Costa Rica – Osa Peninsula with Steve Gettle and Nicole Sudduth

Traveling to Osa Peninsula is an adventure into the heart of wildlife abundance. Osa is the gem of Costa Rica. This area hosts the largest population of Scarlet Macaws in the country, all four species of monkeys, both species of sloths, Costa Rica’s largest remaining population of jaguars and tapirs, over 100 species of reptiles and a huge diversity of frogs. The colors and sounds will excite and amaze you as we spend our entire tour in this magical place.

National Geographic named Osa peninsula as one of the most incredibly biologically intense places on earth and we will be in the heart of it. We will begin at a 750-acre forest reserve at a point where the Gulfo Dulce meets the Pacific Ocean. We will then move down the coast until we are literally at the doorstep of Corcovado National Park, the largest lowland rainforest in Central America.

Osa is where the rainforest meets the sea. Explore lush gardens and hiking trails that take us from pristine beaches with tide pools to spring-fed rivers and waterfalls to rich rainforest jungle where monkeys howl. Imagine flocks of macaws, toucans, and parrots, coatis, kinkajous, agoutis, and sloths as daily visitors that we may have the opportunity to photograph.

This is a location where we have the chance to photograph all four species of Costa Rica’s monkeys: Capuchin, Spider, Mantled Howler, and the endangered Squirrel monkey.

More than 460 species of birds call this place home. Bird photographers will enjoy enormous variety of species that range from tropical rainforest birds to raptors to ocean and wetland species. In addition to Scarlet Macaws which the place is known for, we may see Red-capped Manakins, Blue-crowned manakins, Yellow-billed and Turquoise Cotingas, Tinamou, trogons, honeycreepers, Black-mandibled toucans, red-lored parrots, and so many more!

Macro is also fun in this area as we shoot subjects such as Leaf-Cutter Ants, Red-Eyed Tree Frogs and Poison Dart Frogs and other small creatures. Over 10,000 species of colorful and unique insects and over 100 species of reptiles and amphibians are found here.

Costa Rica with Steve Gettle and Nicole Sudduth

Costa Rica – The nature photographers’ paradise! There is so much wildlife here, that you won’t want to sleep for fear of missing an incredible photo opportunity. Seriously! Costa Rica is home to more than 800 bird species including a huge variety of Hummingbirds, the amazing Resplendent Quetzal, Toucans, Macaws, and the vibrant Honey Creepers and Tanagers.

Along with those beautiful birds, we will get up close and personal to photograph a wide variety of insects, lizards, snakes, and those brightly colored poison dart frogs.
As if that weren’t enough to keep those shutters clicking, we will see monkeys, sloths, and other mammals too!

A trip to Costa Rica certainly wouldn’t be complete without experiencing the exotic orchids and other unique flora of Costa Rica, along with the beautiful jungle scenery and picturesque landscapes.

As a nature photographer, it should not come as a surprise that Costa Rica is one of our favorite places in the world to photograph wildlife. We will take you to the best and most iconic locations for nature photography in all of Costa Rica!

Also for your enjoyment, we will be bringing our high-speed flash system for our participants to use while photographing hummingbirds in flight when we visit the cloud forest. You will walk away with breathtaking photographs of hummingbirds in flight that without this specialized equipment, would be impossible to do.

One important piece of advice should you decide to join us on this trip… Bring lots of memory cards, charged batteries, and a very large hard drive for all your images, because you will need it!

Arctic Norway & Finland Birds with David Stimac

13 days of photographing King, Steller’s and Common eiders, Razorbills, Atlantic Puffins, Common and Thick-billed Murres, Shags, Black-legged Kittiwakes, songbirds of the Taiga, northern owls, Aurora borealis, Golden & White-tailed Eagles, cryptic Willow & Rock Ptarmigan, the flamboyant displays of lekking Black Grouse and even the possibility of gyrfalcon or wolverine, all in a beautiful wintry landscape.

Group size: 5

3 mornings in floating hide, boat trips, eagle hide, grouse hide, ground transportation, meals & lodging included.

Bosque del Apache and White Sands with Daniel J. Cox

It’s time for a winter break—join Daniel to photograph in Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, one of the top birding hotspots in North America! Winter is the best time to photograph the thousands of sandhill cranes, snow geese, and various ducks that migrate through the area. Endless photo opportunities in this world-famous wildlife refuge make it the perfect destination to enhance your photography skills.

We will sneak away to White Sands National Monument for an evening and morning shoot of these beautiful white dunes. Relax… Transfers, touring, meals (best green chili burger!), hotel, and one-on-one time with Dan in the field are all included.

Bosque del Apache with Jeff Parker

Nearly 60,000 acres of restored wetlands bordering the Rio Grande provide multitudes of wintering birds with refuge. Sandhill cranes and geese cover these waters and these skies in breathtaking abundance.

Other birds of note include: Gambel’s Quail, Pintails, American Widgeons, Mallards, Northern Harriers, Ross’s Goose, Roadrunners, and –if lucky– Bald Eagles. In addition, we hope to spot the endangered Aplomado Falcon, a species first re-introduced to the region in 2006 following a successful captive-breeding program. We’ll also keep our eyes peeled for Mule Deer, Bobcats, and gorgeous, winter-coated Coyotes.

In addition to our photo shoots at the Refuge, we’ll enjoy an off-site night shoot at a unique and picturesque canyon in the region. There we’ll enjoy light painting against the canyon walls as well as a warm and delicious homemade meal in the field.

We also do a mid-day shoot to focus on flight photography instruction. (It also gives us a chance to capture images of a couple waterfowl species that we don’t see on the refuge.)

Limited to six (6) photographers / $795.00
More info: http://exploreinfocus.com/joinme/bosque-del-apache-photo-tour/

Thailand Wildlife with Charles and Jerrine Gangas

Join Charles and Jerrine Gangas to photograph the birds and wildlife of beautiful Thailand. During this photo tour you should have great photo opportunities with many beautiful birds, Bryde’s Whales, Asian Elephants and much more. The trip starts in Bangkok where there will be a pre trip weekend of visiting temples in Bangkok. Then we head down to the Gulf of Thailand to spend 2 days photographing bubble feeding Bryde’s Whales from a boat in the Gulf of Thailand. Next we head to a lovely nature lodge just outside Keang Krachan National Park. There are several sets of hides in the area which attract a great variety of birds and small mammals. Highlights include the Kalij Pheasant, Red Junglefowl and Mouse Deer. We will also spend time inside the park which is excellent for birds and primates, including White-handed Gibbons. Lastly we will head down to Kuiburi National Park where we will have Asian Elephant safaris on 2 afternoons. Then we return to Bangkok for your flight home. This trip features comfortable accommodations, excellent Thai food and exposure to the wonderful, friendly Thai culture.

Birds of San Diego County with Tim Boyer

Photograph Brown Pelicans, and cormorants in breeding plumage, and ducks, herons, shorebirds, gulls, terns, and skimmers. There are 60+ species of birds possible on this workshop. We go to more places and photograph more birds than other groups. We’ll also do some landscape photography of the Pacific Ocean, piers and waves at sunset. Four and a half days of instruction, with four morning, and four afternoon/evening shooting sessions. We’ll also do at least two post-processing session in the early afternoon.

Bosque del Apache and White Sands with Daniel J. Cox

We will sneak away to White Sands National Monument for an evening and morning shoot of these beautiful white dunes. Relax… Transfers, touring, meals, hotel, and one-on-one time with Dan in the field are all included. A perfect long weekend getaway!

Grebes “Walk” On Water to Find a Mate

December 6, 2017 by dlester

Story and Photography by Krisztina Scheeff with KS Nature Photography

When it comes to dating in the world of Grebes it is not as easy as just going out for a fish dinner or a morning swim. These birds have much higher standards. If a mate cannot “walk” on water, they are out of luck.

Continue reading →

Manú Road: A Birder’s Paradise in Peru

December 4, 2017 by dlester

Story and Photography by Mercedes Benavides

Manú Road is a leading birding route that begins in the city of Cusco, in what was the capital of the Inca Empire, and journeys through deep valleys, lakes and mountains all the way into the rainforest, deep in the Manú National Park of Peru. One could even think of traveling this road as a pilgrimage: while there is one starting point and one direction, there are many paths along the way and plenty of stops to admire the breadth of avifauna and flora amidst dramatic settings as one travels up and over the Andes Mountain Range down to the Amazonian plain, all of which make Manú Road a spiritual experience for sure. As one of the top ten mega-diverse countries in the world, Peru holds the second spot in number of bird species at over 1,800, and is within the top five spots in amphibians, mammals and plants. Manú Road is representative of this biodiversity.

Continue reading →