Utah Wilderness
Photography Expedition
2027 Dates TBA Soon
A Invitation to Explore Off the Beaten Path
Seth Hamel, Hunter Page, and I have been exploring the backcountry of southern Utah together for years. Last year we turned those trips into a workshop, and the group that joined us wanted to do it again before they even got home. So here we are, again. This is our chance to bring a small group into the landscapes we keep coming back to, with the kind of support and intention we'd want if we were participants ourselves.
This isn't a roadside photography tour. We travel by 4x4 into remote southern Utah, areas that don't make it onto most maps and don't show up in most portfolios. We camp in the backcountry, move with the light, and photograph landscapes that take real time and effort to reach: slot canyons, sandstone formations, painted badlands, and wide open desert that feels genuinely quiet.
It's off-grid and it's real. But Seth, Hunter, and I also believe that good camp life makes for better photography, so we put real care into the meals, the gear, and the little things that make sleeping under the stars feel less like roughing it and more like exactly where you want to be.
A remote adventure for those who crave something different
Dates: 2027 Dates TBA Soon | Limited to 6 participants | $3,895 per person
What to Expect
Each day follows the light. We're up for sunrise, out in the field, back at camp for a real breakfast, and then moving again as the afternoon opens up. Seth and Hunter know this country well, it’s their backyard, and we'll use that knowledge to put ourselves in the right places at the right times. Along the way, we'll talk through compositions, discuss light, and share how we each approach making photographs in a landscape like this.
Five nights are spent camping in backcountry locations chosen for their solitude and access to good terrain. The last night is in a hotel in Hanksville, a chance to shower, sleep in a bed, and decompress before the return journey home.
Included
✅ All meals and drinks throughout the workshop (excluding alcohol)
✅ Transportation from start to finish, including airport pickup and drop-off in Grand Junction
✅ High-quality camping gear (tents, sleeping bags, sleeping pads) if needed
✅ Daily instruction and field guidance from three working photographers
✅ Small group size for personalized attention
✅ Loads of mediocre humor
Not Included
❌ Flights to and from Grand Junction
❌ Lodging in Grand Junction the night before the trip or after the trip
❌ Travel insurance and gratuities
❌ Alcoholic beverages
After the morning shoot, we have coffee overlooking the badlands
The Experience
Because we’re venturing into true wilderness, there’s no strict itinerary, the desert will decide. Weather, light, and safety will guide our path. We might spend a day photographing within a labyrinth of sandstone canyons, then move on to a ridge overlooking endless waves of desert badlands. Every location has been handpicked after years of exploration and discovery.
Expect dust, laughter, early mornings, and moments of awe that remind you why you fell in love with photography in the first place.
Sample Itinerary
The desert has its own rhythm, and we’ll move with it. Our exact route depends on light, weather, and instinct, but here’s what a week in Utah’s wild heart might look like. Each day brings a new landscape, a new challenge, and a new reason to fall in love with the desert all over again.
Day 1 — Into the Wild
We meet in Grand Junction, load up the 4x4s, and head south. It's a long drive, but the landscape starts changing well before we reach camp. Once we're set up, we'll head out for our first shoot, a secret slot canyon that's worth the drive on its own. Dinner back at camp, and an early night before a full day tomorrow.
Day 2 — Sandstone Giants & Hidden Canyons
Breakfast at camp, then back into another secret slot canyon for the morning light. Slot canyons change completely depending on the time of day, and we'll use that to our advantage. By afternoon we're breaking camp and moving deeper in, setting up at a new location in time to photograph sandstone formations at sunset before dinner.
Day 3 — Big Views & Remote Exploration
Up for sunrise, then breakfast and a slower morning to explore the area on foot. Some of the terrain involves basic scrambling, nothing technical, but you'll use your hands and need decent footing. By late afternoon we're moving toward the next location, finishing the day with sunset at an overlook that puts the scale of this landscape into perspective.
Day 4 — A Canyon Like No Other
The landscape shifts today. A short drive takes us to a different kind of terrain, sculpted rock, narrow passages, and light that behaves in ways you don't expect. It's one of the more unusual places we visit all week, and it tends to surprise people regardless of what they were anticipating. Sunset here before we head back to camp.
Day 5 — Rugged Roads & Untouched Beauty
Sunrise right outside camp, no driving, just walk out and shoot. After breakfast we'll load up and head out on some rougher 4x4 tracks to reach the afternoon location. The roads are part of the experience out here, and where we end up for sunset makes it worthwhile. It's the kind of place that's hard to describe and easier to just show you when we get there.
Day 6 — The Place Unknown
We spend the morning near the previous night's location, there's usually more to see once the light changes and you've had a night to settle into a place. After lunch we break camp for the last time, make the drive to Hanksville, and check into the hotel. It's a good night to shower, eat somewhere you didn't cook, and start looking back through the week's images.
Day 7 — Homeward Bound
Early morning drive back to Grand Junction. It's a few hours in the trucks, which usually turns into a good conversation about the week, what worked, what surprised you, what you want to go back and shoot differently. Drop off at the airport and that's a wrap.
The Team
Seth Hamel | OWNER OF ENLIGHTEN PHOTOGRAPHY EXCURSIONS (ZION AREA)
For Seth, photography is more than just a passion, it’s a way to connect deeply with the world around him. Being outdoors, immersed in the beauty and solitude of nature, reminds him of our shared human experience and our place in this vast, interconnected world. Through his work, he strives to help others form their own meaningful connection with nature in a way that’s both personal and profound.
Hunter Page | OWNER OF HUNTER PAGE PHOTOGRAPHY (CAPITOL REEF AREA)
Hunter Page is a professional nature photographer and experienced wilderness guide with a lifelong passion for the outdoors. For well over a decade, he’s dedicated his life to exploring and photographing the remote landscapes of the American West. With years of experience as a backpacking guide and photography instructor, he thrives off-grid and deep in the backcountry,often days from the nearest road, chasing light, solitude, and the quiet rhythm of the wild. These immersive experiences aren’t just what he offers; they’re where he feels most alive.
Andrew Hertel | OWNER OF ANDREW HERTEL PHOTOGRAPHY (SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA)
Andrew is a fine art nature photographer based in Southern California. His black and white work focuses on quiet moments in the landscape, where light, texture, and form reveal the deeper character of a place.
Andrew’s approach to photography is rooted in experience first. Time spent exploring the landscape, often by motorcycle, leads to a deeper connection with the places he photographs. His workshops reflect that philosophy, encouraging participants to slow down, observe carefully, and develop their own way of seeing the landscape.
Seth, Hunter, I (and our friend Sam), hunkered down in an old mining cabin in Death Valley, sheltering from a sand storm during our annual moto/photo trip.
Fitness and Comfort
This workshop requires a moderate level of fitness. We’ll hike daily, sometimes just a mile or two through uneven and rugged terrain. You should be comfortable walking and/or standing for several hours at a time, good images require a little work! You don’t need prior camping experience, but a flexible mindset is essential. There will be dirt, weather, and the kind of quiet that only comes when you’re miles from anyone else.
Meals and Camp Life
I'll be handling the camp kitchen and logistics throughout the trip. Expect hearty breakfasts — eggs, bacon, potatoes, fruit — simple lunches, and solid dinners cooked at camp. Good food makes a difference on a trip like this, and I take it seriously. And coffee, plenty of coffee!
For five nights in a row we will not visit any kind of facility—no showers, stores, or restrooms. You’ll be immersed in the natural world and away from typical comforts. This is meant to be a fully immersive backcountry experience.
We'll have periodic Starlink access for check-ins, but most of the time it's just us and the desert.
Required Insurance
All participants must carry medical and evacuation insurance for the duration of the workshop, you may choose any carrier but I personally use RedPoint. This is a simple but essential safeguard for everyone’s peace of mind when working in remote backcountry terrain.
Ready to Escape the Ordinary?
This expedition isn’t about chasing easy photographs. It’s about venturing into the unknown, creating from experience, and rediscovering what it means to be fully present in the landscape.
If that sounds like your kind of adventure, we’d love to have you along.
Reserve Your Spot
To join us, complete the form below. Once submitted, one of us will reach out to answer any questions and make sure the trip feels like the right fit.
Cancellation Policy
- Cancellation of 151 days prior to the workshop, a full refund will be issued, minus $300.
- Cancellation of 150-121 days prior of the workshop, your deposit will be refunded minus $500.
- Cancellation of 120-91 days of the workshop date, 50% of the total will be kept. If I can fill your spot, you will receive a full refund minus $500.
- Cancellation of 90 days prior of the workshop date, no refund will be issued. Unless your spot gets filled, in that case, a refund will be issued minus $500.
Frequently Asked Questions
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We will hike some days 2-3 miles, some of the terrain will be challenging going uphill, downhill or scrambling through canyons using hands and feet. Good balance is a must for this workshop. A moderate level of fitness is all that is required, we want you to enjoy the experience not hate us!
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Each participant will have their own tent to themselves. We will teach people how to set up their own tents if you don’t know how, and participants will be responsible for setting up, taking down and packing up their own gear everyday.
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Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Breakfast and dinners will be hardy meals. For breakfast, expect eggs, bacon, potato type of meals, as well as fruit, yogurt, nuts and grains. Dinners will range, but will be hardy cooked meals with good protein to sustain our daily energy needs. Lunches will mostly be sandwiches.
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Mostly no. We're genuinely remote out there, which is part of the appeal. We do run a Starlink system periodically each day for anyone who needs to check in or take care of something back home.
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Yes! However, you would need to arrange a rental vehicle for the workshop so you could drive yourself back to the airport.
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We will have a portable battery with very large storage capacity. It will have enough juice to charge peoples phones, camera batteries and rechargeable small items.
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Yes, with a caveat. You don't need camping experience, but you do need a flexible mindset. Things don't always go exactly to plan out there: weather, terrain, long days. If you're comfortable with some level of unknowns and can roll with it, you'll be fine. If discomfort tends to derail you, this probably isn't the right trip.
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Yes! Bringing your own gear is encouraged.
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Yes, except for our very last night where we will lodge in Hanksville, Utah. This will get people a night to get freshened up and regrouped before driving back to the airport the next morning.
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Absolutely! While this workshop is about photography, it is even more so about the experience. We would love to have them come relish in the journey with you.
Have a question about that I haven’t covered, send me a message using the form below.
