This exciting adventure takes us to the tiny remote island of St. Paul in Alaska's Pribilofs. Situated in the Bering Sea, St Paul Island attracts hundreds of thousands of seabirds to nest in its vertical cliffs, and the majority of the world's population of Northern Fur Seals to bear and raise young on its shores.

Parakeet, Crested and least Auklets will be brooding young while Tufted and Horned puffins deliver fish to offspring waiting is their nest cavities – sometimes flying and landing within close range! Our timing on the island will coincide with puffins feeding their young and the best chance at capturing images of adults bringing in fish.

Among the Auklets and Puffins are thousands of other seabirds including Northern Fulmar, Red-legged and Black-legged Kittiwake, Glaucous-winged Gull and Thick-billed and Common Murre.

Ruddy Turnstone, Rock Sandpiper, Lapland Longspur, Snow Bunting and Winter Wren all nest on the Island as well as the St. Paul race of the Grey-crowned Rosy Finch. It’s always a treat to see – much larger than the mainland races.

During our week on the Island will have exclusive use of our own bus and professional guide. This will afford the freedom to call the shots and take advantage of every opportunity.

The focus will be on photography and flexibility in the field! Photographic opportunities range from capturing perching seabirds, set up shots with some of the songbirds and shore birds (Alan's specialty!) to free access to the seal blind to safely witness and capture images of the seals raising their young.

There is also a growing colony of Arctic Fox (blue phase) living on the island. On St. Paul Island, during our workshops in 2010, an active multi-family fox den provided lots of opportunities at the base of Zapadne. With no predators on the island, and little fear of humans, they are often easy to photograph from a safe distance out in the open.

A rare but very possible treat is one of St. Paul's herds of wild reindeer.

Why travel to St. Paul Island with Alan and Greg rather than a regular tour through St. Paul Island Tours or with another tour leader?

Alan and Greg are both expert birders and photographers and each offer their own style and unique skills when it comes to not only teaching the nuances of bird photographing but also working with people in a small group setting.

Greg and Alan will cater to your needs in a non-ego driven and approachable friendly style. They will work with you individually and as a small group to ensure you receive not only the instruction you need, but the images you desire as well.

Greg has been visiting St. Paul for a decade and he knows the island intimately. He can be sure your time is not wasted finding the best spots under the varying weather conditions you will encounter.

We will have EXCLUSIVE use of a bus, even though there will only be a handful of participants. If you were to try and travel to the island alone or as a smaller group you will be stuck on a bus with birders and tourists and will not be able to focus on photography.

We will have professional guide who will also be there solely for our group. This means we can go anywhere we want on the island and concentrate on photography when the light is right.

When the weather turns bad we have comfortable and casual space to download, work on images, learn about post processing from Greg and Alan or just relax.

The island environment offers exciting challenges for even seasoned photographers to meet! The climate of St. Paul is typically cloudy with fog and strong winds, although some blue skies and sunshine are also possible.

Photographers of all levels willing to meet the challenges at St. Paul are encouraged to participate in this workshop for the experience and images of a lifetime!

Pricing Information:

• Price includes all instruction, round-trip air transportation from Anchorage, all ground transportation at destination, private guide and sightseeing services, and shared accommodations on the island.
• Meals and gratuities not included. Meals are roughly $50 per day. Suggested gratuity for local private guide is $10-$15 per day per person.
• *Single supplements can be arranged at an additional $500 for those wanting a single room, but spots are limited.
• *Cost for Non-Photographers is $3,995 and requires a separate registration and deposit.
• ***Non-photographers require a separate registration and deposit. Please indicate "non-photographer" next to your name in the registration form.

Questions? Email us at erin@naturescapes.net. Thank you for your interest in this workshop!

Testimonials

"I cannot begin to explain what a wonderful field experience you (Greg and Alan) provided on St. Paul Island. You compliment each other very well and made the trip not just a good trip but a great trip. I know from experience each group/class takes on its own personality. You adjusted to our collective and unique needs very well. I really appreciate all of your help both in the field and with post processing. I learned a lot from you and from others in the group. I hold you both in high regards for you knowledge, willingness to share and your thoughtfulness. Thank you for great experience!"

- Ken Blye - St. Paul Island, Alaska 2010

"Thanks to the both of you (Greg and Alan) for putting on such a good workshop. I think that all the folks regardless of ability level got something out of the workshop. Also, thanks for being so flexible in getting people to the places that they wanted to shoot. Alan thanks for the setups, a cursory look at my photos shows that I have some ones that I will like very much. I know that Judy and I enjoyed ourselves - thanks for the fun workshop!"

- John Sturtevant - St. Paul Island, Alaska 2010

*Combine this workshop with our "Coastal Brown Bears Adventure" and save $500!

Questions? Contact Erin Master at erin@naturescapes.net

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