Arenal Volcano Eco Adventure Photo Workshop

September 12-17, 2010

Arenal Volcano Eco Adventure Photo workshop

presented by Digital Photography Adventures

hosted by the 

Leaves and Lizards Volcano Cabin Retreat

in Monterrey, Costa Rica

If you’re looking for more than just photography classes, this is the trip for you. We have been working with the Leaves and Lizards Volcano Cabin Retreat to develop this unique, all-inclusive photo workshop near the active Arenal volcano. All of the excursions on this trip are part of Leaves and Lizard’s “Rural Tourism” project. We believe, as they do,  that “tourism should enhance a community, not overshadow it...” 

Your tuition includes:

• six nights lodging at the Leaves and Lizards Volcano Cabin Retreat
• All meals (Sunday through Friday)
• All Excursions, transportation and park entry fees
• Daily Photography lectures, digital processing instruction and organized photo shoots
• Experienced local guide

Price does not include airfare or transportation to Monterrey (near La Fortuna). It is a beautiful, 3.5 hour drive to La Fortuna from San Jose, and about 4 hours from Liberia. It is quick and easy to get to the Arenal/ La Fortuna airport from San Jose or Liberia via regional airlines such as Nature Air. We can arrange transportation to Leaves and Lizards from the airport in La Fortuna.

Students will check in Sunday, September 12 and check out Saturday, September 18. There will be a presentation Sunday night, so please plan to arrive Sunday afternoon.

Ask about group discounts for your students or camera club.

About Arenal Eco Adventure Photo Workshop

Learn about Costa Rica’s rural tourism while you improve your digital photography skills. The Leaves and Lizards Volcano Cabin Retreat will serve as your base camp in the shadow of the active Arenal volcano. From the Leaves and Lizards website...

A visit to Volcan Arenal is the quintessential Costa Rica volcano experience. The black conical shape rises imposingly from pristine primary rainforest. Imagine yourself rocking gently in a hammock on the porch of your private cabin, sipping a tropical drink while listening to Howler monkeys complain about the afternoon rain. As the sun sets, the smoking boulders that roll down the steep slopes of Arenal become firey red, creating a magnificent fireworks display, compliments of Mother Nature. Our vision at Leaves and Lizards is to create a perfect blend of Adventure, Discovery and Tranquility for each guest.

It would be easy to spend a week simply photographing the beautiful birds, or the unbelievable landscape of the Leaves and Lizards property, but we won’t stop there. We have hired an experienced local guide to assist our instructors all week, and make sure our students have a truly Costa Rican experience in this beautiful part of the country.

Arenal National Park- You’ll learn about the local flora and fauna as you hike through primary rainforest to a lava flow at the base of the Arenal volcano. Watch the sunset over the beautiful Lake Arenal and watch for lava rocks rumbling down the side of the active Arenal Volcano.

Tico Farm tour- Starting from Leaves and Lizards, our guide will lead you over a picturesque mountain ridge with incredible views of the Arenal Volcano and surrounding mountain range to a typical Costa Rican dairy farm. Our host family welcomes your group into their home to spend the day. See and learn about many types of farm animals and how to produce food organically. Throw a line into the tilapia pond and catch your lunch. Photography objectives include telling a story with pictures, and environmental portraits.

Proyecto Asis Wild Animal Rescue Center- www.institutoasis.com You’ll visit the Proyecto Asis Wild Animal Rescue Center to learn about the animals of this beautiful country and even help with their rescue efforts. Our private tour will include unique opportunities to see and photograph animals such as monkeys and toucans up close and personal! Photography objectives include wildlife photography and HDR.

Arenal Hanging Bridges- You will visit the Arenal Hanging Bridges for an intimate view of the rainforest. You’ll see up to 60 species of birds among the 8 standing bridges and six hanging bridges in this beautiful forest. Our guide will help you find the birds and tell you all about them. Bring your long lens for this tour! Photography objectives include HDR landscapes and wildlife photography.

Eco Termales- No visit to this region would be complete without a visit to one of the many geo-thermal hot springs. From the website...

Eco Termales Hot Springs is a sanctuary. This secluded property has been the life’s work of the Hidalgo family. The smallest of the Arenal area hot springs, Eco Termales is geared toward privacy and relaxation and does not accept more than 100 visitors at a time... The 5 pools vary in temperature, the coolest one is 91F degrees and the hottest one is 105 F degrees and there is a cold pool as well... The restaurant is now is 18 years old and used to be a house for the Hidalgo family. Today the restaurant still maintains its colonial architecture and the family prepares meals on the first floor and sleeps on the second floor.

There will be an organized model shoot at Eco Termales. Photography objectives include lighting and working with models.

There will also be optional guided hikes to the forests and waterfalls around Leaves and Lizards. The instructors will give daily lectures about topics such as exposure control for digital capture, off-camera lighting and composition. We’ll discuss shooting and processing high dynamic range images, or HDR. Students will learn an efficient digital workflow and image editing using Adobe Lightroom© and Adobe©  Photoshop©.

All photos on this page ©Rob Knight. Photos made with Nikon cameras on Hoodman RAW cards.