rgbiv
New member
Might be traveling to the Big Island in the next few months. Anyone have any suggestions about where/what/when for photographing Birds and other wildlife there?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Suggestions - wildlife photography on Hawaii, the Big Island?
- Thread starter rgbiv
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Clough91
Member
I was there last January, was family trip so didn’t take many photos. But for wildlife there’s few options, if your interested in a zodiac trip I’d recommend captain zodiac, black sands beach had turtles (area was barricaded for good reason) and there was nene geese on drive in. I’m trying to remember the name of the beach we were at, very limited amount of people allowed in have to check in at a gate and they give you pass, if there all out no entry is allowed it had all sorts of birds and turtles were all over the beaches (just have to be respectful of them). I’ll try and remember the name of the beach. Stop at Punalu’u bake shop! Most southern bakery amazing food. There is a bird photographer on the island that does day tours but I wasn’t able to go. We also did a cloud forest tour, was pretty interesting and the owner was very knowledgeable on all the plants and tree species. The two following photos are screenshots from my instagram so quality won’t be as good and there pretty small. I hope this helped!
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rgbiv
New member
Nice photos!
I appreciate your suggestions...especially of the bakery!
The zodiac is probably out (motion sickness) but that beach sounds great as does the black sands beach.
Mahalo!
I appreciate your suggestions...especially of the bakery!
The zodiac is probably out (motion sickness) but that beach sounds great as does the black sands beach.Mahalo!
nmerc_photos
Well-known member
we booked with bird guide Lance Tanino when we went to the Big Island in 2023.
www.hawaiibirdingguide.com
pricing was extremely affordable and we saw 51 species of birds that day. I'll be booking with him again when we return in 2025.
Home | Hawaii Bird Guide
www.hawaiibirdingguide.com
pricing was extremely affordable and we saw 51 species of birds that day. I'll be booking with him again when we return in 2025.
rgbiv
New member
Great suggestion, Thanks. Sounds like a great way to spend the day.we booked with bird guide Lance Tanino when we went to the Big Island in 2023.
Home | Hawaii Bird Guide
pricing was extremely affordable and we saw 51 species of birds that day. I'll be booking with him again when we return in 2025.
Clough91
Member
I’m pretty sure that’s who I was thinking of, also!we booked with bird guide Lance Tanino when we went to the Big Island in 2023.
Home | Hawaii Bird Guide
pricing was extremely affordable and we saw 51 species of birds that day. I'll be booking with him again when we return in 2025.
Clough91
Member
Kuki’o beach is the one I couldn’t remember what it was also! We stayed in Alii vilas condos in Kailua-kona.
ricardo00
Well-known member
A photographer I met in the Bay Area (where I live) also runs tours on the Big Island (Mike Myers). Never made it out there to try it out, but if Lance doesn't work out, he is another potential guide:
rgbiv
New member
Glad you rememered the name. Sounds promising and close by.
rgbiv
New member
Good suggestion, thanks!
ricardo00
Well-known member
Looking at his website, wonder if he still does it? Don't see any updates for quite a while.
Calson
Well-known member
All the wildlife photography I did 20 years ago in Hawaii was done underwater. The situation is much worse today in occupied Hawaii.
GregT943
Active member
Most of your wildlife is underwater in Hawaii. Turtles sunning themselves on the beaches is common on all islands in Hawaii due to the lack of predators on land, and they stay nice and still which can make for great long exposure shots. If you are lucky you might catch the endangered Hawaiian monk seal sunning on a beach as well. Although I find monk seals much easier to find on Kauai than the other islands. One thing I would absolutely recommend, even though it's not wildlife photography, is hiring a guide and walking out to the lava flows. Being a few feet away from lava is quite the experience and a unique landscape photo opportunity. I believe the lava lake in the caldera collapsed during the last eruption and is no longer there, but the volcano changes all the time, you will have to look into it closer to your trip. Seeing lava flowing into the ocean is cool too.
Hawaiian Monk seal long exposure at golden hour
When with a guide you can get real close to the slow moving stuff. It's pretty amazing.
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Hawaiian Monk seal long exposure at golden hour
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When with a guide you can get real close to the slow moving stuff. It's pretty amazing.
rgbiv
New member
Brilliant suggestion/idea. Hopefully there will be some (modest) eruption going on when we are there!