Photography Workshops and Tours 2011/2012

Below is a summary of holiday tours and workshops on which I will be acting as tutor/tour leader over the months ahead.

Please note that I am also happy to put together bespoke UK tours and workshops for small groups, and to quote for one-to-one sessions.

E-mail me!

18th to 24th February 2012

Fully booked

Holiday operated by Northshots Ltd.

Chris Gomersall and Rob Jordan co-leading.

The winter months represent an exciting time of the year for wildlife photography in the Scottish Highlands. Extended periods of snow cover force many animals and birds to put aside their normal inhibitions as they search to obtain food.

Our adventure starts close to home with red squirrels, crested tits and a range of other woodland birds all visiting our feeding stations which are served by photographic hides. Away from our base, we will enjoy close encounters with majestic red deer and weather permitting, venture into the 'arctic' in search of reindeer, snow bunting and ptarmigan.

Red squirrel from one of the Northshots hides

During the tour we dedicate a full day to photographing two captive-bred Scottish birds of prey. This would be impossible to achieve with wild birds so we engage a professional falconer with whom we have worked over many years. Likely species include peregrine falcon and golden eagle. Using attractive perches you will be able to achieve very natural looking images against superb backgrounds of forest, moorland and mountain...all part of this mouth-watering photo-treat!

And that's not all! Our tours here are run from our home base overlooking the spectacular Grampian Mountains. The house-party format allows you to fully indulge yourself in some great photography in a relaxed atmosphere.

Maximum ten delegates.

Accommodation:
Ballintean, Glenfeshie.

Cost per person:

£875 - including full board, all local transport, use of hides, tuition and presentations.

Further information and booking enquiries:

Book online

or telephone 01540 651352

Wednesday 29th February 2012 (NEW DATE)
Places available

At Gigrin Farm kite feeding station, Rhayader, Powys.
In association with Nikon (UK) Ltd.

An action-packed practical day, photographing the aerial acrobatics of these amazing raptors. A great opportunity to practise your follow-focus technique, and to shamelessly enjoy one of the finest wildlife spectacles on offer anywhere in the British Isles. While there will be no classroom session at

Red kite at Gigrin Farm

this event, your tutor Chris Gomersall will be on hand to offer technical advice and know-how, and to make sure you get the shots.

We will be taking advantage of the two purpose-built tower hides which have been reserved for our exclusive use. There will also be an opportunity to try out some of Nikon's superb optics.

There will be no shortage of kites to point your lens at either, as the local population is now up in the hundreds, and most of them turn up here at feeding time. The low light of winter is ideal for flight photography, the only problem being that it might run out before the kites have had their fill and you've had enough. Bring lots of memory cards.

Maximum ten delegates.

Non-Nikon users are welcome!

Cost per person:
£129 including packed lunch & coffee

Further information and booking enquiries:
Book online
or call Sara Marshall on 0208 247 1734

Monday 5th to Thursday 8th March 2012
(evening start and finish)
Two places available

Late-staying pink-footed and white-fronted geese tend to be quite approachable at this time, while the resident wildfowl will be in smart spring plumage. We’ll also be looking for waders such as avocet, black-tailed godwit and knot, and there may be sightings of marsh harrier, bearded tit and bittern, or some early spring migrants.

Barn owl hunting

Owls and farmland birdsare also likely to figure in our itinerary. We shall visit Titchwell and other fabulous nature reserves along the coast, make use of permanent hides, learn how to stalk bird subjects on foot, and use vehicles as mobile hides. The evenings give us an opportunity to review each day’s photography and perhaps enjoy a slide or digital presentation. I am available to offer constructive evaluation of your recent work and address any of your photographic queries. Join me in one of my favourite photographic locations and try your hand at capturing the essence of Norfolk's late winter birdlife.

Previous bird photography experience desirable but not essential, and telephoto lenses of 400mm or longer recommended. Maximum six participants.

Accommodation:
Le Strange Arms Hotel, Old Hunstanton (3 star).

Transport:
We share cars during the workshop, but if you plan to arrive by public transport you can almost certainly be accommodated - just let us know beforehand.

Cost per person:
£495 (includes three nights full board with packed lunches). No single room supplement. Additional nights before and after workshop available at extra cost. Partners and non-participants are welcome at the hotel at a reduced rate.

Further information and booking enquiries:
tel: 01767 260769
e-mail Chris Gomersall

See a portfolio of guests' images from past workshop

Monday 23rd to Thursday 26th April 2012
(evening start and finish)
Two places available

A new time slot for this popular three-day break format, allowing us to take advantage of the longer hours of daylight and to enjoy the onset of spring. The reedbeds will be alive with singing reed and sedge warblers, and resounding to booming bitterns. Marsh harriers will be carrying nest material, black-tailed godwits changing in to their bright summer plumage, while there will be plenty of other summer arrivals and passage migrants to keep us fully occupied.

Marsh harrier over reedbed

We shall visit Titchwell, Cley, and other fabulous nature reserves along the Norfolk coast, make use of permanent hides, learn how to stalk bird subjects on foot, and use vehicles as mobile hides. These workshops are designed to give delegates greater confidence in their fieldcraft, to foster independence, resourcefulness and responsibiliy in wildlife photography, and to promote the creative process from conception through to successful conclusion. We don't work with captive subjects or depend on pre-baited sites, preferring to find our own subjects as we go along. Join me in one of my favourite photographic locations and try your hand at capturing the essence of Norfolk's spring birdlife.

Previous bird photography experience desirable but not essential, and telephoto lenses of 400mm or longer recommended. Maximum six participants.

Accommodation:
Le Strange Arms Hotel, Old Hunstanton (3 star).

Transport:
We share cars during the workshop, but if you plan to arrive by public transport you can almost certainly be accommodated - just let us know beforehand.

Cost per person:
£545 (includes three nights full board with packed lunches). No single room supplement. Additional nights before and after workshop available at extra cost. Partners and non-participants are welcome at the hotel at a reduced rate.

Further information and booking enquiries:
tel: 01767 260769
e-mail Chris Gomersall

Sunday 3rd to Monday 11th June 2012

Places available

Friday 15th to Saturday 23rd June 2012

Two places available

Holiday offered in association with Elizabeth G Charters.

Don't miss this unique and exciting eight-night expedition cruise (two departures) around the Shetland Islands, beginning and ending in Lerwick, with an emphasis on wildlife and photography. There are currently no similar small ship crusies of this nature operating around Shetland, and it may not be possible to repeat this offer in 2013.

A tystie poses for the camera

We aim to visit some of the more remote areas of the Shetland Isles, weather permitting, in the height of mid-summer. Our small ship allows us to explore the outlying islands (including Fair Isle, hopefully!) and scenic voes, and provides a comfortable base from which to operate. We have a 4-metre tender for shore landings, and each night we shall find a secure and sheltered anchorage. The crew includes a full-time cook to cater to your every need. Chris Gomersall will act as your expedition leader, wildlife guide and photography mentor.

The wildlife:

Famous for its teeming seabird colonies, great and arctic skuas,

Otter approaching

red-throated divers and breeding waders, Shetland is a birder's and wildlife photographer's paradise. It's also a great area for cetacean watching, with a possibility of seeing orca, white-beaked dolphin, minke whale and pilot whale, as well as the commoner harbour porpoise. And of course Shetland also boasts the highest density of otters in the British Isles.

The vessel:

Elizabeth G

Elizabeth G

A 76ft twin-screw motor vessel with stabilisers. An extremely seaworthy

former Norwegian rescue ship, converted for live-aboard charter and comfortably accommodating up to twelve passengers in two-berth cabins. Skippered by the owner, Rob Barlow.

Cost:

£1600 per person for the eight-night cruise, based on two people sharing a twin-berth cabin.

Price includes all sea travel within Shetland, full board throughout, services of the ship’s crew, and the services of Chris Gomersall as expedition leader.

Price does not include travel to and from Shetland.

For further information, please contact Chris Gomersall.

e-mail

tel: 01767 260769

A one day seminar on making a living in wildlife photography. Is it possible? Should you quit the day job? An honest and objective analysis of the current state of the industry and a frank discussion of the opportunities available, for those thinking of turning professional or semi-professional.

I have survived as a professional photographer in the exceedingly competitive wildlife and environment sector since 1984, both in the employment of a major conservation ngo, and for the last 13 years as a freelance. I also founded and managed one of the UK's foremost wildlife stock photography agencies, so have plenty of useful insights to share. This day won't send you away with a fool-proof business plan guaranteeing untold riches, but it will arm you with the knowledge to make well-considered career decisions.

Maximum six delegates. Please call or e-mail for an outline itinerary.

Venue:
Cottier Sidaway Design studios in Potton, Bedfordshire.

Cost per person:
£180 including buffet lunch, refreshments and VAT.

Further information and booking enquiries:
tel: 01767 260769
e-mail Chris Gomersall