NaturesLens Reviews 177

My Husband and I have just arrived back from an amazing trip to Grimsey, Iceland. Our group leader Robin was fantastic and took time to help everyone, suggesting different ideas and taking us to some amazing locations. He also has a smashing personality and makes everyone feel at ease and is always open for questions and to give advice. The trip was extremely well organized, the accommodation was lovely, the food in the restaurant was great and they were very accommodating to requests. You will see a huge selection of wildlife on Grimsey, including, Golden Plover, Arctic Tern, Puffin, Redshank, Black Tailed Godwit, Snow Bunting, Fulmar, Black Legged Kittywake, Guillemot, Razorbill, Curlew, I could list more but will run out of space. We cannot wait for the next trip with Natureslens, this was our 3rd trip with them and everything was perfect as it was with the previous trips.

The week-long, two-centre trip to photograph Brown Bears and their cubs in Finland provided fantastic opportunities to observe and photograph these magnificent predators in a variety of settings and light conditions. They were as close as 2m on some occasions. The playful cubs were of course particularly photogenic. Guides Johnny Södergård and Anna Wikén were knowledgeable and excellent company. A couple of things: 1) Don't expect luxury – you stay overnight in a hide with a bucket for a toilet, 2) You will finish the week needing a good sleep! Was it worth it? Definitely!

Trip was well organised with good communication in a timely manner. Focus was on photography as the main purpose. Excellent locations. 14 hours in hides overnight is not for the faint hearted but perfect and necessary for keen photographers looking for the best pictures. You will not be disappointed.

My experience at the NaturesLens Wildlife of Zimanga photography holiday was simply amazing. The accommodation was luxurious and provided a perfect retreat between photography sessions. Pui Hang's guidance was invaluable; her expertise and enthusiasm added a whole new dimension to the wildlife encounters. Speaking of which, the wildlife encounters were truly breathtaking - from majestic lions to imposing elephants, each moment felt like a scene from a wildlife documentary. This trip was a dream come true for any nature lover and photographer!
Furthermore, I have been to many more safaris but I must say that I found this photographic trip was exceptional, educational, memorable and very enjoyable, due to Pui Hang’s assistance and care.

I joined the NaturesLens tour to Skomer Island to photograph the Puffin population there. The island and wildlife have a real wow factor themselves, but the professional yet relaxed approach taken by Natureslens guide, Robin, really made the experience. Robin was very attentive and generous in his advice, but there were also plenty of opportunties to do your own thng, to get the most out of your time. I will defintely be booking with Natureslens again

Great trip to Skomer with a lovely bunch of people. Organisation was all very smooth and was good to have food supplied which I don't usually have on my Skomer trips!

I had a fantastic holiday with NaturesLens 'Winter Wildlife Of Japan' photographic tour in February 2024. There was a very good variety of species to photo, all with excellent sightings, and plenty of time with each shoot.
The accommodation and food on offer where both excellent and varied, with lots of traditional Japanese cuisine on offer. The hospitality was first class. I would not hesitate in recommending this professionally led tour to any wildlife photo enthusiast, and have already booked my next holiday with NaturesLens.

Zimanga Private game reserve was a wonderful place with great wildlife and great opportunities to see them. The whole experience was first class from the Comfort of the Homestead, the friendliness of the staff and the quality of the amenities and food. Our rangers knowledge was first class and enhanced the whole experience.

The organisation of the trip was expertly put together by NaturesLens along with the photography advice and tuition which was super.

I would certainly recommend this trip and company to any Photographer who wants to experience and photograph wildlife in their natural habitat.

Having just returned from a Natures Lens trip to the private Zimanga reserve in South Africa I'm now sifting through the 5000 odd images taken of this amazing place. The combination of of Natures Lens Pui Hang's helpful guiding and overall care taken of the group combined with the the incredible local knowledge and care of Tyrone the onsite ranger made for a thoroughly enjoyable trip. The accommodation and catering were second to none with all Zimanga staff I encountered being cheerful and helpful. One thing to be aware of is the ceilings of the hides we used were very low making it easy to bang your head if not careful so taking some form of padded hat may prove useful. Overall this was a great holiday and I hope to return one day.

The main part of this trip are the 4 days of boat trips on Blue Cypress Lake. The lake is a beautiful experience surrounded by the stunning cypress trees with hanging air plants characteristic of Florida. There are many ospreys (340 pairs on our trip) which fill the air with their calls as you travel around the lake. Photography from the pontoon style boat was straight forward as it is very stable expertly skippered by Don who helped with spotting the birds and gave us plenty of time making sure each boat member had an opportunity. We were able to get flight, birds carrying fish, bird on the stick, bird in the nest (sometimes with young) and some flight interaction images. The elephant in the room is that the tannin in the lake means the ospreys cannot fish there only nest there so no diving and fishing shots are available.

This part was sandwiched between visits to other nature rich areas, allowing us to photograph spoonbills, various egrets and herons. Also, we had a few trips with the charming burrowing owls.

All trips made the most of the best time of day, early morning and late afternoon as in midday the sunlight is harsh and very hot.

The guides David and Ian provided advice and help and worked hard on finding us the shot.

Just finished a brilliant week in Homer, Alaska with Natures Lens, photographing Bald Eagles, Sea Otters and a host of other wildlife. We were fortunate with the weather but what really made the memories was the expertise of Natures Lens, @Coldwater Alaska and their Captain, ‘Curly’ John, who used his deep knowledge of Kachemak Bay to find wildlife and get us into the best possible position to make the best of the light and backgrounds. Natures Lens’s organisation was fine. The holiday had a relaxed pace with daily 3 hour sessions on the boat combined with free time to give us time to process the inevitable thousands of images. We also had the opportunity to tour the wider area to experience the breathtaking scenery and also find a Moose or 2. As is usual with Natures Lens, accommodation was on a single occupancy basis, in US style mini suites with all amenities. Alaska in winter is an experience in itself. Combine that with wildlife and it’s unmissable. Thoroughly recommended

This is my 4th trip with Naturelens and my 2nd trip to lake Kirkini. Every trip has been very well organised and I’ve been very lucky to have been with a good group which is always a bonus to have some good banter together.
A special thanks to Pui Hang for your tuition, help, organisation, friendly and professional manner. Also a big thank you to Vasilis, our excellent and very knowledgeable boatman.

Had a wonderful time at Lake Kerkini with the amazing pelicans..Headed by Pui Hang and with a lovely group of like-minded individuals we headed out early in the morning onto the boat, to be met by stunning sun rises with different, changing, amazing colours and reflections in which to photograph the pelicans. We were given different opportunities in the afternoon taking photos from the shoreline. The tour was well organised, the opportunities plentiful and Pui and Vasilis friendly and helpful. From the moment I enquired, Pui was extremely quick to reply and informative, and as such Dean and I are already looking into other trips with Natureslens..😊

I had an amazing time. Vasilis Arabatzis, the local guide, not only knew the habits of the pelicans so well, he also knew where to position the boat to get the best shots.
Alison Jenkins who lead the group, did a great job helping everyone, whatever level of photography we were on. Making us think about the sorts of shots we could take.
I would recommend this trip but be prepared for every type of weather!

Alison, as lead photographer, created a very supportive and sociable environment for our photography expedition in Lake Kerkini. The boatman Vassillis was very knowledgeable about the wildlife and created excellent opportunities for a variety of photographs in different conditions. Alison was always available to guide the best options to work with in terms of lenses, settings, angles. We had a great week with good humour and much laughter. It was a wonderful experience in a fabulous location. I would do it again.

Hello,

I have been part of the group of photographers who, with Alison Jenkins, went to Greece to take images of the beautiful Dalmatian pelicans. It has been a tremendous experience thanks to Alison's work and her effort to make everything right. We have been fortunate to form a group in which friendliness, laughter and camaraderie have been the protagonists.

The services are also great: the hotel, breakfast, lunch, dinner, the van and transfers, the boat and the boatman (Vasilis is a perfect connoisseur of the region and his conversations about the fauna, customs and history are very interesting).

In summary, I would recommend this trip which is suitable for any type of person or photographer. You will spend some unforgettable days.

Best regards

Felix Morlan

Fabulous experience - the aim was for the group to get the right shots in the right light. Due to it being nature photography we were at the realms of the weather.

A few chopping and changing is a must and you should be understandable to this.

The hosts did all they could to accommodate us in the mixed bag of weather we had unexpected snow and freak -9!

Both hotel/restaurant the boat guide Vasillis and natureslens host Alison made it a fun trip to remember.

Have a july trip to skomer booked with the same company and confident I will get the shots I'm after with their guidance and expertise.

Very good guidance from booking till the end of the trip! Exclusive night hide for the group and fantastic wildlife opportunities. Also the possibility to visit flamingo's and the boma of the Maasai. They are open to everything :)

Arctic Wildlife of Svalbard Trip 2023
A photography trip to Svalbard is always challenging - it is a long way north. This year even more so a large amount of late snow impacted on the ability to move around in search of wildlife. This was managed well with a flexible programme and we were kept informed. Our local guide was excellent and we made the most of every opportunity we had.
Overall it was not the easiest of trips to manage but I felt David handled everything well and we worked together as a group to get some great images.

I first heard about the Leopards living wild in amongst the hills around Bera, Rajasthan, during 2019 and eagerly booked the trip with NaturesLens. I have had to contain my excitement until just recently.
It was worth the wait though, and as soon as my eyes got accustomed to searching for the Leopards amongst the hills I was able to photograph them often, including lying on rocks, climbing and jumping across the rocks, two sub-adult siblings chasing each other and climbing a tree, and a mother playing with her two month old cub which was especially delightful!
We had early morning pre-dawn starts and dusk finishes, with plenty of down time during the hottest part of the day to relax, sleep or download images before lunchtime. Our accommodation was spacious, cool with air-con and very clean too, and run by some very friendly staff who served up delicious food too. It was also close to the Leopard hills which could be seen from the lodge grounds.
The lodge arranged for our group to visit a nearby village to photograph the local people in their colourful clothes and the Rajasthani men in their red turbans. Plus a visit to our lodge from a Puppeteer who performed a show of colourfully dressed wooden string puppets - a centuries old tradition of Kathputli.
Counting down now to my next trip with NaturesLens in July to photograph the Jaguars of the Pantanal in Brazil!