Florida Osprey Photography Workshop Testimonial — Cindy Kassab

“After some time, I was finally able to share an image of an osprey from the workshop with Christopher Dodds in Vero Beach, Florida. Chris is an incredible leader who carefully selects the best boat captain to ensure a great experience on the water. As we gently glided along in the small boat, he had an amazing eye for opportunity—pointing out scenes and moments that helped us capture the strongest, most meaningful images.

I’ve also had the privilege of joining him on other workshops, including Eagles Galore in Homer, Alaska, and Puffins Galore in Quebec. I often tell my friends that whenever I sign up for one of Chris’s workshops, I know I’ll come home with some of my best images. His many years of wildlife photography experience are clearly reflected in the stunning work throughout his portfolio. I’m already looking forward to participating in more of his workshops in the future.”

— Cindy Kassab | Washington, USA | Ospreys Galore Photography Workshop

Florida Osprey Photography Workshop Testimonial — Tony Pianalto

“This was my 3rd workshop with Chris and as always Chris improvised to make it happen for us.  Anyone who photographs outdoors and especially wildlife knows that weather and lighting are key to having good results.  We can’t control the weather but we can adjust to the lighting we’re given.  What Chris did on all three of my trips is adjust to both of these for every morning and afternoon shoot.  The Osprey trip was a perfect challenge - the first two days wind and storms prevented us from being on the lake to photograph the ospreys so Chris shifted our location for both the morning and afternoon shoots to minimize the weather impact of rain and wind.  Not to say we didn’t have to wait out a deluge of rain for an hour but 20 minutes after it blew by we were back out for the last 45 minutes of perfect light. For the first two days we got to shoot a wide variety of cranes, spoonbills, egrets, storks, anhingas, limpkins, ibis, hawks, swamp hens, terns and stilts.  Both days we were treated with the brilliant roseate spoonbills flying in towards us to pick up nesting material. But then the prize for me was Friday morning on the lake at sunrise for the osprey. In a mile and a half stretch we saw over 100 nests and at least 150 osprey.   Between Chris and the boat owner they held the boat at the best angle for the osprey to be lit perfectly.  After filling 2-1/2 128GB cards it was time to leave the perfect osprey shoot. In the last 20 years of my photography this was by far the most photos I’ve taken over a three day period.  If you want to get your absolute best excellent bird photography opportunities I highly recommend the Birds of Pelee and Ospreys of Florida.  I own the 300,400 and 600mm lenses but I used the Sony 400-800mm lens for both trips and the zoom capability, excellent stabilization and weight make it the perfect lens for both these workshops.  Thanks Chris!”

— Tony Pianalto | Kansas, USA | Ospreys Galore Photography Workshop

Florida Osprey Photography Workshop Testimonial — George Schlossnagle

“This is my second workshop with Chris. Chris is a great instructor and a fantastic trip leader. He combines an encyclopedic knowledge of wildlife with more than 40 years of experience photographing it, which allows him to consistently put you in the right place at the right time—with the right guidance—to capture exceptional shots.

Just as importantly, Chris genuinely cares about his participants and their success; he’s always looking for ways to make your experience more productive and rewarding. Florida, in particular, is an incredibly target-rich environment. While this workshop focuses on ospreys (and I came away with many fantastic osprey images), I also left with great exposure to dozens of other species.

5/5 — would absolutely do it again.”

- George Schlossnagle | Maryland, USA | Ospreys Galore Photography

Florida Osprey Photography Workshop Testimonial — Jennifer Bellon

“With any other trip leader, the workshop would have been a bust.  We had a record 6 inches of rain in a day and half.  But Chris pivoted quickly to help us find us other locations and subjects to shoot.  In the end, I was super pleased with my images and had a great time. Chris is the ultimate professional.  He is highly knowledgeable about both photography and bird behavior, but even more importantly, he helps to make it an inviting and fun learning environment for photographers at all levels.  A strong two thumbs up!”

— Jennifer Bellon | Massachusetts, USA | Ospreys Galore Photography Workshop