The Trapani, Sicily workshop was the first I had with Nikos. The group was mixed with novice, very amateur and also more experienced photographers. Being an amateur photographer made me feel nervous in the beginning of the workshop. Rather than embarrassed on the first day I was quite happy and ready to go the next day. This feeling was related on how Niko created the environment, how he explained the portfolio and what he wanted from the novice participants in his workshop. The workshop really helped me to understand and feel the street photography and so it paved my path to a kind of photography which I really like. Niko’s does not go out with you and photograph with you, he let your instinct and mind to guide during the day while helps you in the afternoon during which he selects and edit the photos. The way he describes the art of photography was very helpful for every one of us and helped us to grow and to see the world in a different perspective. You always have something to note or keep in mind even if that comment was directed to a more experienced photographer.
“On the Road” helps every photographer to create new goals to achieve and also give to you the critical viewpoint for the photography. 
Another skill that you learn or handle better is the editing and the creation of a portfolio. Every day when you sit with Nikos to see and edit the photo he shows how a portfolio is create and is managed. Or maybe how a picture is edited. I am a black and white photographer and the workshop helped me to give the right tone and contrast for the photo in the editing process. In the end, Niko shows to everyone what he expects from them. Ending my comment I would suggest this kind of workshop not only for the accuracy Niko’s chooses the place, but even more of how he treats the participants (we spend quite a lot time together discussing as a community), how he treats photography and how it expresses and helps you gain at least a new level. Niko’s workshops help you to find a goal and work to achieve it but in the same time it gives to you the feeling of wanting to go to a new one. So, you can show to him if you have mastered the goal he posed before you. Looking forward to catch another wonderful and very helpful workshop with Niko very soon.

…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 liked very much not only the editing process but the general discussions we had about photography, and the way you challenged everyone and frankly shared your opinions. In my opinion, the more opinionated, the better. (…) I liked the way you emphasized the idea of creating the portfolio from pictures with a similar approach. I feel I am on the way to www.ontheroad.greloping a style.

“First time in the Balkans. First time with Nikos. A great experience. While I knew him as an outstanding photographer, I discovered a gentle, honest person. He talks, does not assume. He shares his personal experience, without secrets. He is tough, but not rude. He does not overwhelms you with his skill. And what a wonderful travel companion! My only regret: having to unexpectedly leave a few days earlier”.

All along this workshop, I’ve learnt and understood many many things, photographically and personally. My vision of photography has considerably changed. After these eight days, I feel really motivated to carry on learning, practicing and enjoying photography. This experience was very fruitful and positive. Moreover, I appreciated that you give a chance to every person. Thank you for all that !

Why my last workshop with Nikos (in Buenos Aires) was the Sixth and hopefully not the last one ?
-The pleasure of learning and improving from a great photographer and a marvellous teacher
-The pleasure of being part of a high level group where community is more important than competition
-The pleasure of travelling trying to look at the country from inside
-The pleasure of the pleasure.

The workshop with Nikos was a great experience and a wonderful event. The evening reviews were inspiring as Nikos proved to be not only a gifted photographer but also a patient teacher and reviewer. He truly possesses the didactical skills to explain what elements are required in building up a good photograph. Naturally the workshop was frustrating at the same time as one comes to realize what skills are required in order to perform photography at this level. Nonetheless, it is definitely learning process that I want to experience again, so I’m studying my agenda and Nikos’ website to try to decide when I can sign up again.

After the first meeting with Nikos, I felt my photos and the way I thought about them were too old and ordinary. Nikos shared some of his hints with me and the other guys, and as a consequence I started to feel more comfortable with my camera while taking pictures in different situations: I thought my images were improving and were becoming more interesting. Then, after all the reviews I attended, I saw my pictures and suddenly they were old and ordinary again. I was completely upset. But now I am realizing that day after day and picture after picture, his advices led me to start finding a new way – my own way – to take photos. Ok, probably this is just the beginning, but it’s a good start. Thanks Nikos!

This was my third trip with Nikos –I believe it is called “voting with your feet”. One of the nicest parts of these courses is the chance to meet interesting and intelligent people from around the world. What is however truly amazing, is that despite the daily struggle to improve, there is no competitiveness (or at least, that was my feeling) – something that would have impossible, but for Nikos’ amazing warmth and interpersonal as well as balancing talent. What however I really relished, was the -almost linear- improvement in the quality of photos I took during the course. There is a big difference between photographing while traveling andtraveling in order to take photos. In the first case, photographing in a secondary (albeit important) part of your trip: In the heart of traveling is understanding and learning. A traveller wants to explore (and, occasionally, photograph what he sees) – while a photographer is (exclusively, obsessively) interested in producing photos. The difference is anything but academic. Meeting someone like Nikos, a person living, breathing, dreaming photography, makes the difference obvious. Like most things in life, the amount of effort correlates directly with the results. During a week in this workshop I felt that the quality of my photos improved dramatically. It is not easy to explain it: It is partly related to different day-planning (waking up early and going around during dusk to take photos), partly choosing where to go on the basis of its photographic potential, partly being constantly exposed to amazing photos from and interacting with the other participants, but most importantly, having a daily feedback and being stimulated daily by someone with a passion for photography that is still not blunted, someone who has kept his enthusiasm after all these years. The genius photographers are people that are different from the rest of us: They breath, eat, live, drink and live photography. For them photography is a demanding mistress – jealous and harsh: You cannot treat her to the second row, you cannot give her just your spare time. The trip is a light immersion (a “preview”) into this strange and wonderful world.

This was my fourth workshop with Nikos and you wonder how much there is still to learn down and on the road! Nikos is very generous in sharing his knowledge and experience and it is a delight to participate in the editing sessions. Besides the workshop it was great to meet all these motivated photographers and great personalities.

Nikos family name has something to do with economics. But don’t be mistaken, he is more the kind of person always happy, without any sense of saving its time, to be involved 200% in its works as a…. what? Teacher is an understatement for an attitude towards the rest of the world which helps you in advancing at a fast rate towards the excellency. Always saying what he thinks, if there is something he does not like, and helpful in finding the good sides to be www.ontheroad.greloped.

This workshop provided me with a new prism at taking photographs including more sentiment and injecting more thought and content to my work. As a newcomer to “Street photography”, the workshop allowed me to quickly get into a pace and experiment with this new to me approach, producing some fair results quite quickly. Invaluable was the fact that I gained a lot from the positive evaluation by Nikos of my other coworkers’ work. This evaluation demonstrated to me things to avoid once I get further down in my own journey and also experience paradigms of good quality work that I could try and experiment with. Things that take ages to discover, are presented to you during one week’s teamwork. Absolutely a positive experience with a lot of new friends that I really enjoyed!

The workshop in Ghana was my first with Nikos. It was a great experience because Nikos is not only an excellent photographer and teacher, but also a really wonderful person to be with! In Nikos’ teaching methods I loved especially that he let everybody go his own way and let us www.ontheroad.grelop our own visions. He was not imposing his own style or anything else, so each participant was free to photograph whatever he or she wanted to. In the evenings we all met for long and very interesting editing sessions. Then Nikos went carefully through all the photographs we offered him, regardless if there were only a few or even a hundred. He gave each of us excellent feedback on our daily work in a direct and honest, but always very friendly way. With this we learnt how to avoid common traps or clichés, how to recognise easy tricks, and avoid making boring and badly composed pictures. So he carefully guided each of us and helped us day by day to improve our work. Thanks a lot for all this Nikos, you are a great inspiration and I already look forward to being with you again in another workshop! Thanks also to all the participants for the great time we had together!

I have as complicated a relationship with street photography as I do with my streets. I am passionate about other people’s street photography but find it very hard to do it myself. I don’t want to poke my camera into the face of someone having a bad day, but I do want to show my family and friends the intensity of life here, and why I often have my heart broken during a short trip for groceries. Recently some of my Istanbul photography friends did a workshop (or two!) with legendary Magnum photographer Nikos Economopoulos, and I was really interested in the work they produced. When we heard he was coming to Istanbul Ville persuaded me that I should sign up.
For three days I spent a few hours shooting alone and then met up with Nikos and the other participants to go through all the pictures. This took four or five hours each day. I learnt so much by listening to Nikos critique us all. He is truly a person with great generosity and a big, open heart (as well as being an incredible photographer). He removed the terror of showing my attempts (however unsuccessful) and helped me find a new way of thinking about photographing on the street.

I’ll never forget that week. It was like a revolution for me. Nikos and his point of view really impressed me and that workshop opened my eyes and showed me new worlds and possibilities. Words can’t express how great everything was. I felt so much free in Istanbul and I was so close to people who I didn’t know very well. It was much more about changing my ideals than my photographic view.

“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”

Ethiopia’s workshop has been a wonderful experience for my photography.
Nikos guides you on a very precise path: one camera, one lens, one format between black and white and color, and focus on the image. Just relax, react to what you see, without too much thought or preparation.
This may sound obvious, but it was not for me at the beginning: I’ve passed from confusion, feelings of inadequacy, to be more and more confident and able to enjoy the process, and it’s been amazing for me to see my pictures improve day by day, become more interesting and less ordinary.
Niko’s passion is contagious, he’s able to criticize very precisely and firmly but always in a positive and constructive way.
I still have l a long way to go, but I can only thank Nikos for giving me back enthusiasm and directions to improve my photography.
I really look forward for the next workshop with Nikos!

My sincere thanks for the exciting workshop in Istanbul. I really enjoyed the time with you and the other participants. It opened my eyes for things I have been looking for (getting away from boring pictures). I certainly have lots to think about and practicing to do for some months now and I am sure I will produce better pictures in the end.