One of the Puffins of Skomer stands at The Wick with a beak full of sand eels photographed during the June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

June’s Puffin Photography Holiday

Article written by illustrated with images contributed by .

June took me back to the stunning Skomer Island in . I was co leading the first of two NaturesLens Holidays with .

One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Stands Amongst The Sea Campion Of Skomer Island With A Beak Full Of Sand Eels Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday   One Of The Pufflings Of Skomer Stands Amongst The Sea Campion Of Skomer Island Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

Skomer may be just 15 minutes away from the mainland of but it feels like a million miles away! The short boat trip takes you to a different world. I've travelled quite a lot over the years, & the relationship that you can get with the wildlife here is unlike anywhere in the world.

One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Stands At The Wick With A Beak Full Of Sand Eels Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

It is always an exciting time of the year when the puffins arrive back on the island. There is something about these little birds that many find fascinating. It is mostly due to their curious personality & how relaxed they seem around visitors to the island, crossing the paths to reach their burrows, while navigating their way through peoples feet & legs! This is probably the main reason they are a photographers dream. The birds are literally within touching distance allowing photographers from professionals to beginners to come away with some lovely photos.

One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Stands On The Sign At The Wick Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

This was my third year visiting Skomer for & every year it becomes a challenge to come away with a unique set of photos. This trip however had the best forecast for the duration allowing for some great morning & evening light allowing for what would undoubtedly be some creative puffin photography.

A Pair Of Puffins Of Skomer Pass Nesting Material Between One And Other Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Stands Amongst The Sea Campion Of Skomer Island Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Stands Amongst The Sea Campion Of Skomer Island Looking At The Gulls Overhead Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

The first evening I spent a lot of time with a few of the guests going through the best settings & techniques for birds in flight photography & also the best settings for backlit photos.

A Puffin Of Skomer Island Comes In For A Backlit Landing At The Wick Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Comes In For A Backlit Landing At The Wick Photographed During The June 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

I decided to go for a slightly different shot & photograph the puffins coming into land with a very slow shutter speed to purposely blur the fast wing movement as they flew in. It was a very tricky shot but it paid off in the end.

The rest of the trip followed the same format an early start to photograph the sunrise with a mid-morning break or lunch break before the group all headed out again in the afternoon for the better weather & light.

One Of The Puffins Of Skomer Nestles Amongst The Sea Campion Photographed During The July 2017 Skomer Island Puffin Photography Holiday

Everyone had an amazing time, plenty of puffins, good company, great homemade food & lots of wine! Next year can't come soon enough.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO STAY ON SKOMER ISLAND FOR PUFFIN PHOTOGRAPHY?

For 2018, NaturesLens have already announced a return to undertake puffin photography on Skomer Island – the trip has been scheduled to start on July 7 & ending on July 10, 2018.

The Skomer Puffins Photography Holiday costs £499 each participant, this price excludes travel to Martins Haven itself – all food, accommodation & guidance/tuition during the 3 night stay on the island is included.

To hold a place on the trip, we only require a 20{c9c0a4696b7ac54bf73bcd0427c793d03ee76447581a2309f1c89b3325d12acb} deposit from you, with the balance due 12 weeks prior to the trip taking place.

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