Shorewoods Photography-Boarding Group 2 Travel Blog

It is travel day, we and our fellow travellers gathered this morning for our flights to return home. 

Our favorite experiences: traveling into the jungle and rain forests, meeting local neighbors who served us delicious food and cold drinks, doing what lights us up with a group of talented and fun photographers, and learning to make photos of all the wildlife. Dennis was a great teacher, and the number and quality of our images is a testament to that.

Art helped to press sugar cane on one our visits to the sloth gardens. One of the MOST refreshing beverages we had was this pressed sugar cane mixed with lime for a delicious lime-aide!

Our discoveries this trip::

• Hand holding the 600 mm lens made it easier to get in and out of the vehicles when jumping out to take photos. We had our tripods, but really did not use them. The lenses worked out great, predominantly using the 600 and occasionally the teleconverter. We learned to consider the background behind the wildlife as we were taking photos, and try to move to find a background that compliments and does not compete. This is all good in theory until said wildlife leaps or flies out of view!

• Dennis helped us to learn and successfully use 3D focus, which was so helpful with that jumping, flying and swinging wildlife!

• In humid climates when our lenses are in AC- use the hair dryer to warm the lenses before you go out!

• We packed our small carry on bags with our clothing and essentials- and then carried our Peak design day bags that yes, do fit a 600 lens along one side! This made it easier at the airport without checked luggage.

Lightroom allows us to see the exact location we took each photo by using Snap Bridge on our phones and taking our cameras off airplane mode. In this screenshot, you can see were we began in San Jose, and then our location south.

The van from Botanica takes us to the airport, and we board for our flight to San Jose. Art and I will overnight in San Jose and then we have an early morning flight to Houston and then back to Virginia. The flight from the Osa Peninsula was breathtaking, and yes, we were sad to be leaving.

At the airport, we said goodbye to our fellow photographers, and headed to the hotel. After a good nights sleep, we woke early to catch our next flight. The early morning light didn’t quite reach the mountains while we waited to board.

Reflecting on the past few days, the experiences we had in Costa Rica were relaxed, warm and welcoming. In Costa Rica they call it Pura Vida (poo-rah vee-dah), and its translation means “Pure Life”.

Pura Vida in Costa Rica it is a way of life. This way of life is centered around mindfulness, happiness and a relaxed approach to everyday experiences. Pura Vida is used to greet, say goodbye and to express gratitude.

Being immersed in Costa Rica’s natural beauty, surrounded by the wild life and rain forests, allowed us to reconnect with the natural world. This reconnection fostered a sense of peace and tranquility, and an appreciation for the simple pleasures of life. This is the essence of Pura Vida.

Until we meet again Costa Rica, Pura Vida!