Tours & Instruction
We offer birds-in-flight and wildlife photography tours and private instruction. You may see bald eagles, ospreys, owls, herons, kingfishers, egrets, snail kites, ibis, monkeys, bears, and other wildlife on our tours.
Your tour guide, Dick Vautrinot, is an avid wildlife photographer with a passion for birds in flight. A self-taught photographer who created his own style of tracking birds, exposure and use of light. By way of owning a nuisance wildlife business, he gained extensive expertise and knowledge of wildlife and their breeding habits. With over 45 yrs of boat and guiding experience, you will be in the
right light to capture great images of "birds-in-flight".
Join us for a photography tour or personalized instruction today!
Bald Eagle & Osprey Tour - Gainesville, Florida
Available Dates: Now - Jan 4, 2022, Jan 25 - Apr 13, 2022
Join us to photograph bald eagles on a beautiful "Old Florida" lake with picturesque backdrops in their natural habitat, sitting in pairs, hunting for their dinner and aerial battles of eagles attempting to steal the fish. Eagles mate and nest in the winter and newborn eaglets learn to fly and hunt in the spring. Ospreys arrive back on the lake in early spring and the aerial battles begin with the bald eagles. Tours are aboard our 2019 24 ft. 200 hp pontoon boat. For an additional charge, Dick can help with manual camera settings and birds-in-flight instruction.
Pricing:
Half-day - 4 hrs
$200 - per person
Full-day - 4 hrs am & 4 hrs pm
$400 - per person
Special Rates:
Group Tours - Mon, Tue or Wed
minimum 2 people, $200 per person
& 5th person free
Great Gray Owl - Minnesota
Available Dates: Jan 11 - 22, 2022
Join us on an adventure to photograph one of the most majestic and magnificent owls, the Great Gray Owl. You will find yourself entranced by their peaceful presence and beauty, making it one of the world's most instantly recognizable raptors. Great Gray hunts mainly during the early morning and late afternoon and are often seen perched on poles or fenceposts along roads. When hunting, they will use a perch to 'still hunt', watching and listening until they find their prey, then they pursue it on the wing, swooping down to snatch or diving talon and head first in the snow. They sometimes hunt through the forest flying a few feet above the ground. Most foraging is done in open areas such as swamps, bogs, and along roads. We hope you can join us for a day full of fun!
Select date: 3 Day Tour
Jan 11-13 (full), Jan 14-16 (full), Jan 17-19, 2021 (2 seats available)
Pricing:
2 full-days & 1 half-day (8 hours per day & 4 hours on half-day)
$2000 per person - 4 person max, includes 3 nights lodging with double occupancy, 2 lunches and instruction if requested, transportation included during the tour only, 25% deposit, non-refundable after Dec 15, 2021. Call us to schedule a private tour.
.jpg)
Osprey Tour on Blue Cypress Lake - Vero Beach, Florida
Available Dates: April 15th - May 15th, 2022
Join us on an adventure to photograph nesting ospreys, many at eye level, on one of the most scenic lakes in Florida. Blue Cypress Lake has about 500 ospreys, a few eagles, owls, peregrine falcons and about every shorebird. A birding paradise with amazing sunrises and non-stop osprey action with babies on every nest. Tours are aboard 2019 24 ft. 200 hp pontoon boat. For an additional charge, Dick can help with manual camera settings and birds-in-flight instructions.
We hope you can join us for a day full of fun!
Pricing:
Half-day (mornings) - 3 hrs
$250 per person
Black Bear Tour - North Carolina
Available Dates: May 24 - June 7, 2022
Join us on an adventure to photograph black bears and cubs located in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. This area is home to the largest concentration of black bears found in the southeastern United States. For an additional charge, Dick can help you with manual camera settings, preparation and use of light instruction. We hope you can join us for a day full of fun!
Pricing:
Half-day - 4 hrs
tours by truck
$275 per person
Full-day - 8 hrs
tours by electric bike
$700 per person
Swallow-tailed Kite Tour - Deland, Florida
Available Dates: July 8 - 21, 2022
Join us to photograph over 5000 Swallow-tailed kites in a couple hundred-yard area on a lake in Deland, Florida. Tours are aboard our 2019 24 ft. 200 hp pontoon boat. It's Audubon's most beautiful bird of prey, with its deeply forked tail and bold black-and-white plumage, it is unmistakable in the summer skies. (Of course, Dick would say after the Bald Eagle!) Hanging motionless in the air, swooping and gliding, rolling upside down and then zooming
high in the air with scarcely a motion of its wings, the
Swallow-tailed Kite is a joy to watch. We hope you can join us.
Pricing:
Morning Tours - 3 hrs
$200 per person
Minimum 2 people
Private Instruction - Florida
Available Dates: Year-round
Private instruction is designed to help you create a customized plan to improve your photography skills in the use of light, tracking birds, manual camera settings, preparation and framing the shot. Instruction is aboard our 2019 24 ft. 200 hp pontoon boat
on a lake with picturesque backdrops.
Join Dick for a day full of learning and fun!
Pricing:
Half day - 4 hrs Full day - 8 hrs
$350 per person $600 per person
Matt Kloskowski....
The Guy that helps people navigate the crazy waters of photography and photo editing!
Two photography and photo editing courses that may interest you are:
-
Wildlife Editing Secrets
-
Matt’s Guide to Bird Photography