Copenhagen Photography Workshop | April 2027 (Registration Coming Soon)

Copenhagen Photography Workshop | April 2027

An Intimate 5-Day Photography Retreat in the City of Light and Design

This is not a photo tour. It is a small-group, hands-on photography workshop in one of the most visually rich and livable cities in the world, designed to genuinely improve how you see, shoot, and edit.

Limited to just 6 photographers, this workshop gives you personal instruction, real-time feedback in the field, and the best light Copenhagen has to offer, from the candy-colored canal houses of Nyhavn at sunrise to the cycling streets of Nørrebro at golden hour.

This All-Inclusive Workshop Includes

• Private room in a handpicked 4-star boutique hotel in the Nyhavn and Frederiksstaden area

• Daily breakfast and dinner

• All transportation within the workshop itinerary, including the Malmö day trip by train

• Entry tickets to all scheduled locations, including the Church of Our Saviour tower climb

• Special dinner at Geranium (three Michelin stars), or a comparable fine dining experience

• Personal instruction in a group of just 6 photographers

• Two pre-trip Zoom sessions covering logistics, gear, and preparation

• One post-workshop Zoom to share your favorite images from the trip

Photograph One of Europe's Most Beautiful Cities

From the iconic ochre and red facades of Nyhavn to the bold geometry of the Black Diamond Library, Copenhagen rewards photographers who know where to go and when to be there. The northern light here is extraordinary: soft, diffused, and flattering across almost every subject. April brings longer days, lighter crowds, and cherry blossoms in the parks. It is the sweet spot of the Copenhagen calendar.

Over five days, you will work through the city's finest photography locations at the right time of day, with guidance at every step. You will leave with a strong portfolio, sharper technical skills, and real confidence in how you approach a city with your camera.

Before You Arrive | Pre-Trip Zoom Sessions

Your workshop experience starts well before you land in Copenhagen. After you register, you join two group Zoom calls designed to make sure you arrive confident, prepared, and ready to shoot from day one.

Zoom 1 | 60 Days Before Departure We cover trip logistics, the daily schedule, what to pack, gear recommendations, and how to prepare your camera settings before you arrive. This is also a great time to meet your fellow participants and ask anything on your mind.

Zoom 2 | 7 to 10 Days Before Departure A final check-in before you board your flight. We go over any last-minute questions, confirm meeting point details, and do a quick weather check so you know exactly what to expect when you land.

Both sessions are recorded and shared with all registered participants.

Daily Schedule

Sunrise sessions are planned throughout the week. Participation is optional and weather-dependent, but these early outings consistently offer the most atmospheric light of the day. In April, sunrise in Copenhagen falls around 6:00 to 6:15 am, which means you get a full morning before the city wakes up.

Day 1 | April 27: Welcome and First Light on the Canal

Arrive, check in, and settle into your hotel. Take time to rest or explore the neighborhood before we begin.

4:00 PM | Workshop Introduction We meet as a group to outline the week, cover logistics, and answer questions. We go over your gear, talk through the daily schedule, and set intentions for the five days ahead.

Group Dinner A relaxed dinner together before our first shoot. A good chance to get to know each other before we head out with cameras.

Evening Photography | Nyhavn Canal We begin at Nyhavn, photographing the 17th-century canal houses from golden hour through blue hour. The objective this first evening is not to get every shot. It is to understand the light, work the compositions, and get comfortable with the city. We cover long exposure technique for the water surface and discuss how the same location changes completely from hour to hour.

Day 2 | April 28: Sunrise at Nyhavn, Frederiksstaden, and Amalienborg

Sunrise Photography | Nyhavn We are back at the canal before the crowds arrive. This is the session Nyhavn is built for. We position ourselves at the far end of the canal on the south side and work the full row of colored facades in the first low light of morning. We discuss wide-angle composition, reflection technique, and how to use the cobblestones and moored wooden ships as foreground elements.

Breakfast and Free Time Recharge at the hotel or walk the neighborhood before we head out.

Mid-Morning | Frederiksstaden: Amalienborg, Frederik's Church, and Amalie Garden We move into the formal elegance of Frederiksstaden. At Amalienborg, we photograph the four rococo palace facades and the courtyard with an equestrian statue of Frederick V at the center. We cover telephoto compression techniques, using a 70-200mm to bring the dome of Frederik's Church forward behind the palace facades. We also work the Amalie Garden, the small park between the palace and the harbor, which gives you a completely different vantage point on the waterfront and the Opera House across the water.

Group Dinner

Evening | Gefion Fountain and the Waterfront We photograph the large-scale fountain on the harbor front and the waterfront promenade north toward Kastellet. The evening light on the water and the harbor skyline creates opportunities for long exposure work with the harbor bus lines moving across the frame.

Day 3 | April 29: Kastellet, the Little Mermaid, and Christianshavn

Sunrise Photography | Kastellet One of the best-preserved star-shaped fortresses in Northern Europe, built in the 17th century and still an active military installation. The grounds are open to the public. We photograph the working windmill framed against the earthwork ramparts, the red-brick barracks buildings with their clean symmetry, and the moat and footbridge at the southern entrance. The morning light through the trees that line the paths inside the fortress is worth the early start.

Breakfast and Free Time

Mid-Morning | The Little Mermaid and St. Alban's Church We photograph the Little Mermaid as early in the morning as the itinerary allows. We use a 70-200mm to compress the harbor behind the bronze statue and isolate her against the water. From there, we move to St. Alban's Church, the Anglican church built between 1885 and 1887, with its Gothic spire and harbor setting, before walking back through the Kastellet perimeter.

Afternoon | Christianshavn: Inderhavnsbroen and the Church of Our Saviour We cross into Christianshavn, one of Copenhagen's most photographically rewarding neighborhoods. The Inderhavnsbroen footbridge connects Nyhavn directly to Christianshavn, and it is an exceptional spot for cyclist photography, harbor compositions, and long exposures of the water surface. From the bridge, we shoot toward the Opera House across the inner harbor with a 70-200mm for the compression.

The Church of Our Saviour follows. The external spiral staircase winds to 90 meters, narrowing as it rises. From the top, you can see across the city to Sweden on a clear day. The view down the helical staircase looking downward with a wide angle is one of the most distinctive architectural images in Copenhagen. Inside, the baroque altarpiece, painted ceiling, and the organ supported by two plaster elephants are worth a careful look.

Group Dinner | Christianshavn

Evening | Freetown Christiania Perimeter and Canal Walk We walk the outer perimeter of Christiania, photographing the murals on the exterior walls and the canal views from the green spaces and lake paths. We cover the specific photography rules inside Christiania clearly before we go, and we respect them completely.

Day 4 | April 30: The Old City, Malmö Day Trip, and Nørrebro

Sunrise | Magstræde and the Old City Streets Magstræde and the adjacent Snaregade are two of the oldest streets in Copenhagen. The buildings lean toward each other overhead, the facades are painted in faded pastels, and the cobblestones catch low morning light in a way that changes dramatically by hour. We work the converging lines from the western entrance looking east toward the harbor. We also move through Gammel Strand and the canal at Slotsholmen before the city opens.

Breakfast and Free Time

Morning Day Trip | Malmö, Sweden This is one of the easiest and most satisfying cross-border excursions in Europe. We board the train at Copenhagen Central Station and cross the Øresund Bridge into Sweden. The trip takes 30 minutes. Sit on the left side heading toward Malmö; the bridge crossing above the water is genuinely spectacular and worth photographing from the window.

In Malmö, we spend the morning working the city on foot. The old town streets around Stortorget and Lilla Torg offer the same cobblestone character as Copenhagen's Old City but with a distinctly Swedish feel. The Turning Torso, Santiago Calatrava's twisting residential tower, is one of the most striking architectural subjects in Scandinavia. We photograph it from multiple angles at the waterfront, covering perspective distortion, foreground framing, and how to work a bold modern structure against the sky. We also walk the harbor district and the canal around Gamla Staden for reflections and quiet street work.

This is a camera-first morning. No structured instruction. Just a group of photographers in a new city, shooting freely with the skills developed over the first three days. We regroup for a coffee in Malmö before heading back.

We return to Copenhagen in time for the afternoon and evening sessions.

Afternoon | Nørrebro and the Bicycles of Copenhagen This is the session that resets your understanding of street photography. Nørrebro is multicultural, politically active, and full of texture. We position ourselves near a busy intersection on one of the main cycling corridors and photograph cyclists coming toward us. Copenhagen cyclists are one of the best street photography subjects in Europe. We cover compression technique at 70-200mm, panning at 1/60 for motion blur, and freezing movement at 1/500 or faster. We also work Superkilen Park, the remarkable public space divided into red, black, and green zones filled with objects from 60 countries. The geometry and color are strong photography subjects in their own right.

Group Dinner | Nørrebro

Evening | The Black Diamond Library We end the day at the Royal Danish Library's harbor extension, a striking black granite and glass building that reflects the sky, water, and city in constantly shifting ways. Evening and blue hour are when the reflective facade is at its most dramatic. We shoot from the harbor walkway with a wide angle for the full building and switch to a 70-200mm from a distance for tight reflections. The atrium interior is worth a look on the way out.

Day 5 | May 1: Designmuseum Denmark, Rosenborg Castle, and a Special Dinner

Sunrise | Nyhavn (Return Session) We go back. After four days of shooting, you see it differently. This final sunrise session is about taking everything you have learned and applying it. We work individually. Questions are welcome but this session is yours.

Breakfast and Free Time

Late Morning | Designmuseum Denmark The museum is housed in a former hospital from 1757 in Frederiksstaden and holds one of the finest collections of Danish and international design in the world. Works by Arne Jacobsen, Kaare Klint, and Jacob Jensen alongside international design icons. For photographers, the interior galleries are extraordinary: curves, surfaces, textures, and objects designed with such clarity that they photograph almost without effort. We cover close-up technique, subject separation with a prime lens, and the museum courtyard, which is one of the quietest and most beautiful spaces in this part of the city.

Afternoon | Rosenborg Castle at Golden Hour Rosenborg Castle is a Renaissance royal castle in the middle of the city, surrounded by the King's Garden, the oldest royal garden in Denmark. In April, the tulip season brings color to the formal garden beds. We work the castle exterior, the garden paths, the fountains, and the long allées of chestnut trees that frame the view toward the castle towers.

Special Dinner | Restaurant Geranium (or comparable fine dining) We close the workshop at one of the finest restaurants in the world. Three Michelin stars. The tasting menu changes with the season. This is not just dinner. It is a masterclass in what it means to care about the details of your craft, and it translates directly back to photography. Book early; this reservation is confirmed before the workshop opens.

Closing Note These five days are designed around light, timing, and location. You leave with a strong portfolio and, more importantly, a clearer eye for how to photograph a city with intention.

Day 6 | May 2: Departure

Enjoy breakfast at your own pace before heading home with new skills, new images, and, hopefully, a few new friendships.

After the Workshop | Post-Trip Zoom

About two to three weeks after we get home, we reconvene on Zoom for one last session together. Everyone shares their favorite images from the trip. No critiques, no pressure. Just a group of photographers who spent five days shooting Copenhagen together, showing each other what they came away with. It is always one of the best parts of the whole experience.

Meet Your Instructor

Vito L. Tanzi is an internationally published travel and wildlife photographer, author, and educator based in Washington, DC. He has photographed across more than 75 countries and taught photography workshops and photo walks for students ranging from beginners to working professionals. His work has appeared in Condé Nast and CNN, among others. Vito has visited Copenhagen more than half a dozen times, in summer light and in winter grey, and it remains one of his favorite cities in the world. He teaches with a focus on practical, real-world technique, and his goal is simple: help you leave better than you arrived.

Joining Vito on this workshop is his wife, Dr. Zena Hammoud, a board-certified Infectious Disease Physician and Internal Medicine Doctor. Dr. Hammoud will be on hand throughout the workshop and is happy to assist if any participant has health questions or concerns during the trip.

What You Will Learn

• How to read and use natural light in northern European cities

• Camera settings for golden hour, blue hour, and long-exposure canal photography

• Composition techniques for architectural and street photography

• Long exposure technique for water, movement, and night shooting

• How to photograph cyclists and street subjects in motion

• Practical editing in Lightroom and Photoshop

• How to develop your own visual style with personalized feedback

Instruction is tailored to your experience level. Questions are always encouraged.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does the workshop cost? $5,200 USD. This covers the full workshop fee, five nights of hotel accommodations in a private room, daily breakfast and dinner, all transportation within the workshop, entry tickets to all scheduled locations (including the Church of Our Saviour tower climb), and the special dinner at Geranium or a comparable fine dining experience.

What is the activity level? We shoot every day, starting before dawn and wrapping up after sunset. You should be comfortable walking moderate distances with a camera bag and standing for extended periods. Participants range from their 20s to their 80s. If you have specific mobility concerns, contact us before registering.

Where are we staying? A centrally located 4-star boutique hotel in the Nyhavn and Frederiksstaden area, within walking distance of the canal, Amalienborg Palace, and the waterfront. All participants receive a private room. Full hotel details are provided after registration. Hotel Sanders is our preferred property; we will confirm availability closer to the date.

What should I wear? Copenhagen in late April and early May typically runs between 45°F and 60°F (7°C to 15°C) with a mix of sun, wind, and spring showers. Pack comfortable walking shoes with good grip for cobblestones, layered clothing, a light jacket, and a rain jacket or compact umbrella. Dress is casual and practical for long days outdoors.

Should I bring medications? Pack any prescription medications you take regularly, along with a small supply of personal essentials. Dr. Zena Hammoud, a board-certified Infectious Disease and Internal Medicine Physician, will be present throughout the workshop and is happy to assist with any health concerns that arise.

What gear should I bring?

Camera and lenses:

• DSLR or mirrorless camera

• Wide-angle to medium telephoto lens (16-35mm or 24-70mm)

• Telephoto lens (70-200mm)

Support and accessories:

• Sturdy tripod (essential for Nyhavn long exposures and the Church of Our Saviour interior)

• Wireless remote or cable release

• Extra batteries and memory cards

• Microfiber lens cloth

• Rain cover for your camera

• Camera backpack

Recommended filters:

• Circular polarizer

• 6-stop ND filter

• 10-stop ND filter (ND1000)

Tech essentials:

• Laptop with Lightroom and/or Photoshop

• Battery charger and card reader

• USB cables

• Denmark travel adapter (Type K; a Type C adapter also works in most Danish outlets)

What experience level is required? All skill levels are welcome, from beginners to advanced shooters. Instruction is adapted to where you are. No prior workshop experience is necessary.

What is not included?

• Airfare and airport transfers

• Visa fees (if applicable)

• Early check-in or late check-out

• Lunch

• Alcoholic beverages

• Personal expenses and travel insurance

• City tax

• Tips and gratuities

Can my spouse join? Your spouse is welcome to stay at the hotel (the hotel typically charges a small additional fee for a second guest). They can join you for breakfast, the included dinners, and explore on their own during the day. Copenhagen offers extraordinary restaurants, museums, and neighborhoods for independent exploration.

To keep the group dynamic and learning environment intact, spouses are not able to join photography sessions or instruction time. Copenhagen offers no shortage of ways to spend a day.

How do I get to the hotel? The Copenhagen Metro runs directly from the airport to Kongens Nytorv station in approximately 14 minutes. The station sits at the top of Nyhavn, and most hotels in the area are a short walk from there. We will provide specific transfer details and recommendations after you register.

Do I need a passport for the Malmö day trip? Yes. Malmö is in Sweden, and crossing the Øresund Bridge is an international border crossing. You need a valid passport. EU/Schengen passport holders cross without a formal check in most cases, but always carry your passport. Non-EU travelers should verify current entry requirements for Sweden before the workshop. The train ride is 30 minutes each way from Copenhagen Central Station, and the border crossing is seamless.

What is the refund policy? If you cancel and we are able to fill your spot at least 30 days before the workshop, you receive a full refund minus the merchant processing fee (approximately $220). If we cannot fill your spot, you receive a refund minus a $1,000 service fee. No refunds are available for cancellations within 30 days of the workshop start date.

Still have questions? Email us at vito@chasinghippoz.com. We are happy to help.