Photo Expedition – Peneda-Gerês National Park
This 3-day expedition will take you through one of the most beautiful mountain ranges of Portugal. The Peneda-Gerês National Park is a region of tremendous beauty, with breathtaking landscapes and well preserved habitats, where biodiversity thrives.
If you are a beginner, during this nature photography expedition, you are going to learn how to use your camera on manual mode, how composition works and how to master light. If you are already an experienced photographer, we'll discuss more advanced techniques. I will also give you all the important tips to be successful at photographing animals and landscapes. All this while I guide you through amazing rugged rocky mountains, crystal clear rivers with incredible waterfalls and magical pristine forests full of wildlife.
At the end you’ll have beautiful images of unique landscapes and hopefully of emblematic animals. The workshop is ideal not only for beginners, who seek to improve their work, but also for experienced photographers looking for someone to guide them through the beautiful Portuguese nature.
If you are a beginner, during this nature photography expedition, you are going to learn how to use your camera on manual mode, how composition works and how to master light. If you are already an experienced photographer, we'll discuss more advanced techniques. I will also give you all the important tips to be successful at photographing animals and landscapes. All this while I guide you through amazing rugged rocky mountains, crystal clear rivers with incredible waterfalls and magical pristine forests full of wildlife.
At the end you’ll have beautiful images of unique landscapes and hopefully of emblematic animals. The workshop is ideal not only for beginners, who seek to improve their work, but also for experienced photographers looking for someone to guide them through the beautiful Portuguese nature.
Additional Information
- Meeting Point
Day 1: Under The Stars, Surrounded By Nature
All the participants should arrive in the morning at our "base camp", the Parque Cerdeira, where we'll be staying and eating during the 3 days.
After a convivial lunch it’s time for a briefing, where I’ll explain the scheduled activities for each day and I’ll give you some other useful information. For the participants with no or few experience in photography, I’ll teach the basics of composition and how to use the camera in manual mode, so you have the necessary basic knowledge to take great images when we finally go to the field and so you don’t feel lost during the workshop.
Before the sun sets, we’ll scout the area around Vilarinho das Furnas lagoon and prepare everything for the night session. Knowing how to scout an area and prepare the image beforehand is a very important skill, because it definitely makes a huge difference in your work. After dinner we go out again to photograph the wonderful mountains and night sky, while we listen to the relaxing sounds of nature.
Day 2: In the land of wolves and wild goats
For the second day it’s programmed not only more landscape photography, but also a lot of wildlife photography. This day is reserved for one of my favourite hikes ever, the Carris hiking trail. We are going to start in the morning because we have some distance to cover, about 13 km. This region is so beautiful and biodiverse; hopefully we will see a lot of wildlife, including raptors, the iconic Iberian ibex and the Iberian wolf. These two last species are not easy to observe, especially the wolf is quite inconspicuous, but there's always some probability of photographing or seeing them. We will walk at a slow pace to avoid spooking any animal and we will stop often to look for them, that’s why we need all day.
At the sunset, we still have time to photograph the imposing landscape that follows us throughout the hike and if conditions are favourable expect great photos of this place. After that we go back to the base camp to have dinner and rest for the next day.
Day 3: Ancient forests and stunning waterfalls
During the morning we are going to visit the oldest forest of the country, the perfect place for woodland and wildlife photography. This place is absolutely magical and this trip wouldn’t be completed without visiting it. The forest is home to squirrels, many species of amphibians, roe deer, wild boar, reptiles as the water lizard, foxes, woodpeckers, the Portuguese wild horse and many more. Here you can expect beautiful mountain rivers with gorgeous waterfalls, great for long exposure photography.
After lunch we are going to do a critique of the photos we have taken during the 3 days, to analyse which aspects can be improved.
Finally, as a farewell, before sunset we will photograph another extraordinary landscape, that few people have the opportunity to see.
Important Notes
- Although I'm an experienced wildlife biologist, I cannot guarantee we are going to see or photograph a certain species, but I'll do my best to increase our chances.
- If the weather conditions are really bad (heavy rain and poor visibility), the schedule and places to visit might need to be changed.
- The participants should be able to walk distances of 15 km with their photography equipment.
Other Information
What is included
- Insurance;
- Accommodation right in the heart of the National Park (Parque Cerdeira), surrounded by mountains and oak forests. The pack includes 2 nights in a Collective Room (Dormitory), but if you prefer you can upgrade later;
- Meals (3 lunches, 3 dinners and 2 breakfasts);
- Transportation during the workshop.
What you should bring:
- Camera;
- Tripod (optional, but recommended);
- Computer (optional, but recommended);
- Mountain clothing and footwear.
Physical difficulty: Moderate/hard
Available places: 7
Price: 248 €
All the participants should arrive in the morning at our "base camp", the Parque Cerdeira, where we'll be staying and eating during the 3 days.
After a convivial lunch it’s time for a briefing, where I’ll explain the scheduled activities for each day and I’ll give you some other useful information. For the participants with no or few experience in photography, I’ll teach the basics of composition and how to use the camera in manual mode, so you have the necessary basic knowledge to take great images when we finally go to the field and so you don’t feel lost during the workshop.
Before the sun sets, we’ll scout the area around Vilarinho das Furnas lagoon and prepare everything for the night session. Knowing how to scout an area and prepare the image beforehand is a very important skill, because it definitely makes a huge difference in your work. After dinner we go out again to photograph the wonderful mountains and night sky, while we listen to the relaxing sounds of nature.
Day 2: In the land of wolves and wild goats
For the second day it’s programmed not only more landscape photography, but also a lot of wildlife photography. This day is reserved for one of my favourite hikes ever, the Carris hiking trail. We are going to start in the morning because we have some distance to cover, about 13 km. This region is so beautiful and biodiverse; hopefully we will see a lot of wildlife, including raptors, the iconic Iberian ibex and the Iberian wolf. These two last species are not easy to observe, especially the wolf is quite inconspicuous, but there's always some probability of photographing or seeing them. We will walk at a slow pace to avoid spooking any animal and we will stop often to look for them, that’s why we need all day.
At the sunset, we still have time to photograph the imposing landscape that follows us throughout the hike and if conditions are favourable expect great photos of this place. After that we go back to the base camp to have dinner and rest for the next day.
Day 3: Ancient forests and stunning waterfalls
During the morning we are going to visit the oldest forest of the country, the perfect place for woodland and wildlife photography. This place is absolutely magical and this trip wouldn’t be completed without visiting it. The forest is home to squirrels, many species of amphibians, roe deer, wild boar, reptiles as the water lizard, foxes, woodpeckers, the Portuguese wild horse and many more. Here you can expect beautiful mountain rivers with gorgeous waterfalls, great for long exposure photography.
After lunch we are going to do a critique of the photos we have taken during the 3 days, to analyse which aspects can be improved.
Finally, as a farewell, before sunset we will photograph another extraordinary landscape, that few people have the opportunity to see.
Important Notes
- Although I'm an experienced wildlife biologist, I cannot guarantee we are going to see or photograph a certain species, but I'll do my best to increase our chances.
- If the weather conditions are really bad (heavy rain and poor visibility), the schedule and places to visit might need to be changed.
- The participants should be able to walk distances of 15 km with their photography equipment.
Other Information
What is included
- Insurance;
- Accommodation right in the heart of the National Park (Parque Cerdeira), surrounded by mountains and oak forests. The pack includes 2 nights in a Collective Room (Dormitory), but if you prefer you can upgrade later;
- Meals (3 lunches, 3 dinners and 2 breakfasts);
- Transportation during the workshop.
What you should bring:
- Camera;
- Tripod (optional, but recommended);
- Computer (optional, but recommended);
- Mountain clothing and footwear.
Physical difficulty: Moderate/hard
Available places: 7
Price: 248 €
Highlights
About the expedition guide and Photographer
Daniel Santos is an internationally awarded professional nature photographer and biologist from Porto. He has always loved to be in contact with nature and in 2011 he accomplished one of his dreams, start studying biology at the university. During that time, Daniel discovered photography and have been experiencing the best of the two worlds since then. Today he has also a master's degree on "Biodiversity, Genetics and Evolution". With his work he hopes to make people aware of the biodiversity loss and climate change the planet is facing. For him every living creature is beautiful in its way and important for the health of the ecosystems and therefore for our survival.
Daniel worked for 2 years as a nature tour guide and since then he’s been developing his own activities related to photography and nature tourism.