About The Pond at Elephant Head

Located in Southern Arizona near Green Valley and the Santa Rita Mountains, The Pond at Elephant Head is much more than a place to photograph birds. It is a private wildlife photography sanctuary that has been developed specifically around creating exceptional photographic opportunities with the birds and wildlife of the Sonoran Desert.

The property has a long history as a destination for serious wildlife photographers and has hosted photography workshops and programs associated with the Tucson Bird Alliance's Southeast Arizona Birding Festival, as well as workshops led by nationally and internationally recognized wildlife photographers.

Today, the property is owned and operated by Dano Grayson, a biologist, field researcher and professional wildlife photographer and videographer who has worked with birds and wildlife around the world. That combination of natural history knowledge and photographic experience is an important part of what makes the Pond special. The setups aren't simply designed to attract birds. They are designed with photography in mind.

Our group will have access to two distinct photography areas, including pond and mountain settings. Purpose-built hides place photographers close to the activity while allowing the wildlife to behave naturally around them. Native and natural perches are carefully positioned around feeding and water areas. Flowering plants and nectar feeders create opportunities for hummingbird photography, while seed and suet stations attract many of the resident and seasonal birds of Southern Arizona.

But what makes this experience particularly exciting is the opportunity to work in an environment where so many of the elements we normally search for in the field have been thoughtfully considered.

The perch. The background. The direction of the light. The distance between the subject and background. The photographer's position.

Instead of walking through the desert hoping all of those pieces come together at the same moment, we can settle into a hide, study the scene and wait for the wildlife to come to us.

That changes the way you photograph.

You begin anticipating rather than reacting. You can watch how the light changes across a particular perch. You can recognize where the strongest background will be before a bird arrives. You can think about head angle, pose and behavior instead of simply trying to get the subject in the frame.

It becomes something very close to nature's studio, except the subjects are wild and the environment is real.

The possibilities also extend beyond traditional bird photography. Depending on the season and conditions, the property offers opportunities for hummingbirds, desert songbirds, owls, reptiles and other wildlife. Specialized lighting, triggering systems and photographic setups can also open the door to types of wildlife photography that most photographers rarely have an opportunity to experience.

That's one of the reasons The Pond at Elephant Head has become a destination for wildlife photographers and photography workshops from around the country.

For our workshop, it also provides the perfect counterpoint to the first three days.

We will have spent those days working in completely uncontrolled environments, learning to find good light, recognize backgrounds, anticipate behavior and put ourselves in the right position.

At Elephant Head, we get to approach those same fundamentals from the other direction.

We can slow things down. Study the light. Consider the background. Think about where the bird might land before it gets there.

The environment changes. The fundamentals don't.

And that is exactly why we are including The Pond at Elephant Head in this extended workshop.

As with all wildlife photography, no particular species or behavior can ever be guaranteed. Wildlife activity varies with season, weather and natural conditions. That's part of the experience and part of working with wild subjects.