Wildlife at Polen
White-tailed eagle - Buzzard - Raven - Foxes
Federel Award Winner
Prof. Photographer 2023
NATURE / ANIMALS
The new dates for 2024/25
Prerequisite for this photo trip:
For advanced photographers and all those who have already done the workshop series "Sharp in Flight Basic" or "Advanced". A little basic knowledge of bird photography and birds in flight should be present.
3 days wildlife workshop in Poland, with all possible weather facets out of a dry and heated hide.
Foggy atmosphere, autumn colours, sunshine, rain or sea eagles in the snow. Everything is possible in deep, wild Poland and every situation has its own charm and light mood.
Young and old white-tailed eagles cavort here, and many a raven or buzzard mingles with the 15-20 birds of prey. This creates a great dynamic and you can observe and photograph the wild animals with their natural behaviour up close.
Falconer and wildlife photographer Manfred Hesch passes on his extensive knowledge to the participants and of course the full technical support around photography, so that the 2-4 participants in this workshop succeed in taking the best pictures. Why so few participants? - "Optimal support for all participants is only possible with a maximum of 4 people. In large groups the learning effect is very modest, because as a single person I can't look after everyone at the same time and that's exactly what I put first."
With a little luck, red foxes and other wild animals may appear in front of the lens, there are almost always surprises.
The workshops take place every year from 15 September - 31 January.
Here are the dates for the next season!
25 - 29 September 2024 - 3 places available
16 - 20 October 2024 - 3 places available
13 - 17 November 2024 - 3 places available
09 - 13 December 2024 - 3 places available
02 - 06 January 2025 - 3 places available
Early booking bonus for September-November 2024
Usable until 15 May 2024
Early booking bonus for
Dec - January 2025
Usable until 15 July 2024
Short Info
Prices
€ 2.290,- / person
3 nights in a double room
incl. breakfast, packed lunch and dinner
€ 2.360,- / person
3 nights in a single room
incl. breakfast, packed lunch and dinner
Place
Poland
Dates
From September to
End of January - 5 days each
Participants
max. 3 persons
This guarantees professional support
Flight or bus
Munich or Vienna,
Bus by arrangement
Please note the deadlines for the early booking bonus for the respective details in the table! It should be an incentive for you to book as early as possible in order to get a place. The tours are usually fully booked months in advance.
The early booking bonus of € 100.00 will be deducted directly from your invoice.
Please use Google Chrome or click directly on Youtube
Workshop content
-
Each participant will receive a script containing the most important
-
Theoretical introduction to bird of prey photography - autofocus, camera settings, camera tracking
-
Body language of birds of prey and its interpretation for photography (extremely important, this usually puts you one step ahead photographically)
-
Different hides and therefore different perspectives to choose from on these 3 days
-
Ground perspective and sitting perspective possible in all hides
-
Image analysis in the evening and discussion for possible improvements
Programme schedule
Day 1:
Meet at the airport in the early morning followed by a 2 hour flight to Warsaw.
Here we are picked up by our ranger and taken by vehicle to our hotel - approx. 2 h drive.
In the late afternoon we have a cosy dinner and some theoretical tips for the next day.
Day 2-4:
On these 3 days we have to get up very early, we have to be at our hides before sunrise. Our local ranger will take us by vehicle to the area of the huts, from there we have to walk for about 20 minutes.
Warm clothing in many different layers is recommended, as it can be very cold in winter (so called "Zwiebellook" is recommended).
Soon we will hear the calls of the white-tailed eagles and perhaps already recognise the silhouettes of the birds of prey at dawn. The ravens are, as always, the scouts and the first on the spot, scouting the location. During this time it is important not to take any pictures and to be absolutely still.
After a few minutes, when everything is safe, the first sea eagles land and the exciting photo session can begin. Little by little, the sea eagles lose their shyness and gain confidence. The first scuffles among the eagles begin and they offer us spectacular flight manoeuvres, which in turn result in sensational photos.
In the late afternoon we return to the hotel. After a long day of photography, we have dinner together and discuss the day's pictures. Manfred Hesch will give tips and tricks for image processing in Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop and also suggestions for improvement for the next day in order to increase the image yield significantly.
Day 5:
The alarm clock is set a little later this day. After breakfast together, we leave for the airport in Warsaw and arrive in Munich or Vienna in the late afternoon
Prerequisite and recommended equipment
-
Good basic knowledge of photography
-
Telephoto lens from 300-500mm with full-frame camera, telephoto lens 150-300mm with MFT camera and telephoto lens 200-400mm with APSC camera, if available 1.4 teleconverter
-
Enough memory cards and full batteries, spare battery
-
At least one gimbal - mounting plates are available in the Hide
-
Card reader with cable to read your images
-
Good and, above all, warm and waterproof footwear and warm clothing (in several layers - so-called onion clothing) Walk approx. 20-25 minutes
-
Take a drinking bottle and possibly small snacks with you. Possibly a thermos flask, especially in December and January it can be very cold (Hide is heated to approx. 12-15 degrees)
-
Gloves (especially in the winter months)
-
Passion for bird of prey photography 😊
Included in the price
-
Transfer from Warsaw airport to the hotel and on the last day back to the airport
-
4 nights hotel accommodation
-
Daily transport from hotel to hide and back
-
3 days of exciting eagle photography in hides (heated during cold days)
-
Course materials on eagle photography
-
Nikon lenses can be tested
Not included in the participation fee is
-
Arrival to the airport in Vienna or Munich (carpooling possible)
-
Flight from Vienna to Warsaw (You can book the flight via a travel agency partner)