Behind the lens: shooting the Atlas in winter
A field report from a 4-day Atlas shoot in January — frozen passes, low sun, fog in the valleys, and the gear that came home without a scratch.
The Tizi n'Tichka pass in January is a different country. The passes close without warning, the sun is below the ridgeline by 4pm, and the fog in the valleys makes every drone shot a coin flip. We packed for 4 days, planned for 3, and shot 6. Here is the field report, the gear that survived, and the drone that did not.
The shoot was for a tour operator — a 4-day campaign to promote winter Atlas tours. The brief was simple: 30 stills, 5 short videos, drone where possible, and a story that made the Atlas look inviting in January. The reality was -8°C at the pass, 60km/h gusts, and a drone that came home with a cracked arm on day 2.
Day 1 — the valley
We started in the Ourika Valley, 45 minutes from Marrakech. The morning was clear, the light was golden, the Berber markets were already set up. We shot the market in 90 minutes, then drove to Setti Fatma for the waterfalls. The falls were partially frozen — a first for our team. The drone came up for 12 minutes, got 4 hero shots, and landed before the wind picked up. By 3pm the light was gone, the fog rolled in, and we were back at the riad for a hot tagine and a review of the day's cards.
- 01Day 1: Ourika Valley, Setti Fatma waterfalls, 14 stills, 1 video clip
- 02Day 2: Tizi n'Tichka pass, Telouet kasbah, 9 stills, drone cracked
- 03Day 3: Aït Benhaddou, Ouarzazate, 12 stills, 2 video clips
- 04Day 4: Atlas Studios, return to Marrakech, 8 stills, 2 video clips
The drone that didn't
Day 2, the Tizi n'Tichka pass. We launched the Mavic 3 at the summit for a wide shot of the switchbacks. The wind was 60km/h sustained, with gusts to 80. We got 2 clips, 1 still, and a low-battery RTH warning at 9% — the drone landed in auto, 30m from the launch point, with a cracked front arm. The repair cost 2,400 MAD. The lesson: at altitude in January, the wind is not a suggestion.
“If the wind is over 50km/h, the drone stays in the car. Every time.”
What we packed
The kit that survived: 2x Sony A7R V bodies, 16-35mm f/2.8 GM, 24-70mm f/2.8 GM, 70-200mm f/2.8 GM, 3x spare batteries per body, 6x SD cards, 1x portable SSD. The kit that didn't: the Mavic 3 (cracked arm), 1x circular polariser (fog condensation), 1x pair of gloves (lost at Aït Benhaddou). We now carry 2x spare drone arms in the Atlas kit bag. We have not needed them yet, but the day we do, we will.
The Atlas in January is the hardest shoot we do all year. It is also the most rewarding. The light is 30 minutes long instead of 3 hours, the crowds are gone, and the snow on the passes is a different frame every 20 minutes. We are running this tour shoot again in 2027 — same dates, same route, same riad. If you want to join us as a client or a co-shoot, drop us a line in November.
