In the still, early light of dawn, the landscape of Camargue awakens. Veils of mist dance over the shallow wetlands as the sun slowly rises above the horizon, painting the sky in soft shades of pink and gold. The water lies mirror-still, reflecting the graceful silhouettes of flamingos. Every movement of the flamingos—a lifted head, a flapping wing—becomes a photographic moment.

CAMARGUE
Camargue, covering 930 square kilometers, is a vast wetland area located at the Rhône River delta along the Mediterranean on the French Riviera. With its lagoons, sand dunes, expansive beaches, and marshlands, Camargue is one of Europe’s most important wetlands and a sanctuary for over 400 bird species—a paradise for bird photographers. Here we encounter wintering herons, waders, and our main target species: the greater flamingo.

THE PINK FLAMINGO
Camargue is, without a doubt, one of the best places in the world to get up close to flamingos. We’ll be there during the prime season to witness their courtship rituals. The dance is performed in groups where the flamingos synchronize their movements, spreading their wings to reveal their striking red-pink feathers. The greater flamingo both breeds and winters in Camargue and can be photographed in large numbers throughout the region—often seen flying over our hotel or foraging in nearby lagoons. This opens up exciting photographic opportunities where we can fully unleash our creativity.

We will make several visits to a private nature reserve where thousands of flamingos gather each year for their spectacular courtship dance, which we’ll have the chance to observe up close. As the birds are accustomed to human presence due to many visitors, we can photograph the dance from a very short distance—if you’re lucky, even with a wide-angle lens. At this same location, we’ll also have excellent chances to photograph glossy ibis, black-winged stilts, pied avocets, and various heron species.

We’ll focus on being in the right place at the right time to create powerful images. At dawn, we’ll search for flamingos and other bird species along the coastline, capturing them in the magical purple dawn light over the mirror-still lagoons.

During the day, there will be opportunities to photograph a wide variety of birds, as well as time to rest and edit images. In the afternoon and evening, we’ll head back out into the wetlands to photograph the delta’s rich birdlife once more.

With large numbers of approachable birds, we’ll practice photography techniques that result in extraordinary bird images. The tour leader will teach and share many tips for capturing unique shots, which you’ll have plenty of time to practice.

PHOTOGRAPHIC LEARNING
Throughout the trip, our photographic leader will continuously offer photographic guidance tailored to your skill level and experience. The in-field coaching will be fully customized to your needs. In addition, we’ll have theoretical sessions where we discuss various photography techniques that we’ll apply during the tour. While in Camargue, we’ll focus heavily on photographing flamingos and other birds in different lighting situations, working with everything from panning and motion blur to high-key and low-key photography.