How do you like to travel for photography?

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Abinoone

Abinoone

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What are your preferences for taking trips for wildlife and nature photography? Do you like to travel alone, or do you prefer traveling with others? Why? If you are a solo traveler, do you ever wish that you had a fellow photographer with whom to share the experience (and perhaps cost)? If you travel as part of a group, do you ever wish that you had more freedom and control? What factor(s) restrain you from taking more trips for photography? If you could describe your ideal photo travel scenario, what would it be?

The primary reasons for my questions are to identify the needs and desires of other nature and wildlife photographers, and to see if there might be opportunities for shared (not formally organized) experiences.
 
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I always prefer to travel with others when possible. I think it makes it more fun to have like minded people to spend time with. It also creates great memories and makes traveling to a new place a lot less intimidating. And it always helps to have more eyes on binoculars / thermal units. And more people to watch over gear, change shifts while driving, etc.

The trade off is sometimes traveling with others, means others who are not as into wildlife photography. which is okay. in those situations, I swap my gear from all out (400 TC / 800) to a simple zoom setup (100-400 or 180-600).

I don't think one is better than the other, and just enjoy travel in general. Often times I'll do repeat travel as well. So I may go with my spouse or family on a casual vacation, bring my fixed focal length Fuji X100V and a Z9 with 100-400, and then go back later either with the same people or others - but on a dedicated photo trip and bring 2x Z9 and 400 TC/ 800.

Here in Michigan we have quite a vast bird photographer network, so it's easy to find people to link up with for trips, both local and abroad. There were about 10 of us that managed to go to the Sax Zim Bog this year during the same week span. A few of us are talking about going to Yellowstone in October, as well as Iceland during the summer.

Not sure if any of this helps you.
 
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Abinoone said:
What are your preferences for taking trips for wildlife and nature photography? Do you like to travel alone, or do you prefer traveling with others? Why? If you are a solo traveler, do you ever wish that you had a fellow photographer with whom to share the experience (and perhaps cost)? If you travel as part of a group, do you ever wish that you had more freedom and control? What factor(s) restrain you from taking more trips for photography? If you could describe your ideal photo travel scenario, what would it be?

The primary reasons for my questions are to identify the needs and desires of other nature and wildlife photographers, and to see if there might be opportunities for shared (not formally organized) experiences.
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I typically travel for destination type trips with my spouse. Local stuff tends to be by myself, with a friend or spouse.
 
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Since my wife is also a photographer, we typically travel together both locally and for destination trips. We frequently travel with a couple of friends who are also photographers -- with friendships going back decades. Some compromises are needed, but we learn so much from each other that way.
We've also taken some trips (e.g., river cruises) that were not photography-oriented, and found that the groups generally were ok with our shooting so long as we "weren't the last ones on the bus every time." And made some friends by sharing our photos after the trips' conclusions.
 
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My wife and I nearly always have traveled by ourselves. With the last 3 trips where we traveled with other photographers, one of the people brought their virus with them as they did not want to miss out on the trip. Traveling inside a vehicle I got their bug and missed an entire day of shooting. The last time this happened I vowed to never take a chance by traveling with a group.

A group tour is always going to be the most expensive way to travel. The tour company has to pay the leader and also generate a profit for what is often a seasonal business for the company. With my wife and I combined we are going to pay $15,000 or more for a 10-day trip anywhere. I can hire a car with a driver/translator/guide and stay in nice lodging for less than $1,500 per day.

I can also change my itinerary with only a day's notice to change where we stay during the trip. Also with at most 3 individuals we can stay at many places and eat at many cafes that cannot accommodate a large group. My mother used to put together trips for groups and had to check that every night and every restaurant could manage the number of people in her tour and that eliminated 90% of the businesses. We purposely stay at places that cannot accommodate large groups of tourists.
 
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My husband creates excellent videos - and I do photography. So up till now, we always traveled together.

But now he no longer wants to put up with long flights - so he is telling me to go ahead and go on photo trips by myself. Last January I went to Costa Rica by myself. I'm currently looking for trips for 2024 and 2025 that I might like to do by myself. But I would definitely prefer to travel with a like-minded photographer! Trips that interest me are GGO and Snowy trips up north. Central and South America. And there is always the lure of Africa. LOL!
 
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I travel with my wife for most day trips within our home state (Wisconsin). We have been together since high school (1969) and enjoy the time together, especially since I travelled around the USfor 30+ years and worked overseas for 12 more while she took care of hte home front. We do not fly unless we have to - she is not a fan of airplanes anymore, and I have health concerns that make driving trips easier. We also purchased an RV (RoadTrek Agile SS) on retirement and that makes a great platform for travel, and a nice work place to manage the photos we take. I can also carry the gear I want and adapt to the local situation (meaning I can take most of it). Usually, we will do a day of photography, a mixed day of photography and touring/shopping and a day of rest. This has worked well on trips to Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Madeline Island, Kearney, NE with others planned this year. We enjoy the time together and the places we visit.
 
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I'm with @Doug Herr - alone. I can go at my own pace, stop when and where I want, don't have to worry about, as @Jim McD said, being the last one on the bus. My wife is not a photographer, so she's not interested in going with, especially when I'm going far north MN in winter to capture GGOs, or to stay out all night hoping to capture the Milky Way.

The last trip I went on with my non-photographer family was, to put it politely, a nightmare. Each had their own ideas and agendas, we ended up spending more time in the car than I wanted. I swore then, if it's a dedicated photo trip, I go alone.
 
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Mostly travel alone or with a friend who is a fairly successful fine artist and also enjoys photographing sights she may wish to paint. Generally, within the US, CAN or MX, I'll travel in my truck camper, which allows me access to just about anywhere a 4WD pickup can go, vertical clearance permitting. I'm well set up for extended boondocking if the situation calls for it.

Not much interest in guided tours or larger groups, far too structured for my tastes, though I will seek out local knowledge when possible.

Cheers!
 
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Mostly, for longer trips, I travel with my wife in our fifth wheel. For local trips we travel together or I go alone. Although “alone” is a relative term. Most of the publicly accessible birding sites are usually pretty busy so there is always someone to chat with and compare notes.

When we do go overseas we travel on our own. No tour groups. We like setting our own destinations, schedules and the ability to adjust based on our interests or the advice on a local.
 
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I would prefer alone but the reality of my situation is that won’t happen very often. So it’s usually a compromise. That said, I’ve been happy with how things turn out with the few trips I take.
 
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Either just my wife and I—she is just as much into photography as I am— or an organised photo tour with a good pro. I find the latter very efficient if the pro has been before and has scouted out the best locations and timings, and it’s fun to learn from others. I find I always pick up good ideas and more importantly, inspiration and energy (for those 4am wake up calls).
 
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I used to fly a lot for work but these days I prefer to do traveling by vehicle. I go with my wife and dogs for the most part. We frequently travel with my photo buddy and his wife, they are good friends and we make a good photo team. We have a lot of fun.
 
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Either my wife goes with me or I go alone -- always by vehicle so I can go where I want, stop when I want and bring along as much as I want. Forty years ago I went with a group of like-minded friends who were also dedicated nature photographers. I'm the only one left alive and now much prefer to go alone so I can go when I want, spend as much or as little time as I wamt and don't have to listen to other people or have them mess up a shot.
 
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If I am travelling OS or a flight to a destination within Australia it is usually with my wife and sometimes with another couple and I take my camera gear but generally the others are not photographers. I used to do a lot of travel within Australia for work and I used to go with my Sales Manager who also liked photography and we would sometimes take a little time off to take photos of the local wildlife or surrounds or both. When going after birds locally or within a few hours of my home, I sometimes go by myself or a photo buddy.
 
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As a younger man and bush pilot, I travelled into wilderness environments in Canada well into the wilderness on the less travelled locations. Nowadays, I fly commercial to enjoy adventure tours into remote bucket list locations with family or friends. This type of travel typically has a significant percentage of serious photographers. The skill level of the photographers ranges from beginning to professional. I have tried buses and ships. The great thing about this is daily opportunities to see interesting places in exciting places to take pictures. All without having to organize travel, hotels or meals. With like-minded individuals while choosing what activities and locations are on tomorrow's agenda. On a typical day, I often take way more images and end up cursing myself while culling down to the best of the best.
 
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The only travel I do is for photography. Even when my husband, who was a landscape artist, was alive he did not travel with me. Sometimes I sign up for tours, sometimes a photographer friend will go, and sometimes I go alone. I actually like going alone best as then I don't have to compromise or worry about what someone else wants to do. I'm sort of an introvert and it's always difficult when I go on group tours, but I do them because it's easier to have someone else set it all up, scout the locations, and figure out the timing and I'm willing to pay for that. I'll be in Yellowstone alone for 10 days in June and out shooting every day, all day. I love road trips and I'll drive there from Northern California. I would also go more often with other photographers if I had a fun group to shoot with but finding that is difficult.
 
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I do some of all, but if photography is my primary goal I prefer to travel alone for the same reasons others mentioned. I don’t mind going with other photographers as they generally have similar interests but if going with other friends or family, I don’t want to make them wit while I wait on the sun to be where I want it or stand there bored while I’m taking photos. I will generally let them know I may decide to go wander by myself to take photos ahead of time so they are aware or go into it knowing it won’t be a photos trip and just bring my camera for whatever I happen t9 get. I haven’t done any photo tours but this is something I’d really like to try at least once in an area I haven’t been. I’d assume they would know when the best time to be at key locations is and I’d learn a few locations that would have taken me a while.
 
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I do NOT like to travel any distances for photography alone. Being with one other person, especially a fellow photographer, makes a huge difference. I used to enjoy driving places by myself, but the older I get, the less I relish this.
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For long-distance trips, I always endeavor to join a small group, whether a photo workshop or a birding tour. I really value being with a guide who knows where to find the birds and who can spot them for me. Once upon a time I was a sharp-eyed maven when it came to spotting and identifying birds, but that ship sailed a while ago. If I go out into a tropical forest on my own I will fail to spot oh, so many birds that a good guide will find and point out. Sometimes it's kind of embarrassing how blind I feel.

Almost ideal was the kind of trip my wife and I took to Costa Rica a little over a year ago. We went via the "Independent Birding Ventures" of Naturalist Journeys (Peg Abbott's company). We had private drivers/guides, a series of them over the course of our ten-day trip. The guides did the driving, knew where to go , spotted and identified the species, waited patiently for me to get my photos, and provided good conversation in the vehicles (and sometimes at meals). They are very good at pretending to be your friend (haha).

Most typically, when I visit a distant location either in the U.S. or overseas, I sign up for a workshop. Most of the workshops I have been on in recent years have had only two to five participants. I like having the logistics handled by a third party, and when the trip is to an overseas destination, I like having a leader who "speaks the language," not to mention one who knows the country.

Doug Greenberg
 
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Since my wife is also a photographer we are normally shooting together. We used to go out shooting with another couple till they moved to Texas. They shot Canon us Nikon, never a conversation about which was the better. Just plain enjoyable times, normally we were together one day over every weekend. Do miss those times. Since my wife and I are full time rv’ers we have the opportunity to see a lot of this country and photograph different places together enjoying ourselves.
 
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