MORE DALMATIAN PELICANS ON LAKE KERKINI!

In late January 2025, I headed to Lake Kerkini in Northern Greece, to photograph Dalmatian Pelicans in their breeding colours. There are approx 800 pelicans on the lake during January and February and they make a superb photographic subject - they are literally living dinosaurs!

The trip proved to be one of the most productive and intense photographic experiences of my entire career. I personally shot over 20,000 images, and the group total was well over 130,000!

It would be rude not to return, and give another small group of photographers the chance to share this amazing experience, so I'm heading back in February 2027.

Flying into the Greek city of Thessaloniki, we are transfered to our hotel in the village of Kerkini, close to the lake, for 4 nights. We have three full days of photography, starting before sunrise each day when we head out onto the lake with our local guide on his boat. After a few hours of photography (I shot 6000 images on the first morning session!), we head back to the hotel for a late breakfast (around 10am), then have some down time to edit images and relax. In the afternoon we head back onto the lake and also spend some time shooting from the shore, until the sun has set.

It's a traditional among local fishermen to feed the pelicans fish they catch that have no commercial value, rather than them go to waste, so the pelicans have become habitualised and will happily follow boats on the lake. The photo opportunities are amazing. Imagine pelicans gliding gracefully alongside you against the rising sun, or coming in to land on water that's as smooth as glass, creating beautiful reflections. Although a telezoom lens (I have a 100-500mm) is useful, often a 24-105mm standard zoom is more than enough - and when a pelican or 2 decides to hitch a ride on the canopy of the boat, you can literally reach out and touch them!

You don't need to be an experienced wildlife photographer to get the most from this trip, and having repeated sessions with the pelicans on the lake means you have ample time to perfect your images and experiement with creative techniques.

Check out my portfolio to get an idea of the photo opportunities this trip offers - all were taken over 4 days in January 2025!

Advice on equipment, clothing and recommeded flights will be provided once sufficient bookings have been taken.

• At A Glance...

• Deposit / Price

  £200.00 / £1,950.00

• Date

  12th - 16th February, 2027

• Included

  4 nights en-suite accommodation in single occupancy rooms, all meals, services of a local guide and boat for lake photo shoots, airport transfers for recommended flights.

• Excluded

  Flights to/from Thessaloniki, drinks, items of a personal nature

• Fitness Level

  Easy

• Location

  Northern Greece

• Max Group Size

  6