What is the difference between a Meetup, Excursion, Workshop & Tour?

Meetup or field trip

A meetup or field trip is a gathering organized through a group such as meetup.com/GBNight or a camera club, where an organizer facilitates a group photo shoot. People sign up online and get together in a real world location to take photos at an interesting spot, or with a particular theme or challenge. Meetups are usually free or very inexpensive, covering only cost with a low annual fee (<$50/year) or it is included in club dues. The organizer explains the photo shoot opportunities and voluntary assignment suggestions and answers questions, then everyone goes about it on their own or in pairs or small groups, but broadly within reach. The organizer or host shoots, too, and does not provide formal instructions, but questions are answered and photo sharing afterwards allows for peer and organizer feedback.

Who is it for? Hobbyists to intermediate photographers who enjoy the safety in numbers approach and organized photo shoots at low cost and mostly peer guidance.

Excursion

A photo excursion is a guided photo shoot, organized online, either through meetup.com or a newsletter or website announcement. People sign up for the shoot with a low event fee ($50-150/event), receive some online instruction on how to prepare and what the learning goals are, then the individual or group meets the event host in the field. The organizer explains the concepts, goals, location opportunities and assignments and then guides the attendees throughout the typically 2-3 hour shoot. The organizer does not take photos, but rather spends the entire time rotating between participants to provide guidance, suggestions and help on equipment, settings, composition and ideas. Excursions can follow a formal presentation and can be followed up with an editing class in a separate event.

Who is it for? Hobbyists, beginners and intermediate photographers who want a little more assistance. The next step up is....

Workshop

A photography workshop is a group trip organized and conducted by one or more hosts, most often combined with travel to remote locations. Workshops have formal instruction sessions where attendees learn in-depth techniques for the chosen workshop topic or theme (e.g.: night-, daytime long exposure-, or astro-landscape photography etc.). Lectures alternate with photo shoots and photo critique after the shoots, where participants learn how to improve both the photography and post-processing. Workshop hosts spend their time rotating between attendees during the photo shoots and may take some photos for themselves, but as a minor activity, the learning experience and supervision of attendees are priority. Workshops are typically 3-5 days long and in the $500-3000 range.

Who is it for? Hobbyists, beginners, intermediate or advanced photographers who want to learn specific skills to grow.

Tour

A photography tour is for intermediate to advanced photographers who want to take advantage of an organized trip with all logistics worked out in advance. Tours follow pre-planned itineraries that emphasize the photography aspect and experience for all attendees, but without formal instruction or review sessions. Tours are often in unique domestic or international locations, and they are typically hosted by at least two experienced instructors, who will take photos during the shoots, but will rotate between attendees and be available for guidance on equipment and techniques. Photo tours are usually 5-10 days long to maximize investment and can be anywhere from $2000 to $10k.

Who is it for? Intermediate to advanced photographers who have some experience, particularly with their equipment, and need less guidance, but want to take advantage of somebody organizing logistics, opportunities and locations.

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