Photo Reason - A professional photography podcast

Unlike most "short-term" workshops on the market, Photo Reason values "long-termism" and "non-singular narrative" in photography. We break the essential skills and knowledge a photographer needs to advance into "4 modules," each like a piece of a puzzle — you can pick exactly the piece you need to refine your technique, optimize your workflow, and clarify your path forward.

The teaching logic of Puzzle Plan draws on the long-form, project-based traditions of the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York and Magnum Photos in Paris, and is taught concurrently by two photographers who graduated from these two institutions respectively — Roban and Pan.

The first edition of Puzzle Plan runs from May to August 2025, comprising 4 modules. Each module is relatively independent yet interconnected; participants may join the full program or just one or several individual modules.

About the Mentors

Roban and Pan have entirely different areas of focus, shooting approaches, and career paths, along with distinct personalities and styles — a setup that brings participants more perspectives and diverse ways of thinking. At the same time, because ICP and Magnum Photos share almost the same origins (ICP founder Cornell Capa was the brother of Magnum Photos founder Robert Capa) and course logic, the two mentors remain highly aligned on fundamental technique and artistic ideas, avoiding the "philosophical conflicts" common to multi-mentor setups.

Roban Wang

Partner and host of the photography podcast brand Photo Reason, a PDN photography award winner, recipient of the 5th RITA K Hillman photography grant, and a National Geographic photographer. He graduated from the International Center of Photography (ICP), New York, in September 2017, receiving the "Wall Street Journal Scholarship."

His work has been published in National Geographic, PDN, Chinese Photographers and other publications, and exhibited at the Lishui Photography Festival, the Pingyao International Photography Exhibition, WONDER FOTO DAY (Taiwan), and ICP (New York), among others; he published the photobook Don't Stay in 2020. Website: www.robanwang.com.

Awards: Apr 2016, Old Smith won the silver award at the 3rd Kuwait International Photography Contest; May 2018, Disappearing Forests won a 2018 PDN PHOTO ANNUAL award; Sep 2018, nominated for the Magnum Foundation Abigail Cohen Documentary Photography Award; Mar 2020, received ICP's 5th Hillman Foundation scholarship; Feb 2024, shortlisted for the 2023 GOMMA Photography Award; Sep 2024, shortlisted for the Kunpeng Award at the Pingyao International Photography Exhibition; Mar 2025, nominated for the World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass.

Exhibitions: Nov 2015, Bo Li at the 2015 Lishui Photography Festival; Sep 2016, Transnational Miners at the Pingyao International Photography Exhibition; Mar 2017, Kuwait at WONDER FOTO DAY (Taiwan); Jun 2018, The Faith Of Bowne Street at ICP's "Signal Crossings" (New York); Jun 2019, the Large-Format in Contemporary Photography group show at Image Sky International Gallery; Nov 2020, Yellow Dragon at Zhejiang Exhibition Hall; Apr 2021, the Large-Format Contemporary Art group show of 7 at Pearl Art Center; Jun 2022, No Standing Anytime at the AIPAD Photo Show (New York); Aug 2022, Fishing or Not at Gongwang Art Museum.

Works selected from the projects "Yellow Dragon" and "Myanmar."

©Roban Wang

Chaoqun Pan

Partner and host of the photography podcast brand Photo Reason, graduate of the Creative Documentary and Photojournalism program at Magnum Photos in Paris. He was ZEISS China's first contracted photographer and is currently a visiting lecturer in photographic art and personal-project courses at the French art schools I'ECV and École EAC.

Known for poetic landscape photography and long-term typological projects, with the photobook mind the gap in preparation for publication. His work is currently represented by The Muisca Art Space, a gallery in the Marais district of Paris. Website: chaoqunpan.com.

Solo exhibition: ECHOS of SILENCE at The Muisca Art Space, Le Marais, Paris — Oct 2024.

Group exhibitions: The Muisca Art Space (Paris), SOUVENIRS LATENTES (Feb 2025) and UN INSTANT DE CLARTE (Dec 2024); Magnum Gallery (Paris), Jun 2024; Photofairs Shanghai, Apr 2024; Modern Art Museum Shanghai, Nov 2021. Gallery submission plans for 2025: Art World Fair (May 2025), Paris Photo (Nov 2025).

Award: Artexpo New York 2025 Photo Contest — Finalist. He has also been a columnist for Photography World since January 2024. Works selected from the projects "it doesn't have to rhyme," "kyoto harmony," and "mind the gap."

©Chaoqun Pan

First-Edition Program Structure

The first edition of Puzzle Plan runs from May to August 2025, with each module occupying a full weekend (Saturday + Sunday, generally the second-to-last weekend of the month) to balance theory and practice. The modules are interconnected yet relatively independent; participants may join the full program or any one or several modules.

May (24 / 25) · Personal Projects & Workflow

Module goal:Help participants build a professional image-management logic and an efficient workflow, and start their own personal photography project from where they are.

Pain points addressed:Not knowing where to start a personal project, and being unfamiliar with a professional photographer's workflow.

Day 1 morning: mentors' project introductions + participant self-introductions
Day 1 afternoon: topic discussion + inspiration exchange
Day 2 morning: image management & workflow theory
Day 2 afternoon: image management & workflow exercises

June (21 / 22) · Equipment & Expression

Module goal:Help participants understand the relationship between equipment and subject matter, and choose the right gear and methods for their personal project; the module features a dedicated introduction to and outdoor shoot with large-format (technical) cameras.

Pain points addressed:Not understanding how equipment characteristics relate to a photography project, and not knowing how to choose the right gear for one's own project.

Day 1 morning: equipment & expression workshop
Day 1 afternoon: participant sharing + discussion
Day 2 morning: large-format (technical) camera theory
Day 2 afternoon: large-format (technical) camera outdoor shoot

July (19 / 20) · Editing & Sequencing

Module goal:Help participants understand the importance and fundamental logic of editing and sequencing, using a distinctive Magnum-style sequencing exercise to rapidly level up their editing skills.

Pain points addressed:Not understanding the importance of editing and sequencing in series work, and lacking an approach and methodology for it.

Day 1 morning: mentors' project introductions + the basic methodology of editing & sequencing
Day 1 afternoon: a Magnum-style sequencing exercise
Day 2 morning: participant work sequencing exercise
Day 2 afternoon: participant work sequencing exercise + presentation

August (16 / 17) · Visual Narrative & Photobook Demo

Module goal:Help participants find inspiration and methods for visual narrative in photobooks, understand the diverse forms and possibilities of the photobook, and make their own handmade photobook dummy.

Pain points addressed:Not knowing how to read a photobook, not understanding the relationship between a project and a photobook, and never having tried making a handmade photobook.

Day 1 morning: visual narrative & photobook case studies
Day 1 afternoon: discussion of photobook form and content
Day 2 morning: print output setup + handmade photobook demo
Day 2 afternoon: handmade photobook demo

Registration

First-Edition Preferential Pricing

Single "puzzle" module: ¥2,980 per person; full Puzzle Plan program: ¥9,920 per person.

Full-program participants additionally receive two 1.5-hour one-on-one portfolio review sessions, plus an opportunity for an offline solo or group photography exhibition.

Class Size

No more than 16 participants

Location

"Photo Reason / in Space." 2F, OneWay Space (Raffles City store), Building B, Raffles City, 58 Lishui Road, Gongshu District, Hangzhou

Other Benefits

Whether joining a single "puzzle" module or the full Puzzle Plan program, all participants can join the Photo Reason Pro community for exclusive photography news and resource sharing, plus free-loan privileges for Photo Reason's photobooks and equipment.
At its offline space, Photo Reason offers all participants free laptop-screen calibration (a calibration device is also available to borrow).
Photo Reason provides all participants with a free online portfolio page (e.g. roban.photoreason.art), with update guidance from our technical expert CC (Chengchen Wang).
All participants will get priority access to the limited-spot special photography activities Photo Reason organizes (master workshops, overseas special photo-tour programs, Magnum office visits and lectures, and more).

Note: Puzzle Plan runs on a recurring basis, 2–3 editions per year. Participants registered for an edition or module who are temporarily unable to attend may defer to the same module in the next edition or switch to another module; please inquire for other change/refund terms.

How to Register

1.Click the registration link below and complete the registration form as prompted.
2.For inquiries and registration, add WeChat: bonbondepan.

Go to registration →

Why Puzzle Plan?

Photography logic and a teaching model that have truly been put into practice. The two mentors graduated respectively from the course programs of the International Center of Photography (ICP) and Magnum Photos, and both have extensive teaching experience: Roban has long led online and offline workshop courses and is frequently invited to give photography lectures; Pan ran the "ZEISS Academy" courses for ZEISS, has long offered online workshops and bootcamps, currently teaches photographic art at French art schools, and is a guest photography-culture lecturer for Fujifilm X-SPACE.
A course truly designed by working creators. We believe the prerequisite for teaching photography is genuinely making work yourself, not theorizing on paper. Both Roban and Pan are photographers committed to long-term practice with projects currently in progress; they understand the real pain points of creative work and participants' actual needs, and can exchange and grow together with everyone.
The advantage of a physical offline space. Courses are held at the offline space "Photo Reason / in Space.", which is easy to reach and comfortable. The space is equipped with professional visualization gear and has 500+ photobooks to read (during class we can even pull a fitting reference title straight off the shelf), and the exhibition area will open at the end of May.
Photo Reason's consistently professional and sincere attitude. Photo Reason is a photography podcast with a point of view; since launching in February 2023 it has released nearly a hundred episodes, and listeners have witnessed both its update frequency and content consistency. We have always insisted on "refined and beautiful," and this workshop series is no exception.

Other Information

Language of Instruction: Chinese
Inquiries & Registration: WeChat: bonbondepan

"Puzzle Plan" — Photo Reason Offline Photography Workshop Series (Hangzhou)