May I bring my non-photographer friend, partner, or spouse?

We happily accommodate and welcome participants’ guests who are traveling with them during workshops when we can, to a limited extent, and with certain restrictions.  It is typically not possible to accommodate non-participant guests on expeditions. Click the “more” tab for details.

Many of our clients travel to workshops in the company of their spouse, a family member, or friend, and we do everything we can to welcome and accommodate them, short of gratis participation in the workshop, involvement that negatively impacts the experience of our clients, or provision of services, meals, etc. at Visionary Wild expense.

Lodging: At most workshops where single-occupancy lodging is included as part of the package, one additional guest may stay in the participant’s room at no extra cost. If there is any additional cost to Visionary Wild for lodging, transportation, or anything else due to the presence of the non-participant guest, that cost is the responsibility of the hosting participant.

Meals: During workshops, we are also often able to accommodate one guest per participant at some meals (most commonly at dinner, and particularly with advance notice so we can include them in reservations), though the guest or hosting participant would be responsible for arranging to pay separately for the guest’s meals and drinks.  Participants wishing to dine with larger numbers of non-participant friends or family should plan to do so apart from the group, which may simply mean at the next table.

In the Field: Non-participant guests are also welcome to be present at field locations (except in circumstances of access requiring special permits, restricted capacity, the services of a guide, special group transportation, etc.). Note that we don’t say that non-participants are welcome to join our field sessions per se, but if we are visiting a public place, they are welcome to be there at the same time.

That said, we do have a few guidelines that we ask are followed out of courtesy to the other participants:

1. We prefer that participants who bring a non-participant guest into the field with them either drive their own vehicle or make absolutely certain that the guest is present and ready to leave the field location when it is time for the group to depart. Non-participant guests are expected to make every effort to avoid impacting the group’s itinerary and movements. Transport of non-participant guests in vehicles provided by Visionary Wild may not be possible, should not be expected, and is at our sole discretion.
2. We expect any non-participant guests joining us in the field to make a deliberate effort to avoid imposing on the group, getting in their way, scaring off wildlife, disturbing natural features of the landscape, etc. In other words, we expect the guest to show courtesy and respect the fact that they are in the presence of a group of people who have come there to focus on serious photography.
3. We expect that non-participant guests will make every effort to avoid the appearance (or reality) that they are participating in the workshop. Non-participants might find it interesting to stand by and listen to the instructors giving demonstrations or advice in the field, but doing so on anything more than a very limited and incidental basis can be disruptive and upsetting to the actual participants.
4. We are not able to extend an invitation for non-participant guests to join us during lectures, critiques, or other private workshop activities.

Note regarding participants with special needs: Special accommodations can typically be made for participants who require a non-participant personal assistant due to disability or other factors beyond their control, though all costs associated with the assistant’s presence are the responsibility of the participant in question. Please contact us to discuss arrangements prior to booking.

That’s about it. In a perfect world, we would prefer not to have to set rules, but experience has taught us that it is best to do so for the benefit of the overall group workshop experience.