Many photographers and enthusiasts join Hokkaido Photo Tour to take pictures of the amazing birding photo ops that exist all over Japan’s northern island.  And when considering birds such as the snow ballerina the Red-crowned crane or the aggressive raptor The Steller’s Sea Eagle, it is clear that you could spend days even months taking only birding photos.  However, the experience of our lead Japan Photography Workshop Leader convinced us that there is much more to the island than avian visitors.

While leading a recent Hokkaido Photo Tour, our Lead Photo Tour Guide to capture an outcropping of land with a nearly uncountable amount Yezo Deer.  It was such a remarkable discovery that everyone stopped and immortalized the herd into their personal photo galleries.  As an amateur historian, our lead photography guide knows that the now relatively abundant Yezo Deer were once dangerously close to extinction.  Once Hokkaido started receiving an influx of Japanese from the main island, the deer’s population shrunk to near extinction levels.  Venison canning between two major hub cities in Hokkaido meant the deer were perpetually overheated, but on two different occasions the deer were given protected status which allowed them to return to numbers that make them available as photo ops in several different parts of Hokkaido, and the experience of your Japan Dreamscapes (JDS) Photo Tour Leader means that you will access to the locations with the highest probabilities of seeing the deer.

Ezo Red Foxes represent another wildlife photo op made especially lovely among the snowy natural landscapes on a Hokkaido Photo Tour.  Ezo Foxes are especially common sights on mountainous roads or areas rich in nature which describes most of Hokkaido.  Because the temperature drops so low during the winter, the foxes coat becomes even fluffier and fuller to insulate them as they hunt for food or patrol their domain in the forests of Hokkaido.  Make no mistake.  The Ezo Foxes may have a fluffy coat, but their speed is something to behold.  Your JDS Photography Tour Leader knows to be on the lookout for them, so your Hokkaido Photo Tour may have an unexpected stop or two devoted to capturing these red and white wild visitors.  And your JDS Photo Workshop Leader will also make sure that you have the correct gear for capturing these diminutive hunters among the breathtaking winter landscapes.

One last elusive wildlife photo op is the least weasel or iizuna.  While exploring the snow-covered landscapes of North-East Hokkaido, you may see an inquisitive head pop up from the snowbank in search of prey.  This weasel may look adorable with its cream or sometimes stark white coat, but the iizuna is a fierce predator and if it is has made itself visible, that means prey is probably nearby.  Your JDS Hokkaido Photo Tour Leader recommends keeping a safe distance while photographing these little treasures.  

The possibilities while on a Japan Dreamscapes Hokkaido Photo Tour are nearly endless.  The wildlife photography is one part of Hokkaido Birding Photo Tours, so no matter what variety of nature photography you are interested in, there is something for you to enjoy.