First of all I would like to thank Nikos and the participants very much for the workshop in Istanbul. The learning experience of the workshop was absolutely immense. It was participant-centered, and this provided not only close supervision but also great space for creativity and room for www.ontheroad.grelopment. Further, I have really enjoyed meeting with Nikos and the other participants. For me meeting with Nikos was like ‘downloading wisdom’ from a master photographer like himself but the challenge lied in reflecting that wisdom on my photographs. In addition, I think participants added much to my experience with their diverse approaches to photography and they were great company. Given his credentials, I think Nikos is very modest while professing strongly his mastery secrets and has a very nice personality. I feel privileged to have been a part of this whole experience and hope to get together with them sometime in the near future at another workshop.

This is the third time I participate in a Nikos’s workshop. Everybody comes back! Cuba was amazing. The people, the place, the backgrounds, the light, everything was perfect and of course Nikos’s passion for photography, his sharp vision, his keenness to find great images in our work made us produce and achieve great results. His comments are always truly useful and make us see in a different way. This is not a didactic class, this is an awareness journey, this is a personal search of style and meaning for our images. He does not tell us what to do. We ultimately discover it by ourselves and this is truly amazing. It looks like an impossible task but after a few days every body’s work becomes stronger, more compact and meaningful. Nikos is friendly and affectionate to everybody, he tries to understand the needs of every participant. He is generous with his time and he is always ready to help during the day. If he feels somebody needs extra help he immediately proposes a private meeting in the morning. The evening meetings are a delight. To see so many good images, talented photographers trying to improve their work is incredible motivating. I am planning to come to Iran in May and looking forward to it. Thank you Nikos for organizing the workshops and for your enthusiasm in our work. We do appreciate it, hugely.

I did not know what to expect from a Greek maestro who lives and travels half the year in his cool VW T3. From the first hour of meeting Nikos in Pristina, my perspective on human relations and photography changed. His no-nonsense approach, opinions and advice delivered always with respect, kindness and often times, humour plus his wealth of life and photographic experience taught me to be free, take risks, challenge the norm and focus on making a compelling and difficult photo instead of fiddling with technical issues. What is also priceless, is his personal interest in the places and people we visited. Without his thoughtful commentary on the historical and cultural background to frame the environment we were in and his interesting friends who joined us during the week, it would have been a totally superficial tourist visit to Kosovo. I can’t wait to join him again.

…The workshop in Istanbul has been a great experience for me. Some points I got from it are the following: I trust myself a little bit more and now I think my personal view is as valid as any other to describe a city or a place. I have to work much on this subject: What do objetivity and subjetivity mean in photography? Moreover, Istanbul is a fantastic city to make oneself questions such as: What do contemporaneity mean? I have become more motivated to go through the work of different photographers…

I feel privileged for having the opportunity to join Nikos’s workshops two times in six months. Seeing the way that he is present during the workshops and providing his continuous availability for sharing not only technical, but also esthetic and photographic language with different materials and stories makes me understand more the reason i felt always close to his photography. I remember several key inputs, which I see now how to reflect my view to my frames. I hope to hear as usual Nikos’s open and constructive comments in the next workshops as well, which help my www.ontheroad.grelopment a lot. Meeting so diverse cultures during the workshops is another pleasure which enriches it with no doubt!

The best aspect of Nikos workshop for me was to realize that a good photo can be best produce by liberating oneself from codes and rules. Seeing everyday each participant become visually freer and freer was revealing. Nikos has a passion for images and this workshop was all about sharing with us this passion. We were all motivated and thrilled by everybody’s images, comments and discussion about what makes an image better than others. Nikos gave us freedom, feedback and love for photography beyond imagination. Thank you. It was truly a unique experience.

“This was my first workshop with Nikos, absolutely a wonderful experience!!! The way the workshop is managed it’s a unique opportunity to improve your photographic skills. At my beginner level, I was looking to improve my visual capacities and tο learn how tο frame my shots: I am definitely more than satisfied, and I will definitely come back to attend more workshops. This unique experience has then been enriched by a fantastic atmosphere and excellent fellows with sharing a lot of information. Overall a great experience, definitely worth and to be soon repeated”

Honestly Nikos – your workshops are really amazing. Again, I’m so taken with your warmth and generosity, it’s something that is not all that common in people and really a gift to your “students”. You are really inspiring with how you speak about photography, not only in terms of composition, framing, being careful about the light, but also in terms of having feelings for the people or things that you’re photographing. It has really made me think a little differently about how and what I would photograph.
I also wanted to mention how much I enjoy meeting the other participants and that so many of the participants are such talented photographers, it makes the editing sessions so informative and enjoyable. Watching you edit, process and discuss the photos are really a good learning experience for me.

As always, a great workshop, good people and rewarding discussions. First, I will say I really enjoyed Porto as a city. Its’ size was just right, and there were enough interesting areas to get around to – the old town, art museum, food market, the other side of the river and town Gaia, the beaches and the riverside walks. And it was easy to get around with buses and trams – and walking.
Second, I really enjoy to experience and to watch how good you are pedagogically. One little step at a time, go easy, you manage to lift us all a little bit – also the not so experienced. Thank you so much for that!
You do it so well, and discreetly – I think we hardly notice that we learn something, a little at a time. And also always interesting to listen when you tell of your experiences, travels, of the history of photography and the great photographers in the past.
I come home happy, having learned a lot. Now looking at my photos with more critical eyes, knowing maybe how to do it better next time.

My name is Seungwoo Chae. I’m working as a photographer for a newspaper in Korea. I was feeling that something was missing in my photography. I wanted to know what I needed. Consequently, it was great idea to participate to Nikos’ workshop. He told me and showed me what was ‘photographic’. I felt to return to beginning. I think I could start again.

For me as a professional photojournalist, to be with Nikos takes me back to photography where surprise and curiosity are key elements, instead of telling the story as specific as possible – as many editors seek today. Working in a fast moving newsflow, photojournalism needs surprise to stop readers, and Niko’s photography does exactly that. It intrigues us and plays with our imagination. It moves us from the world of realism to the world of surrealism.
And a workshop with Nikos is a vital reminder of photography at its best: to show us the world in a way we don’t see it ourselves. And to be formulated by a teacher, not only extremely talented, but also a friendly and charismatic travel companion.
I’m already looking forward to my next workshop with Nikos Economopoulos.

“Ethiopia was my second workshop with Nikos, at the end of each workshop I wish to be everlasting. Being in photographically gorgeous places with fantastic people in group and of course Nikos’s pragmatic approach to photography was a wonderful experience. I fell i made a big step up as a photographer. I would like to thank Nikos not only for his marvelous mentorship and guidance but also for his friendship. Looking forward to next workshop with a big enthusiasm.”

The Sanliurfa workshop was inspiring and exciting both with regard to the photos taken by the other members of the group as well as the area and the cities we were visiting. Further, I enjoyed the evening sessions. I like the way Nikos criticizes the pictures of the photographers and gives them advice each on his/her individual professional levels. Nobody has to fear to be embarrassed – on the contrary, I was motivated not only by the comments and advice to become a better photgrapher but felt also supported by the other group members.

I would like to say how much I enjoyed the Istanbul workshop, from all the photographic advice and guidance that you gave me to the pleasure of exploring the city and walking through areas that I might not have visited on a normal ‘city break’ trip. The maps and descriptions of the various neighbourhoods proved very useful and it gave me a focus on how to structure the day. I always looked forward to the editing sessions in the evening and all the feedback you were able to give. Each day I tried to refine my photography, taking into account what you had said the previous evening. By the end of the workshop I could see my technique improving and I was very happy with the final edited sequence. I feel that the experience was very positive and the effect it has had on my photography is that I have the confidence to get closer to the subject and also to dig a little deeper and not just take the obvious ‘tourist’ type of photograph.

I wanted to thank you so much for your dedication and for offering all help possible for all the participants. I can’t forget that you stayed up one class time until 2 a.m. reviewing &amp editing my work. The workshop was one of the best hands on learning experience that I had since I took interest in photography. Mainly because we watched you daily critique and edit every participant’s work right after a full day of shooting. This process has pushed me to think seriously about my work and the changes needed to make in order to improve. It allowed me to compare my work with others and this gave me new ideas for future projects and ways to improve. Not only that, we had discussions on equipment and why some of us use certain cameras or laptops. Which was really useful for someone like me who never cared for the technical side of photography. It was hard to go back to work and my usual routine because I will not be photographing as much as I did during the workshop even though one of my main tasks at my work is photography. Photography as full time job is not the same as the photography we did during the workshop which is the kind of photography I dream of pursuing one day. As a result of this workshop, I am more focused about my personal photography goals inside Kuwait and I am planning to commit myself to planning photography trips outside Kuwait. I am trying to commit myself more to my personal photography. I forgot how much joy that used to bring me and that workshop was a great reminder. Thank you especially for being tough on me! I didn’t come all the way to hear what I would like to hear. I wanted someone to push or dare me for a change and you did! Honestly I haven’t put my 24mm on the side. But I am crazy over the 35 mm. And that is a great start.

I’ll get straight to the point, the “On The Road” workshop I attended in Istanbul was the single best photography class I’ve ever taken. Nikos is an inspiring teacher who perfectly combines a nurturing, generous spirit with a rigorous critical eye and revealing analysis of each student’s work. He pushes each participant to look harder, go deeper, shoot better. Over the course of the week, I greedily collected the pearls of wisdom he would drop about everything from composition to lens choice to how to most effectively approach shooting in the street, and I realized that I was learning as much from what he had to say about my classmates’ photographs as my own. Through it all Nikos imposes no single viewpoint about what photography should be, but instead pushes each student to fulfill his or her own vision. I felt I made a huge leap with my work. Finally, “On The Road” is a fantastic way to experience a new city, and to have seven glorious days with the luxury of thinking about nothing except photography.

The Varanasi workshop was clearly the highlight of my India visit. Nikos’ advice after our first editing sessions that I should use only my 50mm lens and shoot only black and white was very valuable. After that I felt more relaxed and focused and could produce more consistent and better images. After coming home I have re-examined the Varanasi photos and I must say that I am pleased with the results. I would also like to thank for the great company during the workshop. During the daytime each student could work individually with her/his own problems. In the evenings we gathered together to discuss the results. This scheme worked out very well: you could see how the students progressed during the week. I felt that Nikos’ comments, even the critical ones, were to the point and always supportive. A specially memorable evening was when Nicos showed and discussed some of his own iconic images. I felt privileged to see and hear his thoughts on style, photography, art and life in general.

For me the Istanbul workshop was, above all, a great chance to see how an exceptional photographer such as Nikos looks at, selects and talks about photographs. Nikos was keen to understand our photographs first and then offered ways to improve them. While doing so, he was always up-front and honest but never condescending or imposing. I felt that Nikos’ attitude towards us, the participants, and our photography was similar to the compassion one can see in his own photography in that, he makes sure that no one is ever stripped off of their dignity. His comments were not only related to the formal result but also what goes on before and during shooting. The workshop was, as others have said, intense and demanding, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Thank you for the workshop, overall it was great and I look forward to joining you somewhere else in the future. In terms of feedback, particularly at my beginner level, I was often seeking more and more direction and information from you and as you probably realise, I would continually ask for more and more information as the days went on. Apart from that however, it was a great experience and an overall (apart from the food) good trip.