Sydney Birding birdwatching and photography tours are run by Chris Rehberg of Oatley Photography. As a photographer he has over 25 years of experience shooting nature, landscapes and wildlife and Chris has been a wildlife enthusiast since as early as he can remember.

We aim to begin our tours on time but we are quite flexible with itineraries on the day. If the group is generally hardcore and aims to tick a large number of specific species that we're tracking down, then the pace may be fast and we'll move from location to location. However if the group is more laid back and would like to take more time at one spot - especially when the birding is good! - then that's generally not a problem either.

What's most important is that everyone really enjoys their time. Tour groups are generally small and usually it is easy to ensure everyone gets value out of a trip. Please do let us know, when you make your enquiry, whether you'd prefer a packed day or a more leisurely pace.

For trips outside of Sydney we will usually go ahead with the trip. By watching rain radar maps we might find that some destinations on our route are free of rain - so we might spend more time there than in other spots we'd hoped to visit. Decisions like this are made on the road and we make sure all participants are happy with the plans.

If a trip really needs to be cancelled due to bad weather, we'll aim to notify everybody on the day before the trip, at latest.

Each birding trip is different. Sometimes we will see more species and sometimes we will see fewer. Sometimes we'll see a real rarity that won't be seen in Australia again for many years. Other times we'll miss out on all the big ticket birds we'd hoped for - these are wild animals and we can't predict 100% what they will do on any given day.

All that said, Chris has years of experience chasing wildlife and taking bird photographs. As we prepare information for each trip we'll try and communicate which birds are specialties for a given region as well as how likely we are to see each of them. We hope that you'll come along willing to enjoy the diversity of birds we do see and thrilled with any of the big names we do track down!

If you're a hardcore birder - and especially if you've travelled into Sydney looking for specific birds - let me know! I am 100% for going above and beyond with all efforts to track down a bird! I still can't guarantee we'll get it but I can certainly give you a realistic expectation ahead of your booking for anything specific you're after.

Chris has experience and is comfortable working with non-English speaking participants, but all tours will be communicated in English. If a non-English speaking participant wishes to come along with someone who is able to translate, this may be the best option in order to enjoy the most out of the day, and we'll certainly take our time to ensure nobody misses out on enjoying the experience - even if we're working across languages.

If you need to cancel your tour within the 7 days before the tour date, there will be a 20% cancellation fee. If you cancel within the 2 days before the tour date there will be an additional 30% cancellation fee (ie. a 50% fee in total).

You may, however, instead defer your tour to a later date that is within 3 months of your original tour date. If you defer your tour within the 2 days before the tour date, there will be a 10% late deferral fee and if you subsequently cancel the tour then cancellation fees will be calculated based on your original date of deferral.

Sydney Birding will refund a tour for tours that are cancelled at Sydney Birding's discretion - including if the tour is cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances such as bad weather.

We are happy to run tours whether there is simply 1 person coming along, or more. Most tours will have between 1 and 3 attendees plus the tour guide. We can readily run tours for 4 attendees. Larger groups are also possible - see below.

We can run tours for groups larger than 4 attendees - get in touch to discuss.

Children are most certainly welcome but each child must be supervised by an accompanying adult. Chris also has a Working With Children certificate.

Tours are generally run using a Nissan X-Trail. Larger groups can be accommodated using a minivan.

As a driver, Chris has a full set of demerit points on his license and 20+ years of driving experience.

Chris brings an emergency rescue beacon along to all trips in case there is an emergency and the group happens to be outside of mobile coverage areas. A basic first-aid kit comes along on all trips too and this includes roller bandages for treating snake-bite. Sunscreen is available in the vehicle and all participants are encouraged to practice sun protection. Trips are insured.

Meals are not included on tours. Participants are encouraged to bring snacks and/or meals and drinks. We can generally take time out from the tour to visit shops where snacks and meals may be purchased. Some groups would prefer to have some time during the day to rest and grab a bite to eat, while others would prefer to press on with the birding without taking a break - and we cater tours to the group.

Certainly! Chris has over 25 years of photography experience - including shooting commercially and running photography workshops. We are most happy to help you get better shots of the birds you love!