The Pantanal was made famous for its Jaguar encounters but on that is just the beginning! Join us in visiting both northern and southern Pantanal where you will really experience the best of the best. From one of the largest sink holes in South America where nearly 100 nesting Macaws bring color to the sky, to fields dotted by termite mounds and foraged by Giant Anteaters, armadillos and other wildlife to the richness of the river where Jaguars and Giant River Otters rule, this is a Brazil photo tour like no other! Over the course our 13 days together, you will come away with stunning images of countless species of birds, mammals that span the gamut from jaguars and otters to monkeys to foxes, capybara, anteaters and more, as well reptiles like cayman and snakes.
We hold our photo tour to the Pantanal in the dry season. Being in the Pantanal during the dry season is an experience that will stay with you for life. Imagine Jaguars, weighing as much as 300 lbs, hunting the riverbanks as you enjoy photographing them just yards from our boat or Giant River otters fishing and playing before you. Imagine walking with a Giant Anteater as the morning sun rises or seeing an Ocelot as it searches for food at dusk. And, if you like birds, you will find yourself in front of Hyacinth Macaws, Red and Green Macaws, Tocos toucans, kingfishers, jacanas, herons, egrets, owls and more. The Pantanal is so rich and this is your opportunity to really explore its diversity from north to south!
Face to face with Jaguars
There is nowhere else on earth where you can photograph wild jaguars in such close proximity as in the Pantanal. You will shoot with lenses that range from 70-200mm and 180-600, getting full frame shots as these massive, stunning cats hunting the riverbanks right next to your boat.
Decades ago, fishermen began tossing fish to jaguars as a peace offering, which has helped these magnificent animals become accustomed to our presence.
You’ll have the incredible opportunity to observe jaguars up close as they walk along the riverbanks, hunt, swim, drink, rest, and even interact with one another. On a typical trip, we see dozens of jaguars. On one trip, we had 20 sightings of 12 different jaguars in just one day. In special times, we even get to spend time with mothers and cubs.
Red and Green Macaws, Hyacynth Macaws, Blue Macaws and more….. in Flight!
Macaws are gorgeous birds and capturing their stunning colors in flight is much more incredible. Imagine photographing pairs of macaws as they fly below and before you with colorful outstretched wings, crossing an open cavern with a subtle background of tans and greens or across a shaded cliff wall for a black background. The photos you can make here are stunning.
During this trip, we will be taking you to one of best places we know to photograph these birds. It is one of the largest sink holes in the world and is home to over 120 macaws. Photographing birds in flight is always amazing but when you have Macaws in front of your lens, it is that much more stunning.
While the macaws are the stars of this location, over 160 other birds are also found here, including Toucans, vultures, parrots and many more.
In addition to flight photography, the macaws often come fairly close, perching on trees and branches around this unique habitat where you can capture stunning portraits of these beautiful and charismatic birds.
Anteaters, armadillos and more!
Although these mammals are usually quite shy, the special area that visit and lodge that we reserved offers a unique advantage as they are more approachable here. It is regarded as “the place” for anteaters, boasting a higher population than most other areas without the pressure of hunting, providing us with incredible opportunities to capture unique images and engage with these fascinating creatures in relaxed settings.
Three strategically located lodges
To work the Pantanal successfully for photography, you must stay where the wildlife is. Having done this trip for almost a decade, we have tried a lot of the different lodges and approaches to working this area and have locked in the best locations possible.
For Jaguar photography, we stay on land! Yes, we have tried the flotels and while the concept seems novel, staying on a flotel limits your access to wildlife, especially during the middle of the day when you are trapped in your room or the tiny common area!
Instead, we stay next to the river, in the heart of “Jaguarland”, where we not only have excellent access to jaguar activity but also comfortable, spacious rooms, delicious food and the ability to walk around and photograph wildlife between river safaris. Here, you just walk out of your room to photograph Toco Toucans, Hyacinth macaws and other wildlife that live around the lodge and regularly come in for water and food. Our lodge also backs up to a gorgeous wetland with a boardwalk where you can take your time photographing the dizzying array of herons, egrets, jacanas and other wetland species.
When it’s time to go out in the boats, we simply walk to the end of our dock where our boats await.
We also work a couple of land-based locations. In southern Pantanal, we will stay at two lodges that put you in the middle of the activity for anteaters, armadillos and other wildlife. Wildlife is right at our lodge, giving you amazing experiences and opportunities for photography.
In northern Pantanal, our land-based lodge is located along the Paxim river and it is here that we go out in a small boat to photograph kingfishers as they fish along the river and visit a night hide to photograph the resident Ocelots. This lodge is on every photographer’s bucket-list.
Private, comfortable river safari boats with seating set up for photography. For each of our 10 river safaris, we will have two boats and seating so that everyone has their own row. In addition, the boats we use are made for cruising- they idle smoothly and can easily navigate the river.
While the Pantanal is known for jaguars, it is also known for fishing. Being stuck in a boat that doubles for fishing makes what can be tricky photography even harder because they are not tuned to idle in the river. Our boats are fast and nimble, allowing us to get to action quickly and are optimized for working the current and holding us in place.
In addition, having space to work is critical in a boat. We understand this and, on our tour, you will have your own row to use as you wish! This provides ample space for you and your gear and the ability to shoot from both sides of the boat without missing a beat!
Expert guides that we have worked with for years. As with any photo safari, knowing the wildlife, their behaviors and their recent activity are key. Our guides throughout this trip are not only tuned into this but also understand our needs as photographers. We will have one guide in southern Pantanal and another in northern. We have wonderful long-term relationships with both of them rooted in numerous hours in the field and on the river together. They are a lot of fun and we’re sure you will love them too.
In southern Pantanal, we have a guide who not only knows all of the wildlife and habitats of the lodges and locations we will be in but also really knows the Giant Anteaters. It’s one of his things. These are wild animals and of course they could run away but with careful, quiet approaches while working the light, we can get into incredible positions to capture their unique behaviors. In addition
In northern Pantanal, we will have a different guide, also someone that we have worked with for years who understands not only wildlife but how to work the situations on the rivers, getting us into terrific situations and boat positions for the light and the action. He communicates seamlessly with the boat drivers to keep us in place as the action happens. When action unfolds, its these details that allow us to make the picture, or not.
Unforgettable Moments Await
We are incredibly excited to share this extraordinary experience with you! The Pantanal offers a wealth of wildlife opportunities, and our tour is designed to maximize your experiences on both land and water in both northern and southern Pantanal!
Two Photography Instructors
Our tour is designed for photographers of all skill levels. You’ll have two instructors, Steve and Nicole, by your side throughout, to advise as you capture images of a lifetime.
Nature Lover’s Trip: While we cannot offer a discount on this trip due to our need to keep the group size small, this is a terrific trip for the non-photographer spouse/friend who loves spending time with wildlife. We actually have a number of non-photographers who love nature join our trips because we are not only fun but also spend time with wildlife, watching and enjoying the behaviors and activity.
Fitness Level: Easy/Moderate. You will be photographing from boats when we go out on the river. When we are at our land-based lodges there is good shooting right around our rooms. When looking for Anteaters, we will be transported via truck and you will need to walk, sometimes at a good pace to keep up. For our photography at the Macaw sink hole, there is a short walk of about 5-10 minutes on a flat trail to get from the welcome area to the platform.
