Quick Details
Highlights:
Spend two and a half days immersed in Yellowstone’s wildlife-rich Lamar Valley and Northern Range, highly revered as the very best place on Earth to see wild bison, bighorn sheep rams, hunting foxes, wolves, and so much more! We will depart Gardiner early in the morning in order to catch the sunrise and reach Lamar Valley during optimal light for photographing Yellowstone’s iconic wildlife. In addition to searching for bison, moose, wolves, and other fauna, we will also take advantage of opportunities to photograph the Northern Range’s magical landscapes.
On our fourth and fifth field days, we will venture deep into the interior of Yellowstone on a private snow coach tour, where we will have the opportunity to photograph Yellowstone’s world-famous thermal features and explore the magnificent Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River during the quiet solitude of winter. Along the way, we will continue to keep a keen eye out for opportunities to view and photograph wildlife.
Each day provides new possibilities to see frosty bison, long-legged moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, elk, otters, wolves, foxes, coyotes, eagles, owls, and more. Each evening, enjoy a hearty dinner at the Wonderland Café & Lodge or a privately catered buffet where your group will have the opportunity to share photos, stories, and relive the days adventures. You’ll wrap up each the day in the comfort of your cozy room at a locally owned and operated motel.
While Yellowstone’s numerous wildlife species are truly wild and are free to roam where they please, the winter season generally affords some of the best opportunities for wildlife viewing, including increased chances of those rare close-up encounters. The deep snows of winter have pushed wildlife down out of the mountains and onto the wintering grounds of the Lamar Valley and the Northern Range. Thousands of elk and bison, along with moose, big horn sheep, white-tailed and mule deer, and pronghorn have filtered out of the higher mountains of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and have concentrated in the lower valleys and grasslands where there is less snow and less extreme temperatures. Winter can be tough on these grazing animals, and partially because of that, this is where Yellowstone’s wolves and other carnivores thrive. Come and explore the unparalleled beauty and wildlife watching opportunities of Yellowstone National Park with an experienced local naturalist guide and photographer during the most beautiful and dramatic time of the year: winter.
This all-inclusive tour package is the ultimate way to experience the wild magic of Yellowstone National Park. Breakfasts and lunches are provided by a locally owned eatery and enjoyed picnic-style out in the park, overlooking one of our favorite vistas in Yellowstone. After a full day photographing the wonders of Yellowstone’s Northern Range, you will be treated to a hearty dinner at the delightful Wonderland Cafe, a boutique gallery style local eatery and a favorite of local artists, researchers, and residents. If you look closely, you may even notice some of your guide’s photographs adorning Wonderland’s walls!
Tour includes:
Photography Gear:
While we are happy to accept all levels of photographers, there’s a few things you should know about gear, as you make your plans.
Wildlife in Yellowstone seems to either be right next to the road, or a mile away from it. While you don’t need professional photography equipment in Yellowstone to get an award-winning image, at least one telephoto lens reaching 400mm is encouraged. The best lens is the one you have ready, such as a 60-600 so you can cover a wide focal distance.
Recommended Gear:
Batteries/Charger – Enough battery power to shoot the entire day (recommend 3 batteries per camera body).
Media – Enough memory to shoot the entire day. (recommend 512mb split between (2) cards per camera body).
Cleaning – Lens cloths, air blower, lens solution.
Filters – Clear UV, Polarizer
Tools: Allen wrenches or Leatherman type tool
Required Equipment:
At least one quality camera body (DSLR or mirrorless recommended) with lenses of their
choice.
At a minimum, we recommend one telephoto lens (maximum focal length of 400, 600, or 800mm would be ideal) for safely
photographing wildlife, as well as one wider lens (examples: 16-35mm, 14-24mm, 24-70mm, etc.) for photographing
landscapes.
Winter in Yellowstone is breathtakingly beautiful but also COLD! Please bring multiple warm layers, hat, and gloves that will
allow you to comfortably spend time outside the vehicle in temperatures as low as -30 degrees Fahrenheit. See “Clothing & Gear” below for more details
Recommended Lenses:
Canon 800mm f/5.6 I IS
Sigma 60-600mm f/4.5-6.3
Canon 100-400 f/4.5-5.6
Canon 24-105 f/4
Renting lenses is also an option at the following sites:
www.lenserental.com
www.borrowlenses.com
Yellowstone possesses some of the most extreme changes in temperature and weather conditions anywhere. Temperatures on a winter tour could range from -40°F to +40°F (-40°C to +10°C). We therefore recommend plenty of warm clothes that can be layered and easily removed; therefore, allowing you to adjust and stay comfortable throughout your tour.
For winter tours, here is what our guides wear:
A day pack is very handy for personal items: hand and toe warmers, water bottle, sunglasses, camera, and of course for all the extra layers you will want.
Please let us know if you have additional questions about gear.
Yellowstone Wild photography instructor guides are leaders in the field of ethical wildlife photography. Deep understanding of wildlife biology and keen observational skills drive our guides’ uncanny ability to set our photography clients up for powerful images, while truly respecting the wildlife and without causing any undue stress, discomfort or harm. The ability to read animal behavior and predict their next movements, along with an intimate understanding of the topography, often allows us to plan ahead and set up for dream shots of Yellowstone’s iconic wildlife on the stunning winter landscape.
We encourage our photographers to focus on capturing images of wildlife interacting naturally with their habitat, with each other and their prey species, unaffected by our presence. Our photo guides strive to help clients capture images that tell powerful stories of animal behavior and ecology, and create a sense of place out in the pristine winter setting of Yellowstone National Park!
Although we acknowledge the appeal of getting up-close, portrait-style images of wildlife, we are careful to adhere to our ethic (and Park Service Regulations) that if our presence is causing an animal to change its natural behavior in any way, we are causing undue stress. Life in the wild is never easy, and Yellowstone’s severe winter conditions make every day a struggle for survival for all wildlife. In fact, winter kills more wildlife in Yellowstone than any other factor. By reading animal behavior and being sensitive to their needs, we can assure that we are not making their day to day lives any harder.
The result of honoring this ethic, coupled with proper equipment (see below), is authentic images of wildlife living their lives in their native habitat and behaving as if we are not there. This sense of place helps tell the story of wildlife existence within the harsh winter conditions found in Yellowstone – often highlighting the dramas of the struggle to survive. These stories of the realities of life versus death in the wild and offer compelling additions to any photographer’s portfolio!
It is important to remember that the wild animals we seek to observe and photograph are exactly that, WILD free-ranging animals that can roam across all of Yellowstone’s vast and rugged 2.2 million acres. The probability of locating and observing them is greatly elevated due to your guide’s intimate personal familiarity with the landscape and the animals themselves. We do not guarantee any wildlife sightings on our tours; however, we will guarantee that your guide will use their knowledge, skills, and network of other guides, wildlife watchers and photographers to do everything we can to find and photograph the animals you’d like to see. We are in the park nearly every day searching for and watching wildlife, and that consistent experience pays off in finding the animals you’ve traveled to see.
How likely are you to photograph wild wolves? Over the course of the workshop there is a strong likelihood that we will see wolves (sometimes multiple packs in a single day!). However, as these wolves are truly wild (they do not like to be close to people) and their movements can be unpredictable and lengthy, up close portrait-style photo opportunities are rare and should not be expected. We encourage our photographers to focus on capturing images of wolves out on the vast Yellowstone landscapes, interacting naturally with their habitat and with each other and their prey species, unaffected by our presence. Our photo guides strive to help you use your images to tell powerful stories of wolf behavior and ecology, and give a sense of place out in the pristine winter setting of Yellowstone National Park!
We strictly adhere to ALL NPS Rules & Regulations as well as our own Yellowstone Wild Code of Ethics (see below).
As a licensed Commercial Use Permit holder with Yellowstone National Park, we must follow all park rules and regulations. Additionally, as life-long proponents of wildlife and wild places, we will also follow our own ethical wildlife viewing and photography practices.
We will take this opportunity to teach you about how we can have the very best viewing and photography opportunities possible without having negative impacts on wildlife by respecting the animals’ space and movements as they go about their lives.
While on tour with Yellowstone Wild LLC, we will observe the following park rules (subject to law enforcement):
Keep at least 25 yards from all wildlife, except:
Keep at least 100 yards from wolves and bears
Avoid remaining near or approaching wildlife, including birds, at any distance that disturbs or displaces the animal.
It is our ethical responsibility as visitors to the park to make sure that our actions do not inflict undue stress or hardship upon the animals that we are observing. Wild animals in a natural setting do not have easy lives, and the last thing we want to do is make their lives any more difficult. Your guide is an expert at reading animal behavior, and the moment that our presence is bothering an animal, we MUST back off until we are no longer disturbing its natural behavior. Failure to promptly respond to your guide’s instructions to back away from wildlife may result in the termination of your tour, subject to the discretion of your guide.
In case you need to cancel your trip with us, we will fully refund your deposit up to 45 days prior to the starting day of your package.
Balance of tour price is due 30 days prior to the tour start date.
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).
In order to secure your reservation, a deposit in the amount of 30% is required at time of booking.
In case you need to cancel your trip with us, we will fully refund your deposit up to 45 days prior to the starting day of your package.
Balance of tour price is due 30 days prior to the tour start date.
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).
In case you need to cancel your trip with us, we will fully refund your deposit up to 45 days prior to the starting day of your package.
Balance of tour price is due 30 days prior to the tour start date.
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).
In order to secure your reservation, a deposit in the amount of 30% is required at time of booking.
In case you need to cancel your trip with us, we will fully refund your deposit up to 45 days prior to the starting day of your package.
Balance of tour price is due 30 days prior to the tour start date.
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).
Any cancellation made fewer than 30 days before the starting day of your trip will not be refunded.
We regret that as a small business, we are rarely able to make exceptions to our cancellation policy.
We reserve the right to cancel the trip if minimum enrollment of 4 guests is not met by 30 days prior to the trip departure date, or due to extreme weather conditions or other factors that are outside of our control. Full refund of your Yellowstone Wild package price is given if this occurs. Yellowstone Wild is not liable for reimbursement of travel-related expenses such as airfare.
We strongly recommend you purchase third-party travel insurance that will protect you in case of unforeseen cancellations or changes to your travel plans (for suggested travel insurance companies, see [Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/)).