Dalmatian Pelicans - Lake Kerkini

Prior to lockdown, D2D ran our very first wildlife photography workshop in the Cairngorms. The intention was to always run more, but with all the disruption of Covid, our plans went astray. But we are now back on track and excited to announce we will be visiting Lake Kerkini in Northern Greece to photograph spectacular but endangered dalmatian pelicans (our largest pelican species with a huge wingspan of upto 4 meters). These remarkably impressive and prehistoric looking birds are hugely photogenic. During the winter months, they are in their breeding plumage, so there is no better time to make the journey to the Greek city of Thessaloniki and then commute (approx 95km) to the village of Kerkini, close to the lake, where we will stay for four nights. We will enjoy 3 full days of photography and capture the pelicans from both the shoreline and boat. Weather permitting, we will shoot at dawn and dusk each day to capture the best light and colour. There will be opportunities to shoot portraits, detail, behaviour, flight, and also wider, environmental style photographs of the pelicans in context with the impressive backdrop of lake and snow-capped Beles mountains. We will also have a little down time during the day to either rest, relax, or edit images – so remember to bring your laptop.

Local fisherman feed the pelicans overcatch to avoid waste, so birds have grown habitualised and are often easy to get close to, so great photographs are possible with even fairly short focal lengths. However, we suggest you bring a versatile range of lenses – from wide angle to 400mm – to ensure you make the most of varied opportunities. For this workshop, it doesn’t really matter if you are an experienced wildlife photographer or not. While there will be opportunities to photograph other wildlife too, the dalmatian pelicans will be our main focus during this workshop.  

Throughout our stay we will be staying at Hotel Oikoperiigitis in the village of Kerkini. This is beautifully traditional accommodation – welcoming and friendly. We will dine in the hotel’s Ydrogaia restaurant where our food will be prepared in a traditional wood oven. Accommodation (sole occupancy) breakfast, lunch and dinner are included in the cost of the workshop, together with transfers to/from Thessaloniki airport and daily boat trips, skippered by a local guide, who will position us carefully to ensure we enjoy the best possible photo opportunities.

In addition to your camera kit, pack for shooting in a cold climate and bring water and wind proof outer garments, gloves, hat and good walking boots.  

During this workshop you will be guided by two of the UK’s best known nature photographers, Ben Hall and Ross Hoddinott. Ben is renowned for his bird photography and for capturing awe-inspiring and atmospheric environmental portraits. Ben and Ross co-authored The Wildlife Photography Workshop and both are multi-award winning. During our downtime, Ben will provide an informal talk on composition, technique and creativity. It promises to be a brilliant photo adventure. We hope you can join us…   

*Please note that flights are not included in the cost of this workshop, but after booking, we will contact you with a details of the recommended flight. Please do not book flights until we advise you to do so.