What is a Birding Photography Tour and Where to Go in Colombia

Doing bird photography in Colombia is a must. It is the ‘birdiest’ country in the world. Nowhere else on the planet you will find more bird species than in here. There are over 1,900 registered species  — 80 endemic — and this number represents 20% of all the species of birds in the world. Every region of Colombia boasts unique bird species for birders to enjoy. However, photographing birds is a whole another scenario and not all the birding spots throughout the country are apt to do bird photography tours.    Find out the best tips for bird photography in our entries Brief Overview about Bird Photography for Beginners and How to Prepare for a Birding Tour in the Neotropics?. In this post, we will talk about the difference between bird photography and birdwatching tours, and the most recommended bird photography destinations in Colombia. 

Bird Photography vs Birdwatching 

The Guide

In South America, both fields are commonly undistinguished. However, it is essential that a guide leading a bird photography tour has knowledge about birds in the region as well as photography, to help tourists improve their pictures. About 4 or 5 years ago, Colombia did not have this kind of complete guides, but currently the landscape is changing. 

The Destination

Also, the destination for doing bird photography is totally different from a spot for birdwatching. Photography guides are used to visiting the destinations in advance to know if those are convenient for doing a photography tour or not. Aspects to take into account for a bird photography destination, and which offer ease to the photographers, are:

• The bird perches.
• The background.
• The slope of the terrain where you are going to place your tripod or seat.
• The suitable infrastructure for photography such as hides, or observation towers.
• Access to electricity.
• Spacious rooms with extra desks and outlets.

Experts Advice

We interviewed 2 South American photographers at the Colombia BirdFair 2020 on the subject, and here we will share their recommendations.

Steve Sánchez

Steve Sánchez is a birding guide and nature photographer specialized in bird photography from Peru. He is the manager and CEO of Kuntur Birding and Steve Sánchez Wildlife Photography.  Steve thinks a birdwatching tour is very different from a photography tour or a bird photography tour. Usually, what a birdwatcher wants is to observe as many bird species as possible during their trip. On the ther side, a nature photographer is not interested in having a lot of species photographed if those pictures are mediocre or do not turn out well. For a photographer, the priority is quality, not quantity.  Steve Sanchez recommends to lodge owners to listen to the professional photographers advice to make the lodge more apt for photography (that means changing the perches or moving the feeders to a better place and this does not negatively impact birds, as it is commonly believed). 

Memo Gómez

Memo Gomez, a nature photographer from Colombia, and CEO of the El Cantil Ecolodge, says that photographers need to spend time with birds. Memo explained to us that bird photographers need the right landscape, the right spot, the right button for every picture, while birders seek to spot a bird and cross their checklists, it is quite different. Photographers are more patient, because they need to wait for the perfect conditions to take a shot.  Some practical tips for bird photographers, explained by Memo Gomez, are:

1. Exposure is key, if you learn how to control exposure well, you will get more and more pictures.
2. Understand pretty well the focus system of your camera, for example when photographing birds in flight, cause it depends on the camera manufacturer.
3. Have the right local guide. When going to the jungle or complex environments, finding a bird is tough if you do not bring a local guide that has a deep knowledge of the area.

The Coffee Triangle Bird Photography Tour 

In the western and central ranges of the Andes lies the region where the best-quality coffee of the world is grown: the Colombian Coffee Region.   Quindío, Caldas and Risaralda are the mainly constituents of the region, with stunning landscapes and high biodiversity hosted in dry forests, tropical humid forests and páramos. This area concentrates about 45% of all birds in the country, Quindío has around 690 bird species, Caldas has approximately 880 species with 22 endemic  and Risaralda around 890 species with 25 endemic. That being said, you may notice why the Coffee region is a special destination for bird photography. In Sula, we have a bird photography tour around the Eje Cafetero (or Coffee region)  It starts in Pereira and ends in the town of La Virginia, in Risaralda too. It is an unforgettable 14-day birding experience. You will visit the next spots: 

Tinamú Birding Nature Reserve

The Tinamú Birding Nature Reserve is a renowned birding place in Manizales where you can hear, observe and photograph from 70 to 110 bird species at 1,225 meters above sea level! Find out more information about Tinamu in our entry The Nicest Bird-lodge of Colombia: Tinamu Birding Nature Reserve.

Among the species you can find are the Little Tinamou, Colombian Chachalaca, Gray-headed Dove, Dwarf Cuckoo, Common Potoo, Common Pauraque, Rufous-breasted Hermit, Stripe-throated Hermit, Western emerald, Crimson-rumped Toucanet, Grayish Piculet, Bar-crested Antshrike and Scrub Tanager.  The Reserve offers Facilities and Avitourism Services with a comprehensive and specialized service for photographers and birders, as follows:  

• Tour of photography and bird watching
• Birding Library for consultation
• Space for workshops with audiovisual equipment
• Wide screen for review of photographic and video files
• Hummingbird garden with support feedlots
• Feedlots for birds with hide for photographers
• Fishing lake for birds only
• +3 Km. of private and safe paths
• Hides
• Trails with recognized perches and crossing points for some birds

Río Blanco Reserve

The Rio Blanco Reserve is 3 km from Manizales and has the cloud forest ecosystem at over 2,159 MASL. It is key in the preservation of water and biodiversity. The place has been suitable with feeders and drinkers for hummingbirds and tanager, as well as with small observation benches to photograph the 4 different species of antpittas that have been bait in the reserve.

Here you can photograph species such as the Masked Saltator, Rusty Faced Parrot, Golden Plumed Parakeet, the endemic Brown-banded Antpitta and the near endemic Bicolored Antpitta. There are approximately 350 bird species here! 

Cameguadua Reservoir

The Cameguadua Reservoir is an aquatic ecopark commonly visited by around 250 species of aquatic birds.

From the pier you can photograph Blue-winged Teal, Pied-billed Grebe, Blackish Rail, Common Gallinule, Purple Gallinule, Wattled Jacana, Pectoral Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Neotropic Cormorant, Snowy Egret, among others. It has a dock that goes deep into the lake, from where it is possible to locate the camera to take photographs. 

Romelia Colors of Life Farm

In the Romelia Colors of Life farm, you will have the possibility to spot over 200 bird species including the Golden-plumed Parakeet, Bar-crested Antshrike, Crimson-rumped Toucanet , Yellow-vented Woodpecker and Golden-olive Woodpecker, in a nice area with orchids, bonsai, citrus fruits and avocados crops.  There is also a striking collection of orchids and bonsais from around the world.

Termales del Ruiz Hotel 

If you want to discover highland birds, Termales del Ruiz Hotel hosts approximately 190 species including Andean Siskin, Shining Sunbeam, Glowing Puffleg, Red-crested Cotinga, Buff-winged Starfrontlet,  Great Sapphirewing, Slaty Brushfinch, Masked Flowerpiercer and Black-backed Bush Tanager in a páramo ecosystem at 3,500 meters above sea level.

Also, you can enjoy several hot springs here. This place is known for its large number of drinking fountains and gardens with native plants that attract hummingbirds and other high mountain species. It has benches and terraces to facilitate photography. It is even possible to have the experience of feeding the birds in your own hand. 

Tatamá Hill and Montezuma Ecolodge

One particularly recommended birding spot is the Finca Montezuma eco-lodge, located on the hillside that connects the Risaralda with Chocó, in the western range of the Andes. It has a huge cloud forest that borders the Tatamá National Natural Park and boasts fauna and flora wealth. It is not so known among birders but is home to various endemic species, such as the iconic Black-and-gold and Gold-ringed Tanagers and the Chocó Tapaculo and Warbler.  

Find out more information about Tatamá and Montezuma Lodge in our entry The Uniqueness of Tatamá Park and Montezuma Road Destination. Other birding spots within the Coffee region are the towns of Santa Rosa de Cabal, Santa Cecilia, Apía, Mistrató and La Virginia. These boast ecosystems such as páramo, rainforest, wet premontane forest, cloud forest and tropical dry forest, so the variety of birds you can spot is unbelievable. However, there is still lack of good infrastructure to photograph them.   

Chicoral, Dapa and Km 18, Cali 

Find out more information about Km 18 and the San Antonio forest in Valle del Cauca in our e entry Know the Winged Jewels Held by San Antonio Cloud Forest – Km 18.

2026 update: Colombia bird photography — #1 globally 1,954 species SiB Colombia + Global Big Day 9 May 2026 recorded 1,569 species (5th year #1) + ProAves El Dorado Sierra Nevada (Santa Marta Sabrewing endemic + 22 endemics on feeders) + Rogitama Biodiversidad Arcabuco Boyacá (24 hummingbird species / 12 balcony feeders / endemic Black Inca) + Recinto del Pensamiento Manizales 860 m cable car + Reserva Ecológica Río Blanco 5 antpittas/morning at earthworm feeders + PNN Puracé Orange Alert 1 Aug 2026 restricts flagship condor site

The 2026 authoritative context for Colombian bird photography. Colombia holds the world’s #1 rank in bird species — 1,954 documented per SiB Colombia, and confirmed the position on Global Big Day 9 May 2026 with 1,569 species (5th consecutive year #1). The three most productive feeder-based bird-photography anchors: Reserva ProAves El Dorado on Cuchilla de San Lorenzo above Minca in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta — created 31 March 2006, lodge at 1,950 m, feeder access for the endemic Santa Marta Sabrewing (Campylopterus phainopeplus) and cluster of 22 endemic species; Rogitama Biodiversidad in Arcabuco (Boyacá, 2,500-2,530 m, 29 ha buffer of SFF Iguaque, Chavarro family since 1982) — documents 24 hummingbird species with 12 reliably at balcony feeders, including the endemic Black Inca / Príncipe de Arcabuco (Coeligena prunellei); and Ecoparque Recinto del Pensamiento (Manizales) — hummingbird viewpoint integrated with orchid forest, butterfly garden and 860 m cable car, ~15 minutes from Manizales.

The 2026 antpitta anchor + the critical access warning. For antpitta photography — a specialised genre requiring predictable feeder behaviour — the world’s most productive site is Reserva Ecológica Río Blanco in Manizales, managed by Aguas de Manizales (municipal water utility). Its earthworm-feeding stations reliably present up to 5 antpitta species in a single morning: endemic Brown-banded, near-endemic Bicoloured, Chestnut-crowned and Slate-crowned. Bookings are through Aguas de Manizales; dawn arrival is non-negotiable. Season timing: Colombian Andean dry seasons run December-February and June-August (peak dry January); the Amazon has the opposite pattern. The critical 2026 access warning for condor photography: PNN Puracé was placed on Alerta NARANJA (Orange Alert) by SGC on 1 August 2026 — Puracé had been Colombia’s flagship in-situ condor site, so access is likely restricted while the alert holds. In March 2026, PNN Chingaza documented its first Andean condor sighting in the Cuchillas de Churuguaco sector in approximately 25 years — Chingaza is emerging as a viable Bogotá-adjacent condor observation alternative while Puracé is off-limits.