Experience Day: Wildlife - Diving Gannets

Course Contents

During this workshop we will take you through all the camera settings and considerations needed to produce outstanding seabird images. We will give you the chance to photograph both from land and sea and there will be many chances to shoot images of the gannets diving, surfacing with fish and squabbling over catch as well as the vast seabird colonies on the cliffs.

Subject to the weather and sea conditions we expect to spend a 3 to 4 hours out on the sea photographing the seabirds rafting on the rater, diving for food or returning to land with sand eels. We will then return to land for refreshments at the RSPB reserve in our private room (subject to availability). After lunch we will continue the workshop with either a session on image editing or head back out again onto the cliffs to photograph the many seabirds that roost and visit Bempton.

We will sail with the tides which can mean a very early start at 5, 6 or 7am, however sometimes we will go with the afternoon tides around 1 or 2pm. Exact timings will be provided in the joining instructions af ew days before the course. We would normally finish the workshop on the cliffs at Bempton around 3pm - 4pm depending on the activity levels of the birds.

Bempton Cliffs offers a unique experience as the seabirds will often be flying below or parallel with you given the height of the sea cliffs. Bird species might include Gannets, Puffins, Guillemots, Fulmars and Razorbills to name a few, but this is entirely dependent on the time of year and weather. We will be exploring the reserve for the best light to work with, so be prepared for a little bit of walking to ensure you can get good images.

This workshop is aimed at photographers of all abilities from beginners to advanced photographers. You will get the most out of the workshop if you already have an understanding of the main controls on your camera such as shutter speed, aperture, ISO and the focusing system.

We will have a maximum of 9 attendees on this workshop with Neil on Rachel on hand to provide expert advice and help you achieve great images.

Please note that we sail on a small to medium sized fishing boat, which can roll around in the North sea swell, this course is not recommended for anyone who suffers from motion or sea sickness.

For the workshop, please bring:

A DSLR or Mirrorless camera plus second camera body if you have one

Batteries (and spares)

Memory cards (and spares)

Waterproof cover for camera and lenses

Lenses:

From the boat, lenses such as 70-200mm, 180-600mm or 100-400mm would be ideal. Sometimes the Gannets can get really close, so 24-120mm or 24-70mm or similar can also work. At the RSPB reserve on the cliffs, Focal lengths of 400, 500 and 600mm are recommended as well as binoculars for spotting the birds. In some instances a 70-200mm can be used. In the wild meadows, there are also sometimes opportunities for macro photography of flowers and butterflies.

Clothing:

Please bring appropriate clothing with you such as a windproof and waterproof jacket and trousers. A layered approach to clothing i.e base layer, mid layer / fleece then over jacket is the best approach as it can often get chilly out at sea even on a bright sunny day. Appropriate walking boots or wellies are also recommended.

Food:

We suggest you have lunch at the cafe at RSPB Bempton Cliffs. However, feel free to bring your snacks and refreshments to have on the boat or while out on the cliffs. Food / refreshments are not included in the price of the workshop.

Other:

There are toilet facilities at RSPB Bempton Cliffs.

Adverse Weather:

The boat sailing aspect of the workshop is dependent on favorable weather conditions. You will be notified by e-mail the evening before the workshop to confirm if we will be sailing. The skippers decision is final on this. If the trip is cancelled due to rough seas or other unforeseen circumstances then you will be offered an alternate workshop date or given a full refund. Please note that the sailing aspect of the workshop may be postponed / cancelled right up to the moment we are planning to sail due to the weather conditions.

Notes:

Parking and entrance to Bempton Cliffs for RSPB members is free, for non members it is currently £6.

You will also need to pay for parking at the Harbour car park and any food or refreshments at the RSPB cafe.

If you would like to borrow any cameras and lenses for this course please get in contact with us at [email protected] with your request and we will do our best to bring it along. We usually need around 2 weeks notice to arrange any loan requests if the stock is available.

Further information confirming the exact sailing times will be sent out 1-2 days before the workshop takes place.