Photo Safaris By Region AFRICA - Botswana Wildlife - Madagascar - Masai Mara Wildlife Reserve, Kenya ANTARCTICA - Ultimate Antarctica ASIA - Essential China—Iconic Landmarks & Landscapes - India—Rajasthan & Puskar Fair - Japan's Winter Wildlife - Laos & Vietnam - Mongolia—The Golden Eagle Festival EUROPE - Best of the Greek Isles - Eclectic Holland - Finland's Arctic Wildlife - Turkey—Continental Crossroads - Tuscany - White Horses of France's Camargue NORTH AMERICA - Alaska Overland - Aurora Borealis—Fairbanks, Alaska - Bald Eagles of the Chilkat River, Alaska - Bosque del Apache & White Sands, New Mexico - Brown Bears of Katmai National Park in Summer - Brown Bears of Katmai National Park in Autumn - Colorado Fall Colors - Denali National Park in Autumn - Exploring Lake Powell - Florida Birds—Best of the West - Grand Canyon at Havasu Falls - Great Smoky Mountains - Horses & Icons of the Wild West - Humpback Whales of Alaska's Inside Passage - Mexico's Colonial Heartland - Monument Valley & Slot Canyons - Nova Scotia—Photo Tour for Women - Olympic National Park, Washington - Predatory Animals of North America - Springtime in Callaway Gardens, Georgia - Ultimate Wolves - Ultimate Yellowstone - Washington's Palouse Country - World's Best Raptor Shoot - Yellowstone & Grand Tetons in Autumn - Nature & Digital Photography Seminars with John Shaw PACIFICA - Midway Atoll SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICA - Galápagos - Patagonia's Mountain Landscapes - Ultimate Dolphins Wildlife Models Shoot - Wildlife of Brazil's Pantanal Photo Safaris By Date JANUARY - Ultimate Wolves - Nature & Digital Photography Seminars with John Shaw, Dallas, TX & Raleigh, NC - Ultimate Yellowstone FEBRUARY - Japan's Winter Wildlife MARCH - Florida Birds—Best of the West - Nature & Digital Photography Seminars with John Shaw, Phoenix, AZ & Boston, MA - Midway Atoll - Aurora Borealis—Fairbanks, Alaska - Monument Valley & Slot Canyons - White Horses of France's Camargue APRIL - Springtime in Callaway Gardens, Georgia - Galápagos - Finland's Arctic Wildlife - Patagonia's Mountain Landscapes - Eclectic Holland - Great Smoky Mountains - Grand Canyon at Havasu Falls - Mexico's Colonial Heartland MAY - Wildlife of Brazil's Pantanal - Turkey—Continental Crossroads - Ultimate Dolphins Wildlife Models Shoot - Best of the Greek Isles - Tuscany JUNE - Washington's Palouse Country - Predatory Animals of North America JULY - Brown Bears of Katmai National Park in Summer - Olympic National Park, Washington AUGUST - Washington's Palouse Country - Humpback Whales of Alaska's Inside Passage SEPTEMBER - Masai Mara Wildlife Reserve, Kenya - Denali National Park in Autumn - Alaska Overland - Essential China—Iconic Landmarks & Landscapes - Brown Bears of Katmai National Park in Autumn - Madagascar - Yellowstone & Grand Tetons in Autumn - Botswana Wildlife - Colorado Fall Colors - Predatory Animals of North America - Horses & Icons of the Wild West - Mongolia—The Golden Eagle Festival OCTOBER - Exploring Lake Powell - World's Best Raptor Shoot - Nova Scotia—Photo Tour for Women - India—Rajasthan & Puskar Fair NOVEMBER - Laos & Vietnam - Ultimate Antarctica - Bald Eagles of the Chilkat River, Alaska DECEMBER - Bosque del Apache & White Sands, New Mexico

		Dates March 6–12, 2005 Leader Joe Van Os Fee $2,295 from Orlando, Florida, departing from Tampa. Deposit $300 Limit 10 Terms and Conditions Herons are among the most glamorous of all birds, giving grace and line to the wetland landscape. This exceptional family of birds is nearly cosmopolitan in nature, absent only from our planet’s extreme north and south, the Sahara and Arabian deserts and a few oceanic islands. Herons are found in all fifty US states, and are particularly concentrated in the southeast. Today, Florida is home to the country’s largest heron populations—the state contains one-fifth of the world’s total heron species! Yet, in the recent past, some species, especially the egrets, were virtually extirpated from the Florida landscape by the plume trade. Herons have always enjoyed high PR among wildlife conservationists. It was the desperate plight of the egrets in the southern US that ignited the Audubon movement in the early part of the last century. Elsewhere, some heronries in Japan have been protected since the time of the shoguns who decreed that they were sacred. And no colonial nesting birds in the world are more inventoried and protected than the herons of the British Isles. Visiting a heronry is an impressive spectacle. During the breeding season, the birds come together to produce an amazing repertoire of courtship displays, nest building and chick rearing behaviors. To photograph this rich presentation of extravagant breeding plumage, along with the watchful care of the adults as they rear their chicks, is a peak experience in the life of any nature photographer. On this tour more than 90 percent of our photographic time will be spent concentrating on creating images in two spectacular and incredibly accessible heronries situated in the strangest of locations. Given a chance, most herons can live quite comfortably alongside people and these birds prove that theory, as their nest sites are located within a theme park and in the backyard of a police station! Participants should come away with exciting images of unwary great blue, tri-colored and little blue herons, plus snowy, great and cattle egrets—portraits, flight shots and at the nest! This shoot requires a long telephoto lens (500mm or the equivalent length using a 1.4X converter) for distant subjects, plus some shorter lenses for those nests that are virtually within arm’s reach. Each location provides exceptional photo access over flat terrain and is “friendly” to rolling camera backpacks. Join us in March and experience the spellbinding charismatic quality of Florida’s incredible herons. Their singular beauty makes them a perennial favorite of wildlife photographers throughout the world. Day 1 Participants arrive in Orlando and take a shuttle or taxi to our hotel. (D) Days 2–3 Arriving ahead of the general public by special arrangement, we take advantage of morning light on the remarkable heronry located within an alligator theme park. Boardwalks get us within close photographic reach of a multitude of birds, and we’ll also shoot the abundant alligators that help create a “safe” environment for nesting. (Alligators are among Florida’s other remarkable “comeback kids,” having been relentlessly pursued for their hides during those same years as the herons’ darkest days.) Late afternoon light will hit a different part of the park, and we’ll take advantage of it with our long lenses. A variety of the park’s wildlife displays will also be available for us to shoot. (BLD) Day 4 After a last morning at the theme park, we drive southwest to Venice and shoot another heronry in a much different setting. We stay in nearby accommodations. (BLD) Days 5–6 These two days are devoted to our second heronry. Surrounded by a town, this area is particularly interesting because of the herons’ suburban nesting adaptation. (BLD) Day 7 After breakfast we drive to the Tampa airport for afternoon departures home. (B)

	Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc. P.O. Box 655, Vashon Island, Washington USA 98070 Phone: (206) 463-5383   Fax: (206) 463-5484    Email: info@photosafaris.com Copyright © 2008, Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc.