Documentary Photography Workshop: SEC Tailgate
A workshop in Columbia, SC
November 6-8, 2026
The Mighty Sound of the South, The University of South Carolina Marching Band. (Photo by Sean Rayford)
More than a decade ago I self-published a photography book about Gamecock football fans tailgating on Saturdays in the South. Each home game I treated the scene outside the 80,000 capacity stadium like street photography scene and as the season progressed I developed more strategy with my visual storytelling.
In this workshop, we replicate my Saturday’s working on this book, doing the SEC weekend matchup against Texas A&M. The Aggies travel well and we’ll kick off the workshop on Friday night with dinner at Transmission Arcade photographing the Aggie pre game yell practice tradition. They normally do that on the statehouse steps.
On Saturday, we’ll meet for discussion, park near the stadium and share golf carts to get us into the mix. I’ll use my book project to tell folks what different areas of the tailgating experience offers for photographers and important info like where and when the teams normally enter the stadium.
With a maximum of four students in the workshop, each student will receive personal 1-on-1 instruction. We’ll meet the next morning for brunch at The Original Pancake House and share photos.
I’ll go back over each photographer’s raw take with them personally and give them feedback on their culling and sequencing. If you have tickets and want to go the game, you will not be able to bring any medium or telephoto lenses. This workshop is not about the game because there are better photography opportunities outside the stadium before the game.
If you go to the game, be prepared for a long weekend. Unless it’s a noon game, and then it will be a bit more manageable. Which brings up our primary variable, time of kickoff. We won’t know the time of the game on Saturday until October.
None of the meals, nor tickets to the game are included in this workshop. The workshop tuition covers my time and knowledge. We will share golf cart transportation fees based on how much you use them.
$25 should cover the round trip plus more. Plan to pay $25 for parking but I’ll probably secure this at no cost.
If you’ve ever been to an SEC tailgate you know that it’s one of a kind, with each school putting on their twists and traditions. Williams Brice Stadium regularly sells out with more than 80,000 seats.
This photo workshop is for intermediate and advanced photographers.
