Central California Coast Wildlife Photo Tour (January 11-14, 2026)

Register

PRICE: 

PRICE:  $1,175 NANPA/ASMP Members, $ 1,375 non-members

If you are not currently a member, you may want to consider joining NANPA to take advantage of member pricing on all NANPA photo tours (1 year membership $100)

Maximum number of attendees: 8

Last date to register: December 10, 2025 

DATES:

• Sunday January 11, 2026 at 6 pm to Wednesday January 14, 2026 at 1 pm.
  If you can arrive by 3 pm you can join Diana for a walk along the marina, looking for birds, sea lions, and southern sea otters. Otherwise, plan to join the meet and greet at 6 pm.
• (optional) November 21, 2025 7-8 pm (ET) Pre-event Preparatory Webinar for participants
• (optional) TBD 7-9 pm (ET) Post event Image Sharing and Feedback Webinar for participants

On-site Event Meet & Greet
Sunday January 11, 2026 at 6 pm at the hotel meeting room

EVENT OVERVIEW: 

Join Diana McPherson in photographing wildlife and the beautiful scenery around the Central California coast. We’ll be based in Morro Bay, CA, to have access to numerous migratory birds who spend the winter or make a brief stop on their way to their nesting grounds. Monarch butterflies spend the winter nearby in protected eucalyptus groves while Elephant seals rest at their haul out site on the beach and many have their pups. Sea otters enjoy floating around the protected harbor and often have young with them, too. Join us for this incredible opportunity to explore and photograph the wildlife that thrives along the Central California Coast.

YOUR TOUR LEADER:

Diana McPherson

Diana McPherson is a wildlife and conservation photographer, environmental educator, and avid traveler. She teaches photography workshops throughout the year, leads local and international photography tours, hosts her podcast, Nature Detectives, and encourages women to travel through her blog, Globe Trotting Women. Diana also serves on the board of Art Works Northwest artisan cooperative and on the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) Ethics Committee.

You can learn more about Diana by visiting her website at www.friendinnature.com

WHAT TO EXPECT: 

We will photograph a variety of wildlife on and around the bay. Sea otters, shorebirds, monarch butterflies, and elephant seals are our focus. But we may also see peregrine falcons that nest on the Morro Rock and sea lions coming in the harbor to rest on the rocks. This is a good time of the year to see gray whales as they make their way south to Baja (this will be an optional add-on outing). We will also have the opportunity for sunrise and/or sunset photos from the beach or the marina and the famous Morro Rock. Having grown up in California, this is one of my favorite places and I’m excited to share this with you.

The tour will be based in Morro Bay, a small town with many cafes, restaurants, and a grocery store, as well as several artisan shops.

NEAREST AIRPORT:

• San Luis Obispo (SBP) (airlines – Alaska, United, American, Hawaiian). Direct flights are available from Dallas, Denver, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle and Los Angeles.

Drive time from SBP airport to Morro Bay is about 30 minutes

Other Drive times:

• 4-hour drive from Los Angeles
• 4-hour drive from San Francisco

EVENT TRANSPORTATION:

Transportation to and from the airport and during the event is not included and is the attendees’ responsibility. Car rental (Alamo, Avis, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Thrifty) is available at the airport.

Ride Sharing: We will depart daily from the hotel. Ride sharing is strongly recommended to keep the total number of vehicles down to a manageable size. You are welcome to either drive or ride with someone. This is a great way to meet and have fun with fellow photographers during the event. If you are a passenger in another participant’s car it is customary to offer the driver some gas money and chip in towards any vehicle admission/parking fee as a courtesy.

Note that NANPA and Diana McPherson do not have insurance for carpooling arrangements and assume no liability for them. Carpooling, ride sharing or anything similar is strictly a private arrangement among participants. Participants assume the risks associated with this travel.

LODGING:

We will be based in Morro Bay, CA during this photo tour.

NANPA is holding a block of hotel rooms for event participants at a hotel in Morro Bay at 15% off their standard rates (starting at $156.40 per night plus tax and fees)

Check in time 4 pm, Check out time 11 am.

Hotel details and reservation procedure will be shared with registered participants.

The last day to reserve a room in the NANPA room block is December 10, 2025

MEALS:

All meals will be on your own with the exception of one brunch which is included. The brunch location will be announced at the Meet & Greet.

PHOTOGRAPHY LOCATIONS:

Your leader is familiar with the areas that you’ll be visiting, and locations will be based on what’s most photogenic at the time, wildlife activity, weather conditions, etc.

Some of the locations that we will most likely photograph include:

• Monarch butterflies at the Monarch Butterfly Grove in Pismo Beach
• Elephant seals, including battling males and newborns, along the beach at San Simeon
• Sea otters in Morro Bay Harbor
• Shorebirds throughout the harbor and estuary, by catamaran and walking
• Peregrine falcons nesting on Morro Rock

PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE:

Please note schedules are fluid due to weather conditions, recent wildlife sightings and other variables. Sunrise is roughly 7 am and Sunset is roughly 5:15 pm

Sunday January 11, 2026

• Arrive in Morro Bay and make your way to the hotel by 3 pm, if you can. We’ll do a photo walk along the marina, looking for birds, sea lions, and southern sea otters.
• “Meet and Greet” at 6 pm in the hotel meeting room.
• Diana will present “Photographing Wildlife along Central California Coast”, and review techniques for our varied locations.
• Dinner on your own after the meet and greet.

Monday January 12, 2026

• Depart hotel about 6 am and carpool to San Simeon to arrive just before sunrise to photograph the elephant seal rookery. It’s a 40-minute drive to the viewing site. Bring a packed breakfast, snacks, and water. There is no restroom at the site but there is a stop just before our destination.
• If time allows on our return, we can stop near the San Simeon Creek Campground to walk the trail near the creek looking for birds. Restroom at site.
• Group lunch at Goddess Goods in Morro Bay (included in fee)
• After lunch we’ll reconvene at the hotel and carpool to the State Park Boardwalk for a casual walk to photograph birds. Trail is part packed dirt and part boardwalk which takes us along the bay and near the estuary.
• Dinner on your own.
• After dinner Diana will be available to review photos and discuss camera settings, adjustments, and editing techniques.

Tuesday January 13, 2026

• We’ll depart the hotel about 6:50 am for Pismo Beach to view Monarch butterflies until around 11 am. It’s a 35-minute drive to the Monarch Butterfly Grove. There are porta potties at the site.
• Return to Morro Bay and lunch on your own.
• In the afternoon we’ll go birding around the bay and the estuary via a 33-foot catamaran boat, chartered just for our group. This is a 2-hour trip, returning shortly before sunset.
• Dinner on your own
• After dinner Diana will be available to review photos and discuss camera settings, adjustments, and editing techniques.

 Wednesday January 14, 2026

• Morning walk along marina to see southern sea otters and Morro Rock for Peregrine falcons (peregrines watchers should be there with scopes). If time allows, we’ll walk out to the beach for shorebirds.
• 11 am Hotel checkout.
• The event officially wraps at 1 pm, however for those that are interested, you can join Diana on an optional ~ 3-hour long whale watching excursion departing at 1 pm from Morro Bay. The whale watch excursion tickets are not included in the photo tour price and are per person $68.90 (Adults) / $63.60 (Seniors 65+).

WEATHER

The weather should be quite comfortable, not too hot, not too cold, but do plan for the possibility of rain. Highs around low to mid 70° F’s’, lows around 40°

CLOTHING

• warm layers, long sleeve, hoodie, fleece
• short sleeve for warmer afternoons
• long pants
• Shorts
• rain jacket, rain pants
• wind breaker
• hat with brim to protect from sun or rain
• warm wool hat/beanie
• comfortable walking shoes

CAMERA GEAR:

• Bring “long” lens for wildlife photography, “short” lens for landscapes and closeups. Diana prefers handholding but a tripod or monopod is perfectly fine except for the catamaran.
• Camera (1-2) – DSLR or mirrorless, full frame or cropped sensor. Also, bring the camera manual should we need to consult it. Cellphone camera as backup is better than no camera and good for snaps of your group.
• Long lens – 100-400mm, 150-600mm, 500mm, 600mm, etc
• Shorter, compact zoom – 100-400mm, 18-400mm, 70-200mm, etc
• Tripod / Monopod
• Lots of Memory Card Storage
• Camera Battery Charger and Extra charged batteries
• Non-abrasive Lens Cleaning Cloth and Wipes
• Sensor Cleaning Tools (optional)
• Waterproof rain cover – For camera and lens protection. (I’ll bring extras)
• Laptop Computer – for downloading and viewing your images.
• Image Processing Software – Good choices include Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, Elements, or ON1 RAW.
• Back-up device – Such as an external hard drive.
• USB Flash Drive – For sharing images
• Camera bag
• Sturdy strap/harness system

ADDITIONAL ITEMS:

• Sunscreen
• Water bottle
• Snacks
• Optional small folding chair
• Motion sickness prevention meds & pressure wrist bands
• Umbrella
• Cell phone & charger

GENERAL:

We will be based in Morro Bay, CA during this photo tour.

This event is designed for nature photographers at all levels of experience. This tour is open for a maximum of 8 participants to give each plenty of time with the leaders and to retain flexibility based on weather and the best opportunities. For the best experience, please know your camera before you arrive, and bring your manual in case we need to look up something.

Assistance will be available in the field for those who wish to improve their photographic skills. If you already have plenty of photography experience, Diana will ensure you get to the best locations at the best times to capture those perfect shots.

Please keep in mind this NANPA Event is designed to be a photo tour, not a photo workshop. In other words, there are no formal instruction sessions planned, there are no assignments, you will not be receiving any handouts or the like. That being said, Diana has extensive experience as a photography tour leader and will be available to answer questions and give you guidance.

If need help, please advocate for yourself, speak up and ask for help. Be aware that many of your fellow participants may also be accomplished photographers and may be able to help you too.  Part of the NANPA Photo Tour experience is the camaraderie that comes from sharing experiences and lessons learned among participants. If you notice someone with the same or similar camera, perhaps they can help you with an issue you’ve been wondering about, and maybe you can return the favor.

Attendance and participation at NANPA Photo Tours is limited to registered attendees only.  Anyone wishing to participate in any portion of, or travel with a registered attendee during the group event must contact the NANPA office and pay the full registration fee.

 

NANPA Photo Tour Cancellation and No Refund Policy:  

NANPA will not offer any refunds for registrations for this event regardless of when the cancellation is made or the reason for the cancellation. NANPA reserves the right to cancel any event or activity due to insufficient registration or any unforeseen circumstances. NANPA will offer refunds if NANPA must cancel the event. It also has the right to substitute presenters if those originally scheduled cannot attend. Registrants may purchase event insurance as part of the registration process through NANPA’s partner, Allianz. More information on this option will be shown during the checkout process for the event registration.

NOTE:  If you do not purchase event insurance at the time that you pay for your registration, you will NOT be able to go back and purchase it with Allianz later.

If you choose to purchase travel insurance separately, you can do so with your own insurance carrier, or NANPA members can receive a special travel insurance rate through USI Affinity/Travel Insurance Services.