![\"Terry](\"https:\/\/d3355vjhs3bhr1.cloudfront.net\/inline-images\/TERRY%20KLASSEN1.jpg\"\/)
Terrance Klassen,\u00a0Jayme Giesbrecht\nA wide variety of wildlife to view<\/p>\n
Terrance Klassen and his wife Esther Anne Klassen are well known in the Pembina Valley for\u00a0their stunning travel\u00a0photography.\u00a0They license\u00a0their images\u00a0for\u00a0use in corporate and editorial publications, audiovisuals, fine art\u00a0d\u00e9cor,\u00a0and web sites.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Terrance spoke at the start of\u00a0this year of\u00a0their\u00a0two-week\u00a0bucket list trip to Ecuador\u00a0and the Galapagos Islands, which provided\u00a0them with\u00a0an abundance\u00a0of wildlife to photograph.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cAll\u00a0of\u00a0our trips are\u00a0for\u00a0photography. We always say, what other reason is there to travel than to photograph?\u201d\u00a0Klassen\u00a0shared. \u201cWe went to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands to photograph.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Galapagos Islands are a group of\u00a025 to\u00a030 islands,\u00a0about 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador.\u00a0The highlight there mainly is the\u00a0wildlife,\u00a0and\u00a0the accessibility of wildlife.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Animals unconcerned by tourists<\/p>\n
A common denominator over the Klassens\u2019\u00a0time there was working with their model subjects, each and every one of them entirely\u00a0indifferent to\u00a0their\u00a0presence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe birds\u00a0and animals are tame. You can walk right up to them,\u00a0or in fact\u00a0they’ll\u00a0walk right up to you.\u201d Klassen said\u00a0\u201cThe Galapagos Highlands\u00a0are\u00a0a national park.\u00a0Everywhere you go, you need a\u00a0park\u00a0guide. You\u00a0can’t\u00a0go anywhere without a guide.\u00a0It’s\u00a0very ecological and environmentally friendly.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou may know the Galapagos Islands from\u00a0the\u00a0history books of Charles Darwin.\u00a0He went to the Galapagos Islands and formulated the theory of evolution.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Terrance Klassen,\u00a0Jayme Giesbrecht
\nA wide variety of wildlife to view<\/p>\n
A rich biosphere for diverse wildlife\u00a0populations, the\u00a0national park features a\u00a0research station on Santa Cruz Island, one of the Galapagos Islands.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey research animals, turtles,\u00a0mainly\u00a0the giant tortoise\u00a0is\u00a0researched there.\u00a0We went to see that.\u201d Klassen said.\u00a0\u201cFor us, it\u00a0wasn’t\u00a0a study of evolution. It was a confirmation of creation. But\u00a0that’s\u00a0what we saw.\u00a0We’re\u00a0not wildlife photographers, but we\u00a0don’t\u00a0pass up\u00a0the opportunity when we have it.\u00a0On the Galapagos Islands,\u00a0it’s\u00a0just so easy to photograph wildlife.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Easy to photograph, as all of the varied species of animals\u00a0essentially\u00a0ignore the curious humans around them.\u00a0Marine iguanas were just one example of how easy the Klassens\u2019\u00a0task was.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou’ll see the marine iguanas coming out of the water.\u201d Klassen shared. \u201cThey live in the water, but they come onto land and\u00a0they’re\u00a0not afraid of you.\u00a0They’ll\u00a0come right by you and walk right by you.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rules of the national park are that\u00a0we’re\u00a0not supposed to touch the animals. But we\u00a0can’t\u00a0control if they want to come up to you, so we just got out of their way.\u00a0It’s\u00a0a unique experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Experiencing wildlife<\/p>\n
Klassen went on to describe other wildlife highlights. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHummingbirds are\u00a0on\u00a0mainland Ecuador,\u201d he explained. \u00a0\u201cThere’s\u00a0a number of\u00a0hummingbird farms or ranches, and\u00a0they’ll\u00a0eat out of your hand.\u00a0You’ll\u00a0hold your hand out with a little feeder in your hand, and\u00a0they’ll\u00a0come; three or four birds will sit on your hand and feed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey hover or they perch on your hand.\u00a0They’re\u00a0very\u00a0tiny\u00a0little\u00a0birds, but you see with our\u00a0pictures,\u00a0they’re\u00a0very vibrant colors.\u00a0Fluorescent,\u00a0almost holographic.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Related stories:<\/p>\n
![\"2026](\"https:\/\/d3355vjhs3bhr1.cloudfront.net\/inline-images\/TERRY%20KLASSEN4.jpg\"\/)
2026 wildlife calendar<\/p>\n
The waters are home to so many different creatures.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSea lions are mainly on San Cristobal Island.\u201d Klassen said. \u201cSome pictures\u00a0we’re\u00a0sitting on a park bench and\u00a0they’re\u00a0lying beside us, like a dog.\u00a0They’re\u00a0quite\u00a0at home,\u00a0they’re\u00a0sleeping. They\u00a0don’t\u00a0even open their eyes to see\u00a0who’s\u00a0next to them.\u00a0They just feel\u00a0that\u00a0they’re\u00a0not going to be harmed.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
You\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0think about the Galapagos without\u00a0thinking\u00a0of boobies.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The\u00a0blue-footed booby\u00a0bird\u00a0that is,\u00a0on Espanola.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0also\u00a0a red-footed booby, and a Nazca booby.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir feet are really blue.\u201d Klassen shared. \u201cThey turn\u00a0blue\u00a0about two\u00a0years\u00a0into\u00a0maturity.\u00a0They\u00a0nest right beside the path that you walk beside. They\u00a0don’t\u00a0bother with\u00a0you,\u00a0they’re\u00a0sleeping on their\u00a0nest.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s\u00a0not just animals.\u201d Klassen explained. \u00a0\u201cThe flora\u00a0is incredible. The Galapagos are\u00a0volcanic\u00a0base, so\u00a0the black\u00a0rock\u00a0allows you to see all kinds of things. The vegetation is sparse, but\u00a0it’s\u00a0a desert\u00a0vegetation.\u00a0There’s\u00a0a lot of\u00a0cactus\u00a0on the island and some shrubbery, but\u00a0mainly\u00a0it\u00a0is\u00a0the wildlife that attracts you there.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Be prepared, explorers<\/p>\n
If you are considering a trip yourself, Klassen outlined highlights of the\u00a0working vacation that he\u00a0and his wife\u00a0undertook.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s a couple of\u00a0inhabited islands\u00a0in\u00a0the Galapagos. Most of them are uninhabited for\u00a0the wildlife, but\u00a0there’s\u00a0a few cities where you stay at.\u201d\u00a0Klassen said.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s\u00a0comfortable hotels. You stay at a hotel on one of these islands.\u00a0There are tour boats.\u00a0They’re\u00a0outfitted like yachts.\u00a0They’re\u00a0large enough for a group of 12 to 16\u00a0people, and some of the islands are far away. We spent\u00a0four to six hours on the boat to get to Espanola Island, for instance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We did a land-based trip, got on a boat to go from island to island.\u00a0You come back to the hotel, but you can do a sea-based tour where you live on the\u00a0boat\u00a0and you go from island to island that way.\u00a0You live on a boat and\u00a0you\u00a0scuba dive and you snorkel.\u00a0There’s\u00a0a whole other world under the water of the Galapagos.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Terry](\"https:\/\/d3355vjhs3bhr1.cloudfront.net\/inline-images\/TERRY%20KLASSEN2.jpg\"\/)
Terrance Klassen, Jayme Giesbrecht<\/p>\n
Unlike other sun destinations, sandy beaches\u00a0aren\u2019t\u00a0the\u00a0norm in this wildlife paradise.\u00a0At almost 80 years old, Klassen described what visitors\u00a0should\u00a0expect.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou realize that on the islands you have to walk or hike around\u00a0on\u00a0is made-up of lava rocks.\u201d Klassen said.\u00a0\u201cSo\u00a0you’re\u00a0scrambling on the rocks.\u00a0There’s\u00a0no nice little smooth paths to walk on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Next up on the itinerary<\/p>\n
With this Galapagos bucket list checked off, the Klassens have an eye to other\u00a0inspiring\u00a0locations for their photographer\u2019s eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA possibility right now\u00a0is,\u00a0we’re\u00a0keeping an eye on California and Arizona deserts.<\/p>\n
“If\u00a0you’ve paid\u00a0attention to the weather\u00a0forecast,\u00a0they’ve\u00a0had\u00a0multiple storms go through there.\u201d Klassen said. \u00a0\u201cThey had a\u00a0three day\u00a0winter\u00a0rain\u00a0end of November and yesterday\u00a0the\u00a0second one just finished they had over Christmas. When the desert gets\u00a0rain\u00a0they get a wonderful super blooming of flowers in the desert. The whole desert blooms with flowers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u00a0occurs every eight to 10 years.\u00a0We’ve\u00a0photographed two of them in our lifetime.\u00a0So\u00a0this year is another possibility.\u00a0End\u00a0of February, March, and into April, the desert will bloom,\u00a0if\u00a0the conditions are right.\u00a0They need some more\u00a0rain\u00a0into\u00a0January,\u00a0February to keep things going. But\u00a0they’ve\u00a0had\u00a0a very good\u00a0start.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Further from home, even more exotic locations are being considered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe other possibility is\u00a0we’re\u00a0keeping an eye on Saudi Arabia.\u201d Klassen shared. \u201cIt’s\u00a0open\u00a0for\u00a0tourism now.\u00a0They’re\u00a0trying to welcome tourists.\u00a0That’s\u00a0something new for them.\u00a0We have\u00a0kind of a\u00a0pet project to photograph where the children of Israel came out of Egypt.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring COVID, we were in Egypt photographing the Red Sea crossing on the Egyptian side.\u00a0The other side is in Saudi Arabia, in Midian, so\u00a0we’d\u00a0like to go to Saudi Arabia and photograph the western, the eastern side of the Red Sea crossing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
View more from this trip<\/p>\n
The Galapagos bucket list trip led to a wealth of photo opportunities for the Klassens.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI took thousands of pictures, so it’s a month or two of editing.\u201d Klassen said.\u00a0\u201c I\u2019ve\u00a0probably done\u00a0just over half of them right now. I post them on my website\u00a0topstockphoto.com<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n