The Birds of Costa Rica

May 13 - 23, 2024

Costa Rica is renowned for having an astonishing variety of exotic birds, and with good reason. In every ecozone and at every elevation, some of the world's most colorful and photogenic birds can be seen. Join Jim for a fantastic experience in nature photography with a focus on birds. We will also frogs, flowers, butterflies, and landscapes, but our main pursuit will be the amazing tropical birds of Central America. Kingfishers, quetzals, hummingbirds, tanagers, trogons, hawks, owls and more will keep you enthralled for the whole trip. Learn how to capture birds in flight, how to post-process your images to get the best detail from the shadows, and how to deal with excessive digital noise. If you thought bird photography is too difficult, think again. Jim will help you return home with outstanding images you'll be proud of and proud to share with your friends

What you will learn on this trip:

-- Best camera settings for capturing birds in flight

-- How to photograph hummingbirds

-- How to work with electronically triggered flash

-- Using HDR to mitigate contrast

-- How to use Topaz DeNoise AI and Sharpen AI

-- How to expose for subjects perched against the sky

-- Choosing the right shutter speed for a long lens

-- Using neutral density filters for waterfalls

ITINERARY

Day 1, Monday, May 13

Arrive this day in San Jose, Costa Rica. You will be met at the airport by a local representative with a sign showing your name and transferred to the nearby hotel. We meet for the first time as a group in the lobby of the hotel at 6pm, and Jim will discuss the upcoming photography tour with you. We then enjoy a welcome dinner and get ready for tomorrow's adventure by making sure all our batteries are charged. Overnight at Courtyard by Marriott San Jose Airport.

Day 2, Tuesday, May 14

We depart from San Jose for the Sarapqui area which is known for its dense rainforest forest with a great

variety of tropical birds and other animals. We arrive for lunch, and in the later afternoon when birds are active we'll search for the great green macaw, Honduran white bats (which are diurnal), hummingbirds nectaring on flowers, frogs, and the spectacled and crested owls. After dinner, we can try to find the American screech owl, the stunning black-and-white owl, and the crested owl. Overnight at the Are Ambigua Lodge or similar.

Days 3 - 5, Wednesday to Friday, May 15 - 17

Before we leave the area, we visit a local birder who has set up feeding stations to attract a large variety of birds. We then drive to the northern rainforest and enjoy lunch upon arrival. This is Laguna del Lagarto, and it is famous for outstanding bird photography. Easily within a 300mm focal length are keel-billed toucans, collared aracari, orange-chinned parakeet,

and the white-crowned parrot. These are common birds at the feeders near the deck, and we can watch their antics as we eat before getting serious about photography.

We will spend the afternoon in the gardens of the hotel where we'll have an excellent chance to see olive-throated parakeets, blue-chested hummingbirds, semiplumbeous hawks, pygmy owls, slaty-tailed trogons, and many more. The fruit feeders at this lodge are possibly the best in the country because they are so high off the ground and attract a wide variety of birds from the canopy like the chestnut-colored woodpecker and black-cowled oriole.

The morning of the second day at this lodge we visit the king vulture hide. This is a great opportunity to get frame-filling shots of these bizarre birds as they fly down to feed. In the afternoon we have time for

macro photography of frogs, snakes, flowers, and butterflies. Afterwards, we drive to a nearby location where our main objectives are the red-breasted meadowlark, Nicaraguan seed-finch, tawny-crested tanager, rufous mourner, and the black-capped pygmy-tyrant. After dinner at dark, we will again search for the beautiful owl species that inhabit the forest. Overnight Laguna del Lagarto Lodge or similar.

Day 6-9, Saturday to Tuesday, May 18 - 21

We have an early morning photo session around our hotel and then breakfast at 7am. We then drive to Salamanca highlands, stopping en route at the Vara Blanca zone to photograph the emerald toucanet, the amazing red-headed barbet, and many others.

We arrive in the hotel in the afternoon. It is in the cloud forest at 8700 feet in elevation (2650 meters). Depending on the weather, we spend some time at the hummingbird feeders. Our main focus, though, is perhaps the most beautiful bird in Central America, the resplendent quetzal.

On the second day, we have hot coffee, tea, and a snack in the early morning around 5:15am. We then drive a short distance to see the elusive quetzal. They feed on avocado trees, and from a fairly close vantage we should be lucky to be able to take some portraits and, possibly, capture one in flight.

Later in the day we search for other species in Los Quetzal's National Park. The hotel maintains trails where we can see so many alpine species such as the long-tailed silky flycatcher, black-thighed grosbeak, black guan, white throated mountain gem, lesser

violet ear hummingbird, and so many others. The sunsets at this high elevation are often stunning.

Day 10, Wednesday, May 22

On the last morning in the mountains, we have another birding session to look for additional species we might have missed thus far. Then in the afternoon we drive back to San Jose with possible stops along the way if we spot interesting photographic subjects. Overnight Courtyard by Marriott San Jose Airport.

Day 11, Thursday, May 23

This morning we are transferred to the airport for our flight home, knowing we've taken some of the most amazing bird pictures ever.

Tour cost: $6495. Includes 10 nights lodging based on double occupancy, all meals starting with the welcome dinner, all ground transportation, all entrance fees and fees for the use of private property for photography, services of a local English speaking guide, photo instruction, critiques on demand, and a post-tour critique/sharing online session.

Single supplement: $550

Not included: International airfare to Costa Rica, trip cancellation insurance, medical evacuation insurance, items of a personal nature, and alcohol.