Animal Encounter Dunedin

Our Wildlife Masterclass Workshop is based around the Otago Peninsula, otherwise known as the ‘wildlife capital” of New Zealand. You will spend four days with expert photographers Edin Whitehead and Tony Whitehead as your tutors, to capture the area’s exceptional wildlife. This includes New Zealand sea lions and fur seals, as well as a host of rare bird species, such as the yellow-eyed penguin, northern royal albatross and petrel.
Our wildlife masterclass includes a boat charter around the peninsula and a visit to the Orokonui Wildlife Sanctuary, with another highlight being a stay and dinner at the famous Larnach Castle.
Capture to Print Masterclass Workshop: Our Wildlife Masterclass offers a mixture of both tuition and post-processing sessions to help you create some stunning photographs of our unique wildlife and coastal landscapes. The workshop concludes with printing two of your best images as 16x22" fine art prints. LEARN
Bird photography
Wildlife photography
Capture to print EXPERIENCE
Penguins, sea lions & albatross
Boat trip around Otago Peninsula
Stay at Larnach Castle

ITINERARY DAY 1
Meeting at Dunedin airport to be picked up from the early-morning flights, we drive out to our accommodation for the next three nights, Larnach Castle. We will run through our introductory programme for the finer points of capturing amazing wildlife images and advanced settings for wildlife photography. The afternoon will see us heading out for our first wildlife shoot, to photograph the magnificent New Zealand sea lion, which breeds along the rugged coastline of the Peninsula area. DAY 2
Today we head further afield to photograph the forest birds at Orokonui, which is also home to New Zealand’s tuatara, a relic from the dinosaur age. Spending the whole morning in the reserve will offer us the chance to photograph a number of rare birds including South Island Kākā and the Takahē. This afternoon we head out to photograph Yellow-eyed penguins on a private beach as they return from a day out at sea, with luck we also likely find a few more sea lions to photograph on the same beach. DAY 3
We start today with a presentation showcasing Tony & Edin's post-production and processing techniques. This will be followed by an opportunity to review and edit your wildlife images, with some one-on-one guidance on editing photographs for printing. This afternoon we will take a boat charter to photograph many species of birds from the sea, we will also visit the world’s only mainland breeding colony of Northern Royal Albatross. We end the day by returning to Larnach Castle for dinner (included) which will be the culinary highlight of the tour, eating a three-course meal in the castle’s grand dining room. DAY 4
Today we will help you finish processing your best two images from the workshop and produce a finished 16x22" fine art prints of these to take home. We will have some time today to explore inside Larnach Castle if we have not already had the chance and maybe one final wildlife shoot, before returning to Dunedin airport to connect with late afternoon flights.
INCLUDES

Tuition by Edin Whitehead and Tony Whitehead
Private chartered boat around the Otago Peninsula
Private penguin trip on the Otago Peninsula
Entry to Orokonui Wildlife Sanctuary
3 nights single room accommodation at Larnach Castle (Own double stables room, with the option to upgrade to a lodge room)
3 breakfasts at Larnach Castle
A three-course dinner at Larnach Castle
Copy of Pocket Guide to Photography
Free access to our Online Essential Landscape Photography Course
Two 16x22" Fine-Art Prints from the Epson SureColor P906
Use of Nikon 200-500mm lenses
Conference room for processing & printing
Transport during the workshop
Dunedin pickup/dropoff
DOC concession fees
DOC marine mammals permit