Wondering why there are fewer tours listed for 2026/2027?
I’ve decided to scale things back for 2026 into 2027. You won’t see as many tours listed, and that’s entirely intentional. I’m not stepping away from running tours completely, far from it, but I am taking a step back to focus on what matters most, both personally and professionally.
If you’ve already booked, don’t worry, those tours are still going ahead. And if you keep reading, you’ll see why this shift feels necessary and how I hope it will lead to something even better.
Why the Change?
This isn’t a decision I’ve taken lightly. I have built this business up from absolutely nothing, I was just someone who had an idea and a dream. I didn’t ever think that year after year my photography tours would be in such demand and sold out time after time. Over the years, these tours have brought me so much joy. Seeing people grow in confidence with their photography, witnessing those first magical moments of the northern lights dancing across the skies in Norway, or standing on the edge of a rugged cliff in the Faroe Islands as the wind howls and the light breaks dramatically through the clouds.
I’ve met some incredible people from all over the world, some of whom I’d now consider friends. I’ve also met some absolute bellends too 😂 but I’ll not go into detail about those people 😎. That connection, both with nature and with each other, is what this has always been about.
The Reality Behind the Scenes
Lately, the landscape around running photography tours has changed. Too many of the places I offer tours too now require hiring local drivers, working with local guides, paying extortionate fees for access to land, and dealing with accommodation prices that have gone through the roof. To be perfectly honest, the costs are just becoming unsustainable in the popular places.
I recently requested a couple of quotes for local drivers in Iceland and Norway, and the average came in at around £1,000 per day just for the driver and van. Add on accommodation, fuel, meals, insurance and everything else, and the cost price and the price to the end user just starts to spiral. Yeah, I could increase my prices and I could bring more people to help cover the costs but I’m not about cramming folk into the van like sardines. That’s not the kind of experience I want to offer.
And let’s be honest, every Tom, Dick and Harry is running photography tours now. Too many corners are being cut, insurance is non-existent, there have been crashes, and most of them are just copying what everyone else is doing. You know who you are 😉.
What used to be only a handful of photographers at a location is turning into a cattle market and free-for-all. There are photography tours and photographers everywhere not to mention the normal tourists, walking into your scenes, leaving footprints through untouched sand & snow, running about with head torches on, ruining your night photos, jumping barriers, and ignoring the rules. And all with that same attitude of, “I’ve paid a lot of money to come here, I’m getting my photo and I don’t give a fuck about anyone else.”
It’s frustrating because that behaviour directly affects the kind of experience I’ve always tried to create. From the very beginning, my goal was to run tours that felt personal and inspiring, while remaining accessible, not exclusive or elitist. But with everything spiralling the way it is, that balance is becoming harder and harder to maintain.
Life at Home
There’s also a personal side to this. With an ever-ageing family and children who are growing up fast, I’ve found myself missing more than I’d like while away. The time spent on the road, which once felt like freedom, now tugs at me in a different way. I want to be there for those little moments, the ones that don’t repeat.
And I’m not getting to do much personal stuff either. I’ve always dreamed of taking more photography and motorbike trips to places like India and Namibia. I’ve wanted to start a YouTube channel for a long time, but I’ve just never had the time, in between balancing my family and friends, my tours, my other business, and everything else that life throws at me.
Since this decision was made just over two weeks ago, it’s like a massive weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I’ve had so much energy to do other things. I’ve started exercising more, I’ve been working on personal projects, I’ve taken on a few new web design clients and I genuinely haven’t felt this good in such a long time. Running all these tours month in month out comes with so much pressure: making sure bookings are confirmed, hoping flights don’t get cancelled or delayed, making sure no one gets injured, that I don’t get sick or injured before a tour, staying on top of insurance, paperwork, taxes planning weather contingencies, the list is endless.
So What’s Next?
This definitely isn’t goodbye. I’m not giving up on photography or the tours, far from it. There are just so many factors at play with this decision, and if I don’t slow down, I know I’m going to burn out and run myself into the ground. I genuinely never stop. I don’t switch off and something needs to change. From rising costs and overcrowded locations to the growing demands of balancing family, personal goals, and business, it’s all caught up with me a bit. So this feels like the right time to scale things back a bit, take a breath, and think about what the future holds and where I want to go.
Moving forward, I’m going to be focusing much more on Ireland, the place I call home, the one I know inside out, and where I feel most creatively alive. I’ll be running 4 or 5 small group photography tours per year here, diving deeper into what Ireland truly has to offer. Not just the well-known spots, but the lesser-travelled backroads, the raw coastlines, the forgotten valleys, and those hidden gems that still feel untouched.
These will be slower-paced, more immersive tours, the kind that allow you to connect with the land and your camera in a more meaningful way. And I hope to bring in more hiking, more storytelling, and more moments that feel like they belong just to us, not shared with a hundred others jostling for a tripod spot.
This is a chance for me to reset, recharge, and rethink what the future of Chasing Light Tours might look like. In fact, this could be one of the best things I do. With fewer tours, I’ll be fresher, more focused, and able to give each trip the energy and attention it truly deserves (not that I didn’t ever do this to begin with). It also gives me the opportunity to explore new and exciting locations, ones that feel unique and exclusive, away from the crowds and chaos. That means better experiences, better photography, better opportunities for people to learn more, and a better balance all round.
Thank you, genuinely, for all the support, encouragement, and belief you’ve shown over the years. And just as a reminder, I’m not disappearing, I’ll still be running a handful of tours each year, and I’ll keep sharing work, behind-the-scenes moments, and stories through Facebook/Instagram and the newsletter and who knows maybe I’ll get round to that YouTube channel! The pace might be different, but the passion’s still the same.
And for those booked onto tours in the future, I’ll see you very soon 💖
