tlhender

Thanks for the great input and photos. I really want to see those Orcas!

tlhender

Spoke with them today and plans are coming together. Thank you very much.

Redmark

Hi tlhender,
come on down under to Bremmer Bay in W.A. We have the only designated tours for Orca Whales in Australia (with a 98% success rate). We have approximately 150 of them here. I was lucky enough to see about 30 of them.
I'll put an extra shrimp on the Barbecue for ya.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

If you don't have "sea legs", take some Dramamine. And don't eat a big lunch right before the cruise.

My son-in-law deed heed that advice and he missed the whales.... spent most of the cruise in the head, losing the calamari he'd had for lunch.

The whales were curious... came right up to and under the boat.... spy-hopped next to us. "Checking us out". But the seas were verrry rough, which was particularly noticeable when we had to idle and couldn't steer into the waves. Some other boats in the area would disappear and then reappear with the swells. Some of the time I was shooting with my feet on the rail, pushing my back against the boat's cabin. I missed most shots (it was many years ago, shooting film and manual focus).

The best way to see and photograph Orca is from a really low slung boat like a Zodiac. And those boats are best in calm seas, such as the coves around the islands in the NW. I've never had that opportunity.

tlhender

What an EXTENSIVE GREAT GROUP of People! I can’t believe the number of respondents to my request for help in getting to see and photograph the Orcas. And now you are contacting me from Down Under. WOW! I would love to see your part of the world. I’ve seen so many fabulous pictures, however my desire to come there is not quite as powerful as my dislike of long flights. I bet you make some tasty shrimp. I appreciate your advice about the Zodiacs. Your pictures are Awesome. What was your choice of lens? I’ve really got to live out this desire/dream to see those amazing Orcas. We don’t have exciting wild life here but we have exciting wheel-to-wheel Indy car racing at >220 miles/hr. ?what that is in Kilometers/hr. I got to ride in one at 185. It didn’t make me sick like your so-in-law. That had to be horrible in so many ways and didn’t even get to see those beautiful monsters of the sea. Thank you for responding and for your suggestions and pictures. Enjoy that warm weather and hopefully no more fires. Terry in Indy

Redmark

Hi tlhender,
just for infor, I used my 70mm-300mm Canon L lens, watch your ISO and jack up your shutter speed.Try to participate where they might come up. I was out on this trip last week, it is a mission to get there as you have to go out 1-2 hours out from the bay.( fairly rough seas)
The West coast of Canada would be a great choice as there is Grizzlies and Black bears viewing opportunities so research that area, it would be great trip if you could get to see them all in a few days.
Just one fire of note in the West so we didn't get hammered as the Eastern States. We are open.
Anyway just one more thing, just go and best of luck.

tlhender

Glad you avoided most of those horrible fires. You’ve gotten me even more excited about this adventure. Thanks for all of your input plus enthusiasm. Will let you know how it all turns out. Terry

creekcove

My wife and I vacationed on Vancouver Island in July of 2017. Photography was our primary activity. The last part of our vacation was spent on the upper east coast of the island at the Artist Point Bed and Breakfast. It is run by Rolf Hickler a professional photographer. We took several of his photography tours, but the highlight tour
was aboard his boat photographing bears, eagles, dolphins, humpback whales, sea lions, waterfalls and of course Orcas. Rolf put us in the perfect photographic positions to get great shots. We were there around the first week of July and it just so happened that several pods of orcas were returning to the area to spend the summer there as part of their seasonal migration. We booked a separate orca trip for the next day. We spent 4 to 5 hours with orcas all around us, with some passing under our stationary boat. We were mostly surrounded by land in calm waters during this time. With Rolf’s boat being relatively smaller, the photography was from water level rather than being higher up on the crowded whale watching tour boats. Rolf also has years of experience with these pods and thus can identify each of the individuals by their given alpha and numeric designations. It was truly a magical experience. As a disclaimer, I have no affiliation with Artists Point, I am just
Happy to pass along an incredible place to enjoy nature and photography at the same time. Rolf’s other tours are Very good as well. My wife and I were the only ones with him on his cave tour and his Cape Scott tour. Can’t get a more private photography tour than that. Highly recommended. Here is a link to the website,

https://www.theartistspoint.com/photo-tours-vancouver-island

tlhender

Have seen his website and sent him 2 emails inquiring about his tours. I have received no answer after 1 week so I thought he might not be legitimate or may have given up his business. I was really excited at first and from your experiences, rightfully so. By any chance, do you have a phone contact for him? I am glad that you had such Awesome Experiences. I hope I can have half that much luck and fun. Thank you very much. Terry in Indy

creekcove

tlhender,
He is definitely legitimate. He is a Canadian citizen and permanent resident, but migrated from Germany 20 or more years ago. If I remember correctly, he travels to Germany in the off season to visit family. This could be why you haven’t gotten a response as of yet. Here is the contact info I had from 2017:

Rolf Hicker
The Artists Point Bed, Breakfast and Photo Tours

www.TheArtistsPoint.com
www.VancouverIslandTours.info

1003 Ocean Place
Port McNeill, BC
V0N 2R0, Canada
Rolf@hicklerphoto.com

I just sent him an email to give him a heads up about me posting this recommendation. I was last in contact with him in the fall of 2017. We exchanged some photos. He takes pictures of you while you are photographing without you knowing it and then sends them after the tour is over. A nice surprise, as I rarely have pics of myself. The email that I used was : theartistspoint@gmail.com
Hope that helps

creekcove

Terry in Indy,
The above email does work as I just got a response from Rolf about this Forum. I forwarded a copy of your last posting. Hopefully you two can connect.

tlhender

Thank you so much for your efforts. Hopefully will get in touch with Rolf and get the ball rolling. I appreciate your help. Terry in Indy

taxman Loc: Cleveland, Ohio

If you go to San Juan Island, off the coast of Washington (assuming you still go), there's a lighthouse (Lime Kiln Lighthouse) that has orcas that swim past pretty much every day.

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