Port Lincoln & Coffin Bay Photography Workshop

Day 1: (indicative itinerary dependent on seasonal conditions)

Guests will arrive into Port Lincoln and immediately get up close and personal with some of the amazing wildlife the area has to offer with a visit to Mikkira Station in the afternoon. This is one of the few habitats where Koalas can be easily found in the wild. The station has a beautifully restored original homestead surrounded by beautiful old Manna gums.

Wild but placid kangaroos casually hop around along with Emus and abundant birdlife. The area is home to a range of bush birds including Port Lincoln Parrots, Golden Whistlers and an occasional Scarlet Robin, Blue-Breasted Wrens, Western Yellow Robins, White-Browed Babblers, honeyeaters, Black-faced Cuckoo Shrikes and Emus. Guests will then return to Port Lincoln. Fran is an expert in identifying bird calls and tracking bird species, ensuring that there are abundant opportunities to photograph wildlife towards twilight conditions.

Overnight Accommodation: Port Lincoln Hotel (4 star) or South Point Private Beach House. 

Day 2: (indicative itinerary dependent on seasonal conditions)

Sunrise on the Port Lincoln foreshore is always a treat as the City wakes to the new day, allowing photographs of ships at the wharf, seascapes and paddle-boarders.

During the day, the group will take a drive to the pristine beaches of the Lincoln National Park where there is ample opportunity for turquoise water seascapes and wildlife encounters. Lincoln National Park is known for its mallee eucalypts groves atop of large granite outcrops that dominate the area, whilst towards the dunes, coastal heath and a variety of other low coastal shrubs provide habitat for Rosenberg's and Sand Goannas, Short-beaked Echidnas, Emus and Western Grey Kangaroos along with New Holland Honeyeaters, Striated Pardalotes, Spiney-cheeked Honeyeaters, Dusky Woodswallows, Australian Pipits, Western Yellow Robins and White-browed Scrubwrens.

In the late afternoon, the group will be in the best light on the Western side of the Lincoln National Park with rugged cliffs, swirling seascapes and sensational sand dunes that seem to go on forever. In the winter months, this will also be an opportunity to photograph Southern Right Whales that visit the area from July to September.

Depending on prevailing conditions, there may be the option for some night sky photography. The skies here are dark and clear making it a perfect venue when the Milky Way is at its peak or the Southern Aurora is active.

Overnight Accommodation: Port Lincoln Hotel (4 star) or South Point Private Beach House. 

Day 3: (indicative itinerary dependent on seasonal conditions)

The group will start the morning in the amazing Gunyah Sand Dunes as the early morning light reveals the patterns and textures of the dunes. The long white sandy expanses of Almonta Beach will provide opportunities to capture sandstone cliffs meeting the pure white sand and turquoise water.

It is common to see schools of Dolphins and Australian Sea-lions in the surf. Again, depending on the season, there is the opportunity to photograph Agricultural activity in the nearby farmlands – the Canola season is simply spectacular.

In the warmer months, there are also numerous goannas in the area. If photographers are keen to capture underwater species, there is the option to extend the guided tour to swim with and photograph Australian Sea Lions in their natural environment or take a Shark Cage Dive and score your own Great White Shark Photograph.

Alternatively, if photographers desire more outback scenes, a visit to photograph salt lakes at sunset in true outback country can also be arranged.

Your Teacher: Fran Solly

For the past five years, Fran has also been teaching photography and post processing, with her courses being highly sought after. Fran will share her favourite photographic destinations, her experience and knowledge in post-processing & editing and ensure that guests are in the right place at the right time for that perfect photo. Fran has also been an avid birdwatcher for more than 30 years.

She has recently completed training to contribute to the local scientific database through bird surveys, which are conducted across the Peninsula, following her role as photographer to document the Birds of Southern Eyre Peninsula. A selection of Fran’s photographs can be found in the recently updated Birds of Southern Eyre Peninsula Field Guide or visible here. 

For Beginners & Intermediates

Beginners will learn to use their camera in manual mode.  At the end of the workshop you will confidently be using aperture and shutter speed to achieve the look you want in your images. You will also understand the important camera features a little better. In post processing you will be introduced to Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and be able to do basic tone and colour corrections.

- Intermediate - You will come to the workshop with a basic understanding of aperture and shutter speed.  During the workshop, you will build on your ability to shoot in manual mode and learn more about the functions and settings of your camera.  You may already be using Lightroom for basic processing and we will build on this knowledge to introduce some of the more creative elements of the program. 

If you are not sure what level you are at just let us know and we will call you for a chat.

During the workshop you will learn:

To confidently shooting manual mode, taking control of your camera to get the look and feel you want to each image.

• Focus
• Shooting in RAW
• Which lens to choose
• Composition for story telling
• Getting the exposure right in camera
• What white balance is and how it affects your images.
• When to use a tripod
• Using your camera after dark (depending on the phases of the milky way and the moon we will try our hand at Astro Photography and/or Light Painting.)
• Photographing Wildlife and Birds
• Shooting and Processing Panoramas. 

In Post Processing we will work through:

• downloading your images, rating and keywording to ensure they are easy to find in future.
• basic editing including straightening horizons, balancing tone and colour.
• exporting images for print and social media

Workshops are tailored so that no one is left behind and everyone will get the support they need to develop their photography and get some awesome landscape and wildlife images.

Tour details

Group Size: Minimum of 2 guests, maximum of 6 guests
Pick-up and Drop Off Point: Port Lincoln Airport or Port Lincoln accommodations

Pick-up and Drop-off Time: Upon arrival or 9:00am - Upon departure or 5:00pm.
Inclusions - touring with professional, local and experienced guides, airport transfer and all transport in luxury 4WD Land-Cruiser, Oyster Tour & Tasting, all National Park & other entry fees, Daily Continental breakfast, Daily lunches, beverages, local wines & beer.
Private Touring: Available at additional cost - please enquire with your group size & interests.
Languages: Translation services for private tours available in Mandarin.

Recent Testimonials

"I was privileged to be on a 3 day Bird Safari with Fran Solly as our guide. 76 species sighted, stunning scenery and time to take photos. Highly recommend this tour to people who like bird watching as well as photographers." - Annette, Australia

"Fantastic trip, Fran Solly was our guide and she did an amazing job. Finding plenty of birds for us. Morning tea and lunch provided was excellent." - Pam, Australia

"Lunch and Mandy took our senses on an incredible journey. From amazing coastline to spine-tingling interaction with the wildlife topped off with cuisine that would be the envy of any top restaurant." - Ian & Cheryl, Texas

How you'll be making a positive impact

Citizen Science with Australian Coastal Safaris

Australian Coastal Safaris contributes observations of flora & fauna via iNaturalist, the world’s leading global social biodiversity network. This platform allows our team to create research-quality citizen science data that enables a more detailed picture of our national biodiversity, and assists bodies such as the CSIRO, ecologists and other decision makers to deliver better outcomes for the environment and our species.

Our guides record observations with iNaturalist Australia by using the iNaturalist app on mobile phones or desktop computers. An observation records an encounter with an individual organism at a particular time and location on the Eyre Peninsula. We require photos to be attached to observations for them to become research grade and added to the Atlas of Living Australia.

This is where you can greatly assist us in capturing images out in the field! Although we make broader observations that we think are valuable to the local scientific community, we have identified the following species to track when we are exploring the Eyre Peninsula by vehicle, e-bike or on foot.

Key species we're looking out for include:

• Koala (outside of Mikkira Station)
• Short-beaked Echidna
• Rosenberg’s Goanna
• Malleefowl
• Yellow-tailed Black-Cockatoo
• White-bellied Sea-Eagle
• Osprey
• Bush Stone-curlew
• Hooded Plover

Tracking the Eastern Osprey of the Eyre Peninsula

Australian Coastal Safaris guide and award-winning photographer, Fran Solly, has been watching birds across the Eyre Peninsula for over 35 years. In recognition of her contribution to the birding community through citizen science observations and development of the regional field guide for birds, Fran had an Osprey chick named after her (Solly) in 2020. 

In November of that year, Solly was the first Eastern Osprey to be fitted with a solar powered tracker as part of the Osprey Recovery Project in South Australia, being the first time this had been undertaken in Australia.

Fran has worked alongside lead researcher, Ian Falkenberg, in developing the tracking capability, which provides data several times a day on the bird’s location before falling off cleanly at about four years of age, when the bird is ready to find a nest and a mate. The team expected the bird to range about 20-40 kilometres after leaving its nest, but were stunned when the Solly flew 400 kilometres within the first week. This project is a critical component in providing important information on how Osprey are using coastal habitats in the region, especially with the estimated population decline of up to 26 per cent over the last ten years.

Unfortunately, Solly the Osprey was killed in November 2021, when she was electrocuted by a power pole in Streaky Bay, prompting a call to work with electricity companies to reduce the risks to these endangered raptors.