Venice Photography Masterclass - Private Photography Lesson

I highly recommend the three hour Venice Photography Masterclass! My wife and I were only in Venice one day prior to our cruise and I wanted to photograph and explore the city as much as possible with the limited time we had. The booking process was and meeting instructions were easy to follow. I had scheduled a morning class and Claudia was an excellent guide and instructor. Being a local she showed me areas of the city that I would have never found from a guidebook or website, and made helpful suggestions regarding composition. In addition to the photography I really enjoyed learning more about the history of Venice and what it is like to live in such a historic city.

Thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Captured many great scenes that resulted in wonderful prints. Well done!

It was a wonderful experience. During the three hours of the Venice Night Photo Tour, we had the privilege of discovering the unknown beauty of Venice, and we learned new features on both the iPhone and the camera. The guide was excellent — communication was clear, and he quickly understood our photography level and what we were looking for. I would recommend the tour to photographers of any skill level, and we will absolutely book another tour on our next visit.

Marco led us on a great tour through some of the “non-touristed” neighborhoods of Venice, away from San Marco or the Grand Canal, where ordinary Venetians live. We saw people grabbing a coffee before rushing to work, children walking to school, shops setting up for the day ahead, etc. We got some wonderful photos of these neighborhoods. We came away with a better idea of Venice as a living city, how it has been home to many for the last thousand or more years. All of this was leavened with Marco’s wonderful conversation and perspective!

I was visiting Venice for just a couple of days and figured an efficient way to photograph Venice would be to sign up for a photography tour, particularly for the evening. We met up with our guide Claudia at the designated meeting spot with no problem, and she had a number of sites to hit, perfectly timed with golden hour, sunset and blue hour. She also asked if there were specific spots that we wanted to hit, and incorporated into the walk as well. As a local, she was able to show us parts of Venice that were not in our guidebook, and she easily navigated us through the labyrinth of streets and canals with ease. She also provided additional locations that we could go to on another evening. Overall, I highly recommend.

This is a unique and superb photo tour, which I can only recommend. Marco is a great guide and expert photographer, he is patient, an expert whit great skills. I learnt a lot, found new places and got inspired... Thank you!

Claudia was fantastic! She was very patient with us and knew all of the best places to take photos - many off the beaten path! We certainly wouldn’t have seen as much of Venice or understood how to take good night photos without her keen and artistic eye! Thank you, Claudia, for sharing your expertise!

I had an amazing time following Marco around in Venice. What a great guy, photographer and teacher. He even got wet to hold his umbrella over me when we were shooting long exposures. I'd definitely book this again and it was well worth the cost.

I very recently completed two morning and three night photography sessions in Venice. I thought the two photographers I worked with were outstanding and took me to the right places at the right time. With their guidance, I captured some wonderful images of Venice. I definitely plan on using them again in a different city.

Marco was our guide to view Venice after sunset. He was very accommodating and pleasant; we were delayed arriving in Venice as a result of a very bad traffic jam along the highway into Venice. He changed the timing and the location of the meet-up so that we could still spend 3 precious hours with him. He showed us unique locations that were not frequently photographed by tourists, and was a very patient and instructive in helping us capture the beautiful images. I will definitely engage his expertise when I visit Venice again in the future.

I spent the morning with Claudia from Aperture Tours in Venice. She was very helpful with suggestions and advice on how to capture and frame many of the places we visited and photographed. It was such a nice pace and she has the most pleasant disposition. She had the nicest way of critiquing my photos and explaining how to improve them. I have done Aperture Tours in other cities and have others planned. All have been excellent and a wonderful addition to my travel. Very professional operation. I highly recommend them.

Claudia knew Venice extremely well and took us to some amazing spots to get some great photos. She helped me with photography tips and tricks were needed. She kindly took some photos of me and my partner, we were never rushed and saw so many amazing places. I highly recommended this tour and would do other cities with Aperture tours. Carl& Lindy

Claudia did just what I had asked by getting me to some of the iconic places at a good time to shoot them and also to a few places that I would not have found by myself to get shots that are certain "keepers". She was good company and helpful to an old bloke like me. I now regret that I did not check to see if she might have been available for another tour another day.

My wife and I took a fantastic night photography tour of Venice with Aperture Tours and professional photographer Claudia Rossini. We had a wonderful time, and Claudia knew all the best locations to get great photos of Venice at night. We had just arrived in Venice that afternoon for the first time, and this was a good way to acquaint ourselves with the city. I have photographs that I would not have been able to get without her guidance! I am an advanced amateur photographer and Claudia was helpful but would also be great with beginners. Well worth it!

I'm very glad I booked this tour. Marco was a great photographer/ guide and taught me a lot about night photography, which is something I've been eager to learn. I got some beautiful shots and saw some lovely corners of Venice. I would recommend this tour to anyone looking to learn more about night photography. A fun way to spend an evening in this gorgeous city.

Things didn’t go quite as planned (a nice way of saying “camera trouble”) but we made the most of it. I’m more of a hands-on learner and never knew where to start with this camera after moving up from a bridge-type from a different company, so let it languish in a drawer for years. This tour was a great opportunity to figure things out with some expert guidance, and also see some locations I might not otherwise have found. I booked this experience for the beginning of my trip and I’ve been able to use the knowledge I gained pretty much every day since.

My husband and I did a street photography tour of Venice with Marco & had a blast. Marco was friendly, knowledgeable and helpful, taking us to places we would never have found on our own. He provided expert guidance on how to compose & take the shots and as a consequence we got plenty of ‘keepers’! Marco also taught us some new techniques which we have been trying out since. We were so impressed with the tour, that I booked a night tour the following week - it didn’t disappoint and again Marco helped me take some beautiful shots. I would definitely recommend the tours to anyone visiting Venice who wants to capture the essence of the city rather than just the usual tourist snaps.

Marco was an amazing photography guide. He took me to beautiful locations to practice night photography skills. I enjoyed our conversation about travel photography. I highly recommend taking this tour when in Venice.

We had the pleasure of going on a "Venice at Dawn" Tour with Marco! We were absolutely delighted to be paired with a person and a photographer who was very clearly passionate about his job, and in helping us unlock additional potential from our cameras and respective talents! We truly enjoyed the fact that he was so well traveled and easy to converse with. He knew his place around the city quite well. We also appreciated his creativity and optimism. Especially when it began to rain. We were fortunate that a high tide was coming in. As a result, he used the opportunity to show us various techniques to capture the reflection of the water and how to capture motion in a non-traditional manner. We learned so much from him!

Our time with Claudia was absolutely worth every investment! We truly enjoyed the questionnaire sent ahead of our tour to learn our comfort level with cameras and the types of cameras/lens we were bringing to the tour. Throughout our tour, she very patiently taught us how to access and adjust the manual settings on our respective cameras, as well as provide guidance on how to analyze our surroundings to capture the perfect shot. We greatly appreciate her time with us as we navigated throughout the city!

Marco was our guide to a Venice night photo tour. Although I have been photographing for quite a while, he reminded me of some things that I had forgotten. My daughters were not so experienced and came away with some beautiful images due to his tutelage.

Excellent photo tour. Walked around Venice and shot some "highlight" locations based on my camera, lenses, and experience. My guide, Claudia, has a wonderful knowledge of photography. Her mentorship was particularly helpful. Having a local guide was really nice.

Claudia was amazing! She was very flexible and met me at a place where I was comfortable. At one point, the plate that connected my camera to my tripod loosened up and I left my tool in the hotel. Claudia brought me back to the hotel so I could get it. As a result, my evening was wonderful and I was able to get so many lovely pictures. Venice just becomes magical at night. Thank you for such a wonderful experience, and to Julia for sharing her knowledge of photography as well as of Venice.

Was an amazing experience with Marco. I Learnt so much and saw things in Venice from a very different perspective. Regained my appreciation and desire for photography

I loved being the only student for my Venice Night Photography class having one-on-one time with Marco for the entire 3 1/2hrs. Marco came prepared as my returned tripod was not available so we used his Fotopod miniature tripod which with my DSLR Canon camera. He taught me how to take night time photos in Manual verse AV and how to set my camera's timer in coordination with my Manual settings to achieve some spectacular nighttime photos. I was use to using my remote release timer in the past. All in all the evening was a grand success.

I took a night tour with Claudia. It was great! The original date I booked ended up super windy and wet, we were able to reschedule to the next day and I only needed to provide a few hours notice. The knowledge of the area and where to shoot was really good and the photos I got were amazing.

I took Dawn photography tour. The guide was Nicoletta. She has tremendous knowledge using my camera. A lot of information was transferred about Venice. 3 hours non stop photography of beautiful corners of Venice. I came back with many good photos. I highly recommend this tour.

Had an excellent private extended photo workshop in Venice last week with Nicoletta. Not only is she a great photographer, but she was an exceptional guide on the history of Venice, suggested great image compositions and knew some of the best vantage points around Venice to really capture some incredible photographs. I've had the opportunity to shoot with Aperture Tours in more than a few destinations (Paris, Normandy, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Rome to name a few) and they have a top notch team that really help curate an exceptional experience.

Whether you’re a professional photog, enthusiast or just starting out, this tour will fit you perfectly. I had an exceptional guide, Claudia, who took me around beautiful Venice at night for some cityscapes. Very helpful and knowledgeable and helped me capture some awesome shots! I loved the tour so much I booked another one in Paris. Well worth it!

I had a good time with Claudia. She taught me a lot about different techniques for night photography, which is quite different than daytime photography. Totally recommend this.

My friend and I had the distinct pleasure of taking a Photography Tour of Venice with #ApertureTours with Nicoletta as our guide. Nicoletta was an absolute joy to work with; knowledgeable, friendly, funny… All rolled into one package. She arrived a few minutes early at our pre-arranged meeting point, where my friend and I were enjoying a quick breakfast of a croissant and espresso. We sat for a few minutes, getting to know each other a bit, and chatting about our photographic experience, what we were hoping to see/learn during our time together, and a bit of background information about each of us. We then set out to explore a bit of Venice and shoot some photographs. Nicoletta was very helpful in offering suggestions on how to make the most of lighting conditions, how to have better composition in our photos; all the while reminding us that photography is very much a personal preference form of art, and that her suggestions were simply that… suggestions. She made it very clear that young photographers often imitate other, more seasoned, photographers for style, composition, exposure preferences, etc., but that most photographers begin, with time, to develop their own style or personality in their photographs; in many cases without conscientiously thinking about what that style or personality actually is. I would highly recommend Nicoletta if you find yourself in Venice and are looking to improve your photographic skills and knowledge. A bit of background about myself… I have been “dabbling” in digital photography for about 3 years now; this is the 4th tour I have booked with Aperture tours. Every one of the tours I have completed with Aperture have been very educational for me; I feel my photographic skills have been greatly enhanced by these tours. All of the guides I have worked with have been great and I have really enjoyed each tour. One tour I had booked had to be cancelled as the tour guide/photographer had a family emergency; Alexander could not have been more apologetic for the issue, and immediately refunded my booking fee without question. I would not hesitate (and have not hesitated) to book again with #ApertureTours.

The tour with Alvise took us to some Venice highlights for those classic photographs, as well as some hidden gems that we would never have found without his local knowledge. He helped me with some technical bad habits that have crept into my photography, and my non-photographer husband enjoyed the tour just as much as I did. Perfect way to spend a few hours in Venice!

I thoroughly enjoyed my evening out and about in Venice. It has a different atmosphere at night. Reflections, lights shadows, busy areas and deserted areas. Pablo guided me around patiently which suited me, I didn't want to rush. He was knowledgeable and gave me tips on eg. composition and some technical issues. He was great company. The communication from the company, prior to this, was ordinary to say the least. I received an email confirming my tour with questions about my particular areas of interest and equipment, asking for a reply which I was eager to respond to as I was having issues with my equipment. So I responded, but the next email I received, made no reference to my questions. I was told twice that no mobile number had been registered but it had been supplied 3 times. However, the company was helpful in that I was able to change the date to the following day when I requested it so overall I cannot complain too much. If the communication had been better I would have rated it higher. Hopefully this will improve and in that basis I would highly recommend it.

Anna was a great guide. Learnt a lot about being more creative with my photography, the best angles to use for photography and learnt more about the features of my camera. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to take great night time pictures in Venice.

My partner and I had a great evening with Anna. I learnt so much, having previously been on a course Anna now gave me the opportunity, confidence and guidance to put into practice what I had learned. Although my partner wasn’t taking photos with us Anna was also a great source of local information to add to the evening. As well as encouraging me to think outside the box when looking at a composition of a photo Anna also gave me some new great tips on how to get the best from my pictures. We can’t thank Anna enough for a great evening I will definitely be following the website and blogs from here onwards and also hope to be taking part in some future tours.

I recently did a photography tour with Alvise, who was not only very knowledgeable about photography, but also knew all the great spots in Venice to get interesting photos that are unlike the many similar shots most tourists will take. Different vantage points, out of the way locations, different perspectives. The tour began with Alvise asking about my level of expertise and my "style" (if I have one), so that he could better customize the tour. I showed him some of the photos I've taken previously and that gave him a pretty good idea. We walked from the Rialto area to Piazza San Marco, across the Acdademia bridge, along the waterfront, through some hidden areas of Dorsodouro, then back towards San Marco. Along the way Alvise would challenge me to get out of my comfort zone and try different types of shots, different angles, etc. I ended up getting some great shots, saw some areas I probably wouldn't have found on my own, and had a great time. I highly recommend this tour!

We recently did a photo tour with Alex. We were very impressed with his professionalism. Interesting insights and easy walking ariund various spots in Venice. Would highly recommend. Thanks Alex. David Loiterton.

This tour was purchased as a gift for my husband who enjoys photography and wanted to get help with using his camera to the full. Mirko met all our expectations. He turned up on time and was extremely warm and friendly and easy to talk to. He listened to what we wanted and tailored the tour to meet our needs. He had booked a sunset slot at the top of the Tedeschi building so that we could take views from the rooftop terrace. The 3 hours went so quickly and my husband learned lots of really useful stuff from Mirko that he will find useful for a long time to come. This was a really enjoyable experience and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys taking great photographs. Thanks Mirko - and remember to contact us if you're planning a visit to Scotland.

Spent three great hours early evening last week with Anna as we walked from Dorsodoro to the jewish quarter and Cannereggio. Anna's enthusiasm and great eye shines through and kept me and my 20 year son interested and informed. As an experienced photographer, who keeps returning to Venice with my camera, what I enjoyed was the way she challenged me to take a fresh look at my composition and what each picture was trying to say, as well as helping with exposure as the evening set in. We also used the tripod to manage some blue hour exposures and ensure calm, silky water. This was a great way to spend a first evening of our stay - not even so much for the pictures I took, but for getting me back into a photography frame of mind. The organisational side of the booking all ran smoothly and it was no problem to change the meeting spot to somewhere closer to our hotel. Thanks Anna for a great start to our stay.

A professional photographer took me to great places in Venice. He (Mirko) taught me very valuable facts about taking pictures in a city. I learned a lot and I was really inspired of all the experience. Great value of the money.

Anna Volpi of Aperture Tours provided my 13-year-old granddaughter Elia with an inspiring and thrilling photographic experience in Venice. I accompanied them as a fifth wheel on June 4, starting at 6 PM in bright sunshine. Elia had only modest prior photographic experience. We did not know how the photographer would respond to a 13 year old, but any qualms were quickly dissipated. Anna was delighted to work with a young person, and they established rapport immediately. We sat in a cafe for the first 15 minutes, as Anna went over the basics, explaining f stops, exposure time, and film speed. Then we set out for a slow walk approximately from the Rialto Bridge to St. Mark's Square over a three-hour period, stopping to select subjects, photographing them, and then talking about techniques. Elia was using her father's Nikon, so she could apply most everything Anna was saying. Venice has an infinity of subjects. After Elia took a picture, Anna looked at it and made suggestions how to improve it, from camera settings to framing and use of a tripod. Elia made adjustments, and Anna critiqued again. Rest assured, the entire experience was much more fun than didactic. Elia took close ups and distance photos, of buildings, animals, and human beings, even her grandfather. We ended at the Venetian Lagoon close to St. Mark's Square as the sun was setting, providing an opportunity for Elia to be challenged by subjects in the twilight. We had almost ten tours during our six days in Venice, and Elia judged Anna's Aperture Tour to be her first or second favorite. She was educated, inspired, and entertained.

I had booked the tour expecting it to be a group activity, and was a little nervous about being the only guest - especially with limited photographic experience. But I needn’t have worried. Anna was a fantastic guide. Very knowledgeable, great communicator, easy going and also good company. Her professional experience means that she can quickly spot ways to improve your picture taking. The time of day when the tour takes place (around sunset) is ideal for trying out various techniques and the tour route was very well thought out to take advantage of the changing light and some great Venetian locations. I have already been using techniques and settings which Anna suggested with great results.

What a productive, informative and enjoyable experience. Mirko (sorry if I have that a bit wrong) was great value and made the tour worthwhile and enjoyable. He firstly assessed where I was at with my photographic knowledge and then set tasks and challenges during the tour at different spots to endure his knowledge was getting through. I would certainly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to improve their knowledge and practical skills in the art of photography while walking through a very enjoyable part of Venice.

I am not a professional photographer just someone who enjoys taking pictures for a hobby. I learned a lot in the 3 hours to help keeping building my photo skills. Venice is a photographer paradise. The tour will take you to great places to practice.

<p>Really loved this photo tour. We went to the area where the locals live and I took some of my favorite photos of the city! Highly recommend!</p>

Marco led us very patiently, well beyond the agreed time to places that tourists usually do not find, and also gave us important tips on recording technique. This is exactly how we had imagined and wished for it.

Excellente expérience avec Nicoletta qui, outre le fait d’être une excellente photographe très pédagogue , a été une guide parfaite dans Venise. Merci !

I was very lucky with the wonderful Nicoletta to get to know Venice away from the known corners. I love this city with its beautiful colors, the peeled walls and the many details. I would never have discovered many things without Nicoletta!