Private Photo Tours

This is the good news. Private tours only accommodate a maximum of 3 participants. You can book the tour for just yourself, or invite up to two other family members or friends. Occasionally Bob will invite his wife Candy to assist in wildlife spotting (she’s amazing!), or an interpreter to help understand a language not in his repertoire. Small numbers allow everyone to enjoy the perfect vantage while having plenty of room for camera gear.

The biggest advantage of Private Photo Tours is that you receive ALL the attention and opportunities for growth in your photographic skills. You get the best views and don’t have to wait in queue to ask questions. The focus is on you and your success in achieving personal goals. It’s your day.

Private tours are more pricey because all the costs are absorbed by fewer participants. Licensing, permits, insurance, accreditation, park passes, fuel, food and equipment fees all add up. In addition, you are contributing to Bob’s retirement savings fund which is a noble cause in and of itself.

We purposely purchased a 2024 Toyota Tundra Crew Max 4×4 for our tours because we know photographers require a lot of space. That’s an observation pertaining to camera gear and not personal girth. In addition, our vehicle supports a mobile studio with solar generator so we have the resources needed to process images in the field and receive immediate feedback on progress and accomplishments. Unfortunately only the front of the cab has heated seats, so we’ll need to draw straws for that privilege.

It’s sad that this is even a question, but I’ve heard of tours that place restrictions on what participants can do with their images. Yes, you own copyright on all the images you capture. Keep in mind tho that there are occasional limits to what you can and cannot do with photos captured within National Parks. As an example, you will probably require a property release if publishing a commercial calendar and want to feature your photo of the Banff Springs Hotel. Funny thing is, you’ll never get that photo on one of our tours because we purposely stay away from large gatherings of people.

No worries there. Branded Visuals has plenty of gear to pass around. This might be an opportunity for you to use a 600 f4 for the first time. Don’t get too excited tho, because when Bob borrowed someones 500 f4 in Texas for the first time, it ended up costing him $8,000 dollars afterwards when he couldn’t resist buying one of his own.

We can design most of the workshops around phone photography and assist you with getting better results, but this will fall short of what is achieved using dedicated camera equipment. We will discuss gear at length during the pre-tour interview.

Perhaps you miss your flight or get cold feet. Don’t fret. We too have been in situations where a service provider had a ‘no refunds’ policy, and it sucks. It’s for this reason we don’t hold you ransom if your personal circumstances change. We accept a 50% deposit during registration and then collect the balance once you’re completely satisfied after the tour. We return your deposit less a small administration fee if life throws you a curve (like getting sick, or missing a flight). This might sound crazy from a business perspective, but from a human perspective it just makes sense. The pressure is on us to deliver an experience that justifies the cost and our goal is for you to be excited about giving us the balance of your payment at the end of the day. Just kidding … our goal is that you will be completely satisfied with every part of the experience, including pain-free cancellations if needed.

Both Alberta Parks and Parks Canada make it pretty clear how both humans and photographers should interact with wildlife when encountered. Because of their solid rationale, we will comply with recommended distances, traffic laws and common sense, so we set the right example for others. This means we will use telephoto lenses from within or near our vehicle only when parked in designated spaces or well away from traffic. We will not join ‘Bear Jams’, and will leave an area quickly if is has potential to become a ‘Jam’. You can read the policies of Alberta Parks HERE, and Parks Canada HERE. That said … there’s something to be said about mastering the skills of ‘Dive-By Photography’.