Costa Rica June 2009
Join me and Greg Basco of Photo Verde tours for a photographic adventure in Costa Rica.
We will spend 10 days photographing landscapes and hummingbirds. You can expect to increase your portfolio with some truly stunning photographs. We will provide the lighting equipment needed for the hummingbird photography, all you need is an SLR camera with appropriate lenses. For hummingbird photography a 70-200mm works well for most. If you have a full frame camera a 300mm f/4 would be perfect. We will spend most of our time photographing landscapes. A wide angle zoom would be a good choice. The cost of the trip is $3200. See the itinerary below for what is and is not included. If you would like to join us please let me know. Registration will end May 1st 2009.
Dan Brown
Foto Verde Tours Customized Group Photo Itinerary Digital Photography in the Rainforest with Dan Brown and Greg Basco June 10 – June 20, 2009
This itinerary includes opportunities to learn and put into practice lighting schemes for dramatic hummingbird and macro photographs, out of the box landscapes, and techniques for combining digital images to maximize sharpness and depth of field in both macro and landscape photography. You will come away from this workshop with a beautiful and diverse portfolio of images as well as a wealth of new knowledge to help you to continue improving and expanding your own photography at home and on your next trip to Costa Rica!
ITINERARY
Day 1, June 10
Arrival to San Jose and private transfer from airport to the Hotel Bougainvillea. The Hotel Bougainvillea has beautiful tropical gardens, brimming with exotic orchids and bromeliads. The Hotel Bougainvillea also has free wireless Internet throughout the grounds and in the rooms.
Hotel Bougainvillea overnight, no meals included
Day 2, June 11
After breakfast, we will travel to the Turrialba area in the Atlantic slopes of Costa Rica’s Central Volcanic mountain range, where Rancho Naturalista is located. A famous location for birdwatchers, Rancho Naturalista is known for the diversity of birds, especially elusive hummingbirds such as the snowcap, that can be found along the several trails and around the lodge itself. We will dedicate a considerable amount of time here to capturing world-class images of several species of hummingbird (including the green-breasted mango, snowcap, and white-necked jacobin) from our multiple-flash setups by the lodge feeders. And we will keep an eye out everyday for sunset pictures of the mountain view from the lodge’s main building. After dinner this evening, we will enjoy an introductory slideshow on photography in Costa Rica from our photo guide Greg Basco, resident Costa Rican nature photographer and co-founder of Foto Verde Tours, and a presentation by trip leader Dan Brown on making composite digital images.
Hotel Bougainvillea (B), Rancho Naturalista Lodge overnight (L, D)
Day 3, June 12
We will have our multiple-flash setups going all day today. When not photographing hummingbirds, we will photograph the tanagers, orioles, oropendolas, and chachalacas that visit the lodge’s fruit feeders. After dinner, we will have a photo review of the previous days’ images with an eye toward refining our technique and composition.
Rancho Naturalista Lodge overnight (B, L, D)
Day 4, June 13
We spend the entire day again today at our hummingbird flash setups and the fruit feeders in search of outstanding bird images. We end the day with a night walk around the lodge grounds and forest reserve in search of insects and frogs for macro photography.
Rancho Naturalista Lodge overnight (B, L, D)
Day 5, June 14
After breakfast, travel to the Rio Celeste area, where we will stay at the Heliconias Lodge, a beautiful lodge with its own private cloud forest reserve. Wildlife abounds at Heliconias Lodge, in particular, interesting subjects for macro photography such as tarantulas, katydids, and anole lizards. We arrive late afternoon, with time to settle in and search for macro photo subjects.
Rancho Naturalista (B), lunch en route, Heliconias Lodge overnight (D)
© Greg Basco 2008
Day 6, June 15
All day in Rio Celeste area, with visit to Tenorio Volcano National Park to photograph lush rainforest vegetation and the otherworldly Rio Celeste and waterfall, whose sapphire blue waters result from a mix of copper and sulfur from the active Tenorio Volcano. This is one of Greg Basco’s absolute favorite sites for landscape photography and is sure to be a highlight of the trip!
Heliconias Lodge overnight (B, box lunch, D)
© Greg Basco 2008
Day 7, June 16
We have the day free today to explore the grounds of the Heliconias Lodge, the private forest reserve, and the nearby area in search of photo opportunities and/or to work on some digital techniques in the lodge dining hall. The lodge reserves is a beautiful place full of lush tropical foliage, towering trees, and myriad wildlife, all accessible via a network of trails, suspension bridges, and canopy platforms, a perfect way to get a unique perspective on the this luch Pacific slope cloud forest.
Heliconias Lodge overnight (B, L, D)
Day 8, June 17
After breakfast, we travel to the Arenal Vista Lodge at the base of the active Arenal volcano. Arenal Vista Lodge affords the best photographic view of the volcano and also is home to plenty of wildlife. We take the afternoon free to explore the grounds and to prepare for our sunset and night photography of the volcano.
Heliconias Lodge (B), lunch en route, Arenal Vista Lodge overnight (D)
© Greg Basco 2008
Day 9, June 18
After breakfast, we depart for the Snake Zoo in nearby El Castillo. The Snake Zoo is run by Greg Basco’s friend Victor Quesada, and Victor and his staff will be taking out numerous color forms of the amazing eyelash vipers, parrot snakes, vine snakes, and even red-eyed tree frogs and poison frogs. We will photograph all of these animals on natural stages that we will set up on site. This is a great opportunity to photograph a number of species that are very difficult to find in the wild. We also enjoy a delicious home-cooked lunch as well as refreshments and coffee throughout the day. We return to the Arenal Vista Lodge in late afternoon to photograph the sunset and the Arenal Volcano.
Arenal Vista Lodge overnight (B, D), lunch at Victor’s Snake Zoo
© Greg Basco 2008
Day 10, June 19
After breakfast, we head back toward San José and the Hotel Buena Vista, nestled in the hills above the Juan Santamaria International Airport. En route, we head to the La Paz Waterfall Gardens for an afternoon spent photographing waterfalls, hummingbirds, butterflies, and orchids. The Hotel Buena Vista has free wireless Internet.
Arenal Vista Lodge (B), lunch at La Paz Waterfall Gardens, Hotel Buena Vista overnight (D)
Day 11, June 20
Private transfer to the airport for your flight home.
Hotel Buena Vista (B)
END OF SERVICES
THIS ITINERARY INCLUDES
- Lodging as specified
- Meals as specified
- Private transfers to and from airports and hotels on first and last days
- Professional driver and private transportation in spacious, air-conditioned Mitsubishi Rosa tour bus
- Professional bilingual photo/nature/culture guide
- Photo guide assistance with workshops and informal photo learning
- Studio light setup for client use with hummingbirds and macro subjects
- Photo guide assistance with caption and ID info for your images
- Entrances and fees for all described activities
- Taxes on all services listed above
THE ITINERARY ABOVE DOES NOT INCLUDE
- Airfare
- Airport departure tax
- Alcoholic Drinks
- Gratuities
- Non-meal time snacks
- Non-meal time soft drinks and bottled water
- Souvenirs