF THE EXPEDITION. WE WILL COUNT WITH A NICE MEETING POINT FOR OUR BRIEFINGS AND FEEDBACK.
For more info, please contact me by sending me an email to: alexcoghe.store@gmail.com
PLEASE NOTE: The workshop complies with the recommended health provisions and respecting the safety of each participant.
Schedule
We will have breakfast every day as a group. After the breakfast we will review the work and Alex will gives the feedback. We will often move as a group but will be granted moments in which everyone will photograph on their own during the day and nights, depending on the Day of the Dead festivities and schedule of events. Although we have a program, from experience we know that things change suddenly and we are ready to remodel over the course of the day always with the aim of offering the best experience in every moment of the workshop.
The workshop starts on the 28th in the evening with a group dinner (after all students have arrived ) in the historic center of the capital Oaxaca de Juarez. The workshop ends the 4th at approximately 8am after group breakfast. You can make travel arrangements to depart Oaxaca anytime after 8 AM on the 4th.
Getting to Oaxaca
Best way is to fly to Oaxaca International Airport (OAX) : we will be there where Alex will give you his BIENVENIDO A OAXACA.
How much safe is Oaxaca?
Guys, Oaxaca is one of the safest states in Mexico. In fact several times we found ourselves at 3am in Oaxaca City and city felt safe. If you act normally and also follow the directions of Alex and Carmen nothing unpleasant goes to pass.
Oaxaca and Dia de Muertos
In 2008, the feast of Dia de Muertos was proclaimed a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Far from being a macabre party, skull shapes appear in all sizes, colors and variations. They symbolize life and are used to make fun of death a little. It is not a Halloween in Latin version like many think. This is coming from pre-hispanic cults that joined the Catholic religion.
It is a moment in which the dead are remembered and honored, who reunite with their families from the afterlife on the night between 1 and 2 November. According to popular belief, this only happens if they are remembered by the living and only if their photo is displayed on the family altar.
The traditions of Vida y Muerte belong to all of Mexico, but there are some regions where these holidays are particularly felt and therefore also celebrated in public, with events and parades, as in Oaxaca.
Oaxaca is known for its amazing cuisine and mezcal production. Oaxaca esta de moda (Oaxaca is in fashion) and Oaxaca's cuisine has been recognized as one of the best in the world. Alex, as a food lover, can also give you tips in this regard.
DURING THE WORKSHOP YOU WILL LEARN:
How to make photos of high visual impact, different from all the others
How to make ghosts using the flash like in my Reality Remade click here to see it
How to achieve a consistent body of work from a journey experience
How to make portraits that question the viewer
How to photograph seemingly normal scenes, where a detail such as a gesture and expression gives you a photograph that has meaning
How to interact with your subjects and still pursue a snapshot vision and aesthetic
Different techniques and tricks to obtain winning compositions
How to photograph quickly and effectively, being sure of the result even with shooting from the hip
How to capture dynamic, vibrant and the energy in a image
How to make real candid shots
How to work a scene
How to drink mezcal and still photograph accurate
How to eat chapulines (grasshoppers)
