The Dolomites, an extension of the Southern Limestone Alps found in the far northern reaches of Italy, are some of the most unique and picturesque mountains on Earth. These impressive peaks dominate the surrounding landscape and create stunning scenes just begging to be photographed. With countless impressive formations and jagged ridgelines, a complex and fascinating cultural history, pristine alpine streams and lakes, colorful larch trees, and so much more, it’s no surprise that these are some of the most photographed mountains in the world.

Having seen so many incredible images from some of my favorite photographers over the years, I had been dreaming of traveling here myself for quite some time. The Dolomites are just one of those places where you can see an image and instantly recognize where it was captured.

When I got the assignment to run the ‘Dolomites in Autumn’ workshop with Backcountry Journeys I was beyond excited. A place I had been dreaming of for quite some time was now within reach. Before I knew it, I was on a plane headed for Venice and the adventure was about to begin.

October 16th – 17th

I arrived in Venice 2 days before the start of our trip, which gave me just enough time to explore the city. I ended up wandering through narrow alleyways and over countless bridges late into the evening on that first day. I did the same the following morning before meeting up with our local guide, Leonardo Papèra, to grab our second vehicle and pick up some snacks for the trip. Leo is a fantastic photographer and guide and having an experienced local to steer the group in all the right directions is an absolute must. I cannot say enough good things about Leo, and it was an absolute joy and privilege to guide this trip with him.

After two very busy days running around Venice, it was time to hit the hay in preparation for the real adventure. It was almost time to leave the hustle and bustle of the city behind and head into the mountains.

October 18th

For the first full day of our trip, we all met as a group in the hotel lobby after everyone had eaten some breakfast. We had a quick orientation and then hit the road. We made our way northwest out of Venice and into the beautiful Italian countryside. After a short time on the highway, we slowly started to enter foothills that progressed into impressive mountains. The weather certainly wasn’t ideal as it was cloudy and raining but the mist and low-hanging clouds added a wonderful sense of mystery and allure to the environment we were traveling through. Every now and then impressive peaks and colorful trees would pop into view.

After driving for about two and a half hours we arrived at our first destination, the charming and beautiful town of Cortina d’Ampezzo, where we would be staying for the next 4 nights. Imagine a picturesque and classic European mountain town that sits in a beautiful valley surrounded by impressive peaks on every side, and the image in your head won’t be far off from Cortina. This wonderful town is world-famous for its stunning scenery and ski areas. In fact many of the alpine ski events of the 2026 Winter Olympics will actually be hosted right here.

Upon arriving, we all settled into our rooms, grabbed some lunch at a wonderful restaurant right in the middle of town, and then set out for the first shoot of the trip. It was quite overcast and there were pockets of rain here and there, so we weren’t expecting much. Nonetheless, it’s always worth heading out just in case. We headed Northeast of Cortina towards the much smaller town of Misurina. As we drove along windy and narrow mountain roads, we could see colorful larch trees emerge from the thick fog that surrounded us.

We drove for a while, but the clouds and fog were ever-present. As we started to make our way back to the hotel, we crested Passo Tre Croci and just like that we found the opening we were looking for. The clouds parted just enough to show us a glimpse of the incredible mountainous landscape we were in. We could see hillsides speckled with yellow and orange larches and towering cliffs of granite and limestone rock.

After snapping some quick shots, we rushed over to a great spot that Leo knew right at the base of the towering Monte Cristallo. We were hopeful that the clouds would be dissipating on this side of the pass and luckily, we arrived just in time. We stayed here for the remainder of the evening and watched as the clouds danced around this massive peak slowly revealing ridgelines and cliff faces while simultaneously hiding others. Everyone managed to get some nice shots and this was a very welcomed surprise given the forecast. After this, we headed back to Cortina, enjoyed a delicious dinner at our hotel’s beautiful dining room, and hit the hay.

October 19th

The following morning our alarms went off quite early, as we had a bit of a drive ahead of us. We all met in the lobby, loaded the vans, and headed out for our morning shoot at Passo Giau. After driving through the darkness, we arrived at the top of the pass. We hopped out of the vans, slung our packs over our shoulders, and began the short hike uphill to a beautiful vantage point. The group got set up and we all started snapping away as the daylight emerged.

Passo Giau is beautiful, and we managed to snap some nice shots but the highlight of the morning, at least for me, was a stop we made on our drive back. Leo knew of two small streams that were surrounded by larches, so we pulled over on the side of the road and walked a very short distance to a hidden overlook. This was a lovely surprise shoot, and we all ended up getting some great shots with vibrant larches, pristine mountain streams in the foreground, and jagged peaks in the background. Of course, you have to visit the iconic destinations on any workshop, but I’ve found that hidden and lesser-known places just like this are often my favorites.

After a successful morning, we drove back to Cortina for some breakfast at our hotel. We enjoyed a lovely Italian breakfast buffet featuring countless delicious pastries, cured meats, eggs, fresh-squeezed juices, and of course delicious espresso. As an espresso enthusiast, I was in heaven throughout the duration of this trip. Of course, photography is the priority on all of our workshops, but the food has to be another one of the main highlights. Writing this trip report and reflecting back on this workshop, makes my mouth water.

After breakfast, we headed out again into the misty mountains in search of good light and more images. This time we set out for Passo Falzarego which lies due west of Cortina. We arrived at a lovely meadow with a nice stream and before long the peaks of the Dolomites began to emerge from the clouds. The larches here were incredibly vibrant and this ended up being another successful shoot despite the fickle weather. After this, we relaxed at the hotel for a bit, set out for our evening shoot, and then returned to town for yet another delicious meal.

October 20th

The following morning, we set out for one of the most iconic and most photographed destinations in the Dolomites. After driving for around an hour through the darkness and coming within several kilometers of the Austrian border we arrived at Lago di Braies. The forecast was quite cloudy yet again but as we made our way through the darkness, I was hopeful we’d get something decent. We made sure to arrive early to secure our places before other photographers showed up. The clouds were quite low but as we patiently waited for the sun to rise, they began to scatter ever so slightly. Eventually, we had enough light to shoot and everyone managed to get some nice shots between breaks in the low-hanging clouds. Lago di Braies is absolutely beautiful and there’s a reason everyone wants to capture this classic shot.

After a productive morning, we made our way back to Cortina and continued our exploration of the Dolomites. We enjoyed some great food throughout the day, photographed some beautiful scenery, and wrapped things up with another delicious dinner.

October 21st

For our last full day in Cortina, we had something special planned. We all met up in the hotel lobby like usual but instead of loading our gear into the vans, we were promptly greeted by two old-school Land Rover Defenders. These timeless offroad SUVs are not only beautiful vehicles but incredibly capable offroad, and we were going to need those capabilities for the day’s sunrise shoot. We drove out of Cortina to the west on smooth paved roads but quickly the asphalt turned into ribbed concrete slabs and eventually we were driving over incredibly rugged terrain up slopes I would never have imagined. The defenders did their job well and slowly crawled up the mountain with ease. After an enjoyable offroad drive, we arrived at our destination: Lago Federa. The drive up was already a highlight of the trip for me but it was merely a warm-up to the day’s sunrise shoot. After a short hike along the lakeshore, we were in position and ready to start shooting.

As the sun began to rise in the east, a small patch of beautiful orange larch trees began to light up. We all started shooting. With each passing minute, more and more trees became illuminated before the entire hillside around the lake erupted in color. This was one of the most beautiful and incredible places I had ever been and everyone walked away with a big grin on their faces. We drove back down the mountainside and grabbed our last breakfast in Cortina.

Throughout the rest of the day, we continued to explore the mountains around town. We managed to find some dynamic clouds and some nice light and before we knew it the sun had set. We settled in for the evening and hit the hay.

October 22nd

After several productive and absolutely lovely days spent in Cortina, we packed up our things and said goodbye to this charming mountain town. We set out bright and early for the day’s sunrise shoot at Passo Giau and then made our way through stunning valleys, down winding roads, and over tall mountain passes. By mid-afternoon, we had arrived at our next destination and checked into a lovely little hotel in the charming town of Fiera di Primiero. We would only be staying here for one night but there was a very specific and justifiable reason for this stop.

For our evening shoot we drove north out of town and up into the mountains. After driving through dense and colorful forests of larches, furs, and spruce trees we rose up above the tree line and arrived at one of the region’s most popular ski areas. We hopped off the paved road and started driving up a dirt one that would soon be covered in snow and skiers.

Eventually, we arrived at a small pond near the top of one of the chairlifts. When we arrived, we could only see small glimpses of towering peaks through the clouds but you could tell that there was an absolutely incredible scene hiding just beyond. We all got set up on the far end of the lake and juts like clockwork, right before sunset, the clouds began to break.

What followed was one of the most beautiful and incredible sunsets I’ve ever experienced. The walls of light stone and traces of mist exploded into stunning color. As the clouds danced around the towering peaks, the scene constantly changed and evolved creating tons of unique shots. On top of that, there was practically no wind so we enjoyed crystal-clear reflections. This ended up being one of my favorite moments from the entire trip. After the last traces of sunlight had faded, we began the drive back down to town and enjoyed yet another absolutely wonderful and delicious dinner. The quick stop in Fiera di Primiero was well worth it, to say the least!

October 23rd

October 24th

On our first morning in this new region of the Dolomites, we were able to catch a couple extra minutes of sleep as our sunrise shoot was only a quick 5-minute drive up the road. We drove through beautiful countryside before the sun rose and arrived at Alpe Di Siusi well before any crowds. We all set up side-by-side at the ideal spot for this location and started shooting as soon as we got enough light. Eventually, the blue hour turned to gold and before we knew it the sun had emerged from behind the horizon lighting our scene and creating stunning colors in the clouds above. We all got some great shots and then headed back to our hotel for breakfast.

Later that day we drove down into the valley, boarded a gondola and then a tram, and eventually made our way up the mountain to Seceda Ridge, another absolutely iconic shot in the Dolomites. There were quite a few clouds when we arrived but every now and then we could catch glimpses of this jagged ridgeline as it emerged from the clouds. We enjoyed watching the scene transform before us and then grabbed a nice warm lunch at a cozy little restaurant located at the top of the tram.

October 25th

I couldn’t believe it, but we had finally arrived at the last day of our workshop. Even relatively long international trips like this one always seem to fly by whenever you reach the end. After so many productive days exploring the Dolomites capturing images and memories, we had one final shoot. At the time we had no idea, but we were in for quite the surprise. Again, we had a short drive just up the road to Alpe Di Siusi but this time we were shooting it from a slightly different angle. When we arrived, the entire scene was totally socked in with thick clouds and we couldn’t see anything more than 100 feet in front of us. Expectations and hopes were low, to say the least.

Just as we were about to call it and head back to the hotel to finish packing, the clouds miraculously faded away and we were treated to arguably the best sunrise of the entire trip. We had just the right amount of fog hanging in the valley, we could clearly see the distant peaks, and got to enjoy a vibrant and stunning sky full of colorful clouds. Right as we were about to call it the Dolomites answered our prayers and delivered yet again.

After a great sunrise shoot, we all packed our bags and began the roughly 3-hour drive back to Venice. We enjoyed the stunning countryside as the mountains faded into foothills and eventually the coast. We arrived in Venice, said our goodbyes, and before we knew it this incredible adventure was over. In writing this trip report, all of the fond memories are resurfacing and I’m reminded just how special and beautiful this place is. This really was an exceptional trip and I can’t wait to make it back to the Dolomites sometime soon! If you’re looking for a world-class landscape workshop in Europe, I cannot recoomend this trip enough!

Grazie Dolomiti!