NaturesLens Reviews 177

I have just returned from The Birdlife of Texas trip with Natures Lens.

The trip has been absolutely amazing and our leader David is so knowledgable on the various species and his help and support has been boundless. I have come back with so many fantastic images and this trip has surpassed all expectations of what I expected to see

The trip started and finished at Martins Hide. Whereby our local guide Patty provided us with a wealth of knowledge of the local birdlife. We even saw a pair of coyotes coming in to feed.

We spent three full days at Jones Vista Ranch whereby we met Kevin the owner who conveyed some amazing stories about the history of his Ranch. All hides were comfortable and we managed to see such a variety of the local birds -we saw around 28 different varieties in total

We then moved on to Santa Clara Ranch where we met Dr Beto. The stories behind this ranch were absolutely intriguing and added to the interest of the trip. Again the hides were comfortable and were visited by so many differing variety of birds. Again Patty joined us as a local guide and her patience and knowledge added to the enjoyment of this trip.

The food was extremely good particularly on the ranches. Our food was freshly cooked by a local lady who looked after us so well. Our hotel stays were very comfortable. Everything was absolutely perfect

The trip is well thought through to enable the participants to get a variety of species and with the differing ranches a real flavour of the Texan experience.

I went on NaturesLens Majestic Tigers of Bandavgarh photography trip. The trip was excellent and very well organised with a party of 6 guests led by Pui Hang Miles and a local manager, Vedant. Communication during booking and before the trip was clear and helpful. we had 2 game drives every day and 1 all day game drive with plenty of very good sightings. We had only 2 guests in each jeep which was very helpful as it allowed plenty of room and made it easy to get good photographs without getting in the other person's way. Natureslens used a very experienced and friendly team of local naturalists and drivers. Their knowledge of the wildlife and the reserve greatly helped in getting good photographs in the best locations. They also showed a good understanding of the specific needs of wildlife photographers and manoeuvred the jeeps appropriately to get the best photography opportunities.
Pui Hang provided some very good advice on camera settings which helped me greatly.
Accommodation and food was also good.

I will certainly look to use Natureslens again for wildlife photography trips.

The Golden Eagles turned up every day, no chance to get bored. WOW the eagles were flying through the snow..I managed to get some excellent photo's & so did the rest of the party..Great support from the team & the HOME cooked food was special. One of the best courses I have been on, in 50 years photogaphy.
Many Thanks Team. Ron Coulter

The photographic trip "Winter wildlife of Japan" with Naturelens was a great experience. One highlight followed the last as we were starting our photographic journey in Hokkaido with the red-crowned cranes. The guiding team had several sites and optimal times to choose from and the weather played along to give us many fantastic photo opportunities. Anspare time was used photographing foxes along the way and a ural owl known to nest in a hole in a tree. Next on the menu were the Whopper swans in the caldera of the Akan National Park. On a very windy, extremely cold day the swans left us in a lurch and didn't make an appearance, so the program was immediately adapted and we went to the Notsuke peninsula, where we encountered foxes, Sika deer and our first sea eagles. The next day, the swans were back and we had photographic sessions with them in several different locations. Again, the remainder of the time was filled photographing other species, i.e. ducks, other birds or landscapes (from the Bihoro pass). We then proceeded to the highlight of the trip - the sea eagles of Rausu.
The first and second day we did not have any drift ice and we photographed the birds picking up fish in the sea and flying as well as on the harbour wall. The third day the ice had arrived and we watched about 200 white-tailed and Steller's sea eagles fighting for the fish, sitting on ice flows or flying in a splendid spectacle. In every location so far, we had enough time to see the animals under different circumstances and weather conditions ensuring an optimal photographic experience.
After leaving Hokkaido and returning to Tokyo for a night, we set out to find the snow monkeys of Jigokudani Monkey Park near Nagano. Arriving in the afternoon gave me enough time to photograph the monkeys in the steaming onsen pool and set my goals for the next day. As we were about to leave, somebody shouted: There is a dog in the river! I could barely believe my eyes when I saw that one of the rare Japanese serows was gracing us with its presence. So I got to photograph the last species on my list of wildlife I wanted to see whilst in Japan.
The rest of the tour included Mount Fuji at sunrise and a Shogun castle including blossoming cherry trees to round the experience off.
The team guides David Miles and Ian Roberts were experienced, helpful and quick to improvise in the face of meteorological adversity. They also knew Japan and its traditions and idiosyncrasies well enough to advise those who were traveling to Japan for the first time. They catered both for beginners and advanced photographers.
In short, the trip was a non-stop series of great photo opportunities with enough time on the subjects to guarantee good images, an insight into Japanese culture and great group action.

The unbridled efforts of David and Ian ensured that we were not short of anything. Everything was arranged down to the last detail or adjusted on the spot, so that we could focus optimally on our passion, nature photography.

A wonderful trip! Robin the course leader was the perfect mix of helpful, informative and funny, whilst also knowing when to let you just get on. The food and accommodation was great, especially the showers. As always on these kinds of trips, it's the birds and fellow photographers that make the trip memorable. Both of which were absolutely fantastic. I highly recommend it.

This was my first time travelling with NaturesLens and my first real experience of wildlife photography - quite different to my usual travel and landscape photography - and I therefore had very little idea of what to expect. From a photographic point of view, I learned a lot in a short time about a completely new genre of photography. Both David, our main guide, and Ian, a regular NaturesLens guide who joined us for the first part of the trip, were patient and helpful. Jose, the local Costa Rican guide, was very knowledgeable about Costa Rican birds and wildlife and the locations we visited. The group size of six was ideal.
We saw a variety of wildlife, with the emphasis on birds, viewed from hides, private viewing decks and three river boat cruises.
Accommodation was in comfortable lodges, food was tasty and plentiful and we were driven around in a spotless minibus by the wonderful Tony, who was an absolute delight.
The trip was well organised and any unexpected hiccups along the way were dealt with efficiently by David and Jose.
Overall, a great photography learning experience for me and an opportunity to see some of Costa Rica's incredible wildlife.

Everything was perfect! Well, everything APART from the fact that it had to come to an end.

Great photography opportunity made even better by the care and attention provided by UK host David and local guides Jose and Tony. It certainly helped that the 6 members of the group were happy to accommodate each other and so got on well together and enjoyed each others company.
Overall the tour exceeded my expectations. Accommodation was good, not luxurious but spacious and clean. Meals were good - please don't go expecting European/USA fine dining; rather go and enjoy the local cuisine.
Photo opportunities were really good for me; bird photography, frogs and snakes. I really enjoyed and learnt a lot from the 2 flash photography sessions we had. I liked that days with an early start and full agenda were often followed by a day with some time for me to relax and enjoy the lodge we were staying in.
I thoroughly recommend this tour, it's good value for money and so long as you do a bit of research into what to expect from Costa Rica before you go you're unlikely to be disappointed.

Great trip with Pui Hang and David in Africa. We "did" in one trip to Kenya. All travel was really well organised.
Above all, we appreciated their help with all our photography needs.We really enjoyed chatting with Pui Hang and laughed a lot with David's sense of humour.
Lentorre lodge was just amazing, the villas with plunge pool were great. The staff were very friendly, but above all I must mention that for the first time in my life I did not have a migraine due to the chefs being so attentive to all the guests various allergies.
The night hide by the waterhole was brilliant. I felt so privileged to be so near a leopard and get good photos. We are looking forward to our next trip to India with Pui Hang and David !

The excellent accommodation and locations and the nice set of fellow travellers made this Ecuador trip very enjoyable. The trip provided many opportunities to photograph Hummingbird birds and I came home with lots of images that I am really pleased with.

A great trip with fantastic photographic opportunities. David was friendly and accommodating and the local guides were very knowledgeable. The range of hides is great with a bit of everything, and the hydro hides were particularly fun.

Once again I have returned from a very enjoyable photography holiday run by Natures Lens. Although I missed out on a couple of my target species(this happens when wildlife is involved) I more than made up for it with the other things. Drew proved to be an excellent guide and went out of his way to re-arrange things to suit clients needs.

An excellent few days with a great leader. We were given advice and guidance on the best places to photograph the puffins and techniques we could use. Relaxed and very enjoyable.

It was a fabulous location for our week of bird photography. Such diverse natural land catered for many different breeds of birds. The Marsh Harrier hides were fabulous with many birds coming down to feast along with lots of Black Kites. The hydro experience was something completely new for me and I would have loved to do that each and every day. I managed to do all the hides and saw so many different species and just wish I could do it all again. The drivers were so wonderful. Hats off to them - they never seemed to stop: they drove us everywhere and collected us from all over the estate, then drove us back to the accommodation and repeated that for the entire week. Our tour leader did a grand job in arranging the hide visits. The entire estate on El Taray has been left in a natural state to encourage all sorts of wildlife and it certainly does that. I loved it all. Fabulous trip.

A trip to the bird hides of El Taray in Toledo, Spain in July was memorable for many reasons. Foremost of course was the opportunity to photograph a great number of species of birds including Hoopoos, European Rollers, Harriers, Kites, Curlews, Divers and many, many more in their natural surroundings. This trip was organised by NaturesLens and led by Drew Sproule, whose knowledge, experience and easy going nature helped a group of like minded individuals to have fun and enjoy the whole Spanish experience to the full.

Tried posting Part 2 several times, but Trust Pilot seems to be blocking it. Perhaps this summary will get through:

First, I'm so sorry to have caused a firestorm. The NaturesLens owner began making up reality the moment he received my original polite, private feedback (most of which was posted in part 1 of my review). Virtually nothing written by him in response to that or the recent reviews is remotely accurate.  It appears we’ve triggered unhinged behavior.  The critical element is/was the timing of the trip.  We’re all wildlife photographers.  We wouldn’t travel 20 hours to a remote island to photograph any birds simply perching on cliffs.  We were promised breeding season behavior with chicks and parents feeding them – the iconic puffin photo experience.  We didn’t get it.  And NaturesLens knew that wasn’t going to happen BEFORE booking the trip.  We were sent a glossy brochure with photos of puffins carrying beakfuls of fish with the comment from NL that “this is to whet your appetite”.  The trip was instead planned for what is essentially off-season in Grimsey, a cheaper alternative to early July.  We didn’t know this and made a poor assumption we could believe the marketing materials.  Certainly, we didn’t do our homework.

We travelled to Grimsey, Iceland with Natures Lens. We absolutely loved it. A beautiful, wild and wonderful place. Lovely guesthouse with hosts who couldn’t have been nicer. Some guests were fed up with sharing bathrooms but this was known beforehand. Small price to pay for being in this remote and gorgeous place. There are only two guesthouses on the island and Basar has superb reviews from guests over the years - including from me. There were SO many birds to photograph. Thousands of puffins (many carrying fish in their beaks as early breeding got underway) and Arctic tern, wonderful snow buntings nesting and feeding young wherever you went. Black guillemot, razor bills, meadow pipits, golden plover and ringed plover and on and on. We thoroughly enjoyed eating at the island’s only restaurant - the staff were so welcoming. The food was limited but delicious. I have a shellfish allergy and the cook immediately made up another sauce for me. Dan, our guide, was a delight to be around. He was very solicitous of all the guests and made sure to give advice to those who wanted it (I tried and failed to replicate an excellent photo he took of a snow bunting). He spent a lot of time worrying about the guests and trying to meet their every need. All the arrangements for the trip went smoothly (once we had all worked out the digital reception at the hotel in Akureyri!) I came away from Grimsey a whole lot fitter from all the awesome walks around this little island. I will never forget the many hours I spent on a beach or a cliff top watching the birds - and particularly the magical nights of the midnight sun. This is a trip for true lovers of nature. I do not hesitate to recommend Nature Lens and indeed we are hatching a plan to go with the company to photograph bears in Finland with a couple we met on the trip. Thanks Dan and thanks Nature Lens.

Had a wonderful time on Grimsey: midnight sun, loads of birds, awesome scenery and meeting great people. Guesthouse was immaculate, staff extremely helpful, and, Dan, we loved your company, admired your knowledge and the way you ran this tour: First Class!
Hope to be back.
Peter & An

Concerning Natureslens's comments, their response proves my point. No client ever should be addressed the way NaturesLens addressed me here. Their statements are erroneous but that's not the point. The point is, the communication is disrespectful, disparaging, and rude.
My original review: The owner of the company and the tour guide were verbally abusive in writing towards the members of a recent tour to Grimsey Island. The general tone of the communications was rude, disparaging, and hostile. No company should treat clients with the kind of disrespect that was directed toward us.