Tour highlights

• Jaguars – four days (7 safari boat trips) in the best jaguar land in the world, to get the best opportunities to photograph these very attractive cats

• Our local boat drivers are considered to be among the most professional and best in the area at finding jaguars and giant otters

• One photographer per seat row on boat safaris

• We will stay in a comfortable and well-located floating hotel in the middle of the roadless jaguar country, to avoid otherwise long transport distances by boat. Jaguars sometimes appear right outside

• Great chances of close encounters with rare mammals such as tapir and giant otter and some possibility of the rare ocelot

• Other exciting wildlife such as Giant Otter, Tapir, Coati, Capybara,Swamp deer and thousands of Caiman

• Amazingly rich bird life, which includes the World’s largest stork – the Jabiru, the World’s largest parrot – the Hyacinth Macaw, colorful Toucans, Herons and exciting birds of prey

• Night safaris to look for nocturnal wildlife

• We will stay on a property where no one has hunted for more than 25 years, which has made the wildlife unusually fearless

• The tour leaders show their favorite sites and also provide photographic advice, in a small like-minded group

PANTANAL
Pantanal is one of the World’s most biodiverse areas. It is often called the World’s largest wetland, spreading across hundreds of thousands of square kilometers in Brazil, eastern Bolivia and eastern Paraguay. Thanks to the high concentration of wildlife, high biodiversity and a number of varied habitats, Pantanal is really one of the natural wonders of the World. It hosts everything from Jaguars, Piranhas, Anacondas and Capybaras to Giant Otters, Caymans, Swamp deer and an amazing variety of birds. Pantanal is mainly open temporary wetland/savanna, with sparse gallery forests along the rivers and in higher parts. For several months, the Pantanal is almost completely flooded under meters of water. The rest of the year it is a lake-rich, dry savannah.

Wildlife is ever-present in Pantanal, with 405 species of fish, 600 bird species, 80 mammal species, 1100 butterflies and 50 reptile species. Threatened and endangered species such as Jaguars, Pumas, Giant Otters, Maned Wolf, Ocelot, Macaws, Tapirs and Giant Ant-eaters have all found a haven in the impenetrable wetlands.

WILDLIFE AND BIRDS
Whilst staying at lodges and traveling along the Transpantaneira road through the wilderness, we will be searching for interesting subjects to photograph. On the savannah we will be looking for mammals such as Capybaras, Tapirs and Coatis. Large numbers of Herons, Darters, Kingfishers and Jabirus gather in the wetlands. There we will also find thousands of Caymans. Lodge gardens and surroundings provide a plethora of photo opportunities. Here we find less shy species of birds and mammals. Rivers form the veins of the Pantanal, and there is lots to see and discover. On boat rides along the river Pixaim we will also be able to photograph fishing birds of prey and Kingfishers. Weather-permitting we will visit a lodge where the endangered Hyacinth Macaws are abundant. Rivers also give us many chances to come across Jaguars. They are normally pretty shy, but here they tend to come down to the rivers during the dry season to drink, hunt and rest, which usually gives us good chances to see and photograph these great animals. In order to make the best of our opportunities we will be staying on a floating hotel right in the middle of the Jaguar’s core area. During these five days we will make 10 boat safaris in search of Jaguars and other interesting subjects such as Giant otter, Tapir, Capybara and lots of birds to photograph. On each boat trip there will be only one photographer per seat row, to get the best possible photo opportunities.

The tour is planned in order for us to be able to focus on particular species at particular sites. The areas we have chosen to visit in northern Pantanal provide the best possible opportunities to photograph the characteristic species that occur here. Naturally, we will be able to photograph also much more than these main focus species.

During the tour, there will be photographic workshops, where we discuss techniques for the different types of photography we will be doing. We will also discuss composition and each other’s images, all in order to take your photography to the next level.