Slovenia Bear Photography: A Guide’s Story from the Hides

Pandora Maund is one of our expert guides and an award-winning wildlife photographer.  Earlier this year she led our bear photography tour in Slovenia. Here she shares what it’s like to wait in the hides, the gear she relied on and the wildlife that made the experience, from brown bears to foxes and kingfishers.

All photos taken by Pandora.

Having photographed bears in Finland, I was thrilled to be invited to guide a bear photography tour in Slovenia for Penda Photo Tours. It was my first visit to the country, and the contrast was striking. Instead of endless pine forests, Slovenia offers rolling valleys, picturesque villages, ancient woodland and dramatic mountains.

The country has a long tradition of providing small, strictly regulated amounts of supplementary food, typically corn, at designated sites under the direction of the relevant authorities. The aim is to support wildlife management and reduce conflict between bears and local communities, rather than alter natural behaviour. In the hides, the emphasis was on silence, patience and respect, which closely reflects my own approach: observing animals with minimal disturbance and appreciating the privilege of sharing their world.

My Gear for Bear Photography in Slovenia

As always, I travelled with my trusty OM SYSTEM OM-1 and OM-1 Mark II. I prefer two bodies so I never have to change lenses in the field, especially in a hide, where even the slightest noise can spook your subject.

Distances to the bears vary from hide to hide, so having the right lens ready is essential. My main wildlife lens was the M.Zuiko 150–400mm F4.5 TC1.25x IS PRO. With its built-in teleconverter it reaches 300–1000mm (35mm equivalent), yet it weighs just over 4 lbs and its outstanding stabilisation makes it comfortable to handhold for long periods. Alongside it, I put the new M.Zuiko 50–200mm F2.8 PRO through its paces for closer subjects and wider, more environmental frames, and I packed my 12–40mm F2.8 PRO just in case I needed something wider for landscapes or behind-the-scenes images.

Waiting for Bears: The Art of Hide Photography

On arrival at our guesthouse, the local guides gave us a warm welcome and brought us up to date on recent bear activity. You could feel the excitement in the air, especially among those who had never seen a wild bear before. For me, it is something you never forget. We all grow up with teddy bears and Goldilocks, yet seeing a real one in its natural habitat is an entirely different experience, and one relatively few people ever enjoy.

Unlike a traditional safari, hide photography is all about patience. Even if a hide was bustling the day before, there is never any guarantee the bears will return. Our hides held between two and five photographers, each with chairs and a wooden shelf for a beanbag or gimbal head. I prefer a gimbal, but as I only own one, my second camera rested on a beanbag.

Once settled, silence is absolutely essential. Bears generally avoid people (understandably, as they are still hunted during annual population management culls) and the slightest sound can send one disappearing back into the forest. We had a reminder of this on the walk to the first hide, when a couple of bears moved quietly through the woodland ahead of us. Thanks to our guide’s calm experience, we simply kept walking while they melted back into the trees. These encounters are on the bears’ terms, not ours.

Then came the waiting. Over the years I seem to have developed a sixth sense for when a bear is about to appear, and they do so with remarkable stealth, materialising silently at the edge of the woodland to assess their surroundings. When one arrives, resist the temptation to start firing away. Give the animal a chance to settle, as even the movement of a large lens can make it wary. Silent shooting mode is a must, and any autofocus confirmation beeps should be switched off long before the bear arrives.

Our first visitor was a dark-coloured sub-adult, probably around three years old. It stepped cautiously into the clearing and paused to sniff the air, checking for any sign of danger.

Soon afterwards, a smaller, light brown bear appeared, possibly a young female. Identifying young bears can be surprisingly difficult, as they have not yet developed their adult features. The pair stayed in front of us for around forty minutes before something unseen startled them back into the trees. It had been a wonderful first encounter, with memory cards filling rapidly.

Over the rest of the trip we enjoyed three more sessions in different hides, and every one produced bear sightings. Each was different, with the forest light shifting from harsh shafts of sunlight to soft, dappled shade and endless opportunities to experiment with composition and mood.

For intimate portraits, I relied mainly on the 150–400mm, which let me isolate expressions and behaviour.

I also enjoyed switching to the 50–200mm to place the bears within the wider forest. As the evening light began to fade around 7.30 pm, its fast f/2.8 aperture became invaluable, allowing me to keep shooting with good image quality and a comfortable shutter speed.

Hide photography is about immersing yourself in the rhythm of the forest and accepting that nature dictates the timetable. When a bear finally steps quietly into view, all those hours of patience are instantly forgotten.

Surprise Visitors: A Family of Foxes

One afternoon we were treated to an unexpected visit from five foxes, which became one of the highlights of the trip. Back home we often see foxes as pests, but here they are rural, forest-dwelling animals, sharing their habitat with large carnivores that are both predators and competitors. The vixen and her cubs spent more than an hour playing, chasing each other and exploring, a reminder of how different a species can seem in its true environment.

Bird Photography from the Reflection Pool Hide.

We also visited a long wooden bird hide, seating around eight, which overlooked a reflection pool right up to its edge. We photographed through non-reflective glass, with a gimbal or beanbag once again recommended.

It was time to change the subject recognition on my camera from Cat (which works well for most mammals) to Bird. The birdlife was constant, with a steady stream of jays, nuthatches, great spotted woodpeckers, white wagtails and hawfinches, to name just a few.

Initially we photographed the birds as they came to drink, but it soon became more exciting to capture them in flight or bathing. This is where Pro Capture really came into its own. By half-pressing the shutter in anticipation, the camera continuously records to a temporary buffer and only saves the frames from just before you fully press, which proved invaluable for those unpredictable moments.

Photographing Kingfishers on the River

One morning we were offered the chance to photograph kingfishers from temporary pop-up hides along the river. We jumped at it, and our patience was rewarded with several visits from these stunning birds. We were one tripod short, so I shot handheld with the 50–200mm and was especially grateful for the camera’s 5-axis Sync IS, which kept everything steady without any support.

Exploring Retje

We also made time to explore, walking through the village of Retje and along the valley towards a picturesque church. Water level markers along the path were a reminder that this peaceful valley can become a lake during periods of intense rainfall and snowmelt.

The wildflowers and butterflies flourishing throughout made for a relaxing and rewarding morning with the camera.

Why Slovenia Is Special for Bear Photography

Slovenia is a wonderful place to photograph wildlife. Although it has become increasingly popular with those hoping to capture Europe’s iconic brown bears, the country has worked hard to retain an ethical approach, partnering closely with local communities and conservationists. Visitor numbers are carefully limited and the photography season is deliberately kept short so the bears do not become too accustomed to people.

Photographing bears here feels like a real privilege. There are no guarantees, and patience is an essential part of the experience, but that is exactly what makes it so special. Every sighting feels earned, every photograph tells a story, and every quiet moment in the forest is a reminder that nature operates on its own terms.

About the Author

Pandora Maund has been leading photography workshops and tours for more than 16 years, and wildlife photography has always been her true passion. A committed conservationist, she uses her images to document conservation work and raise awareness of the world’s most vulnerable species. Her work has been recognised as Highly Commended in Nature Photographer of the Year 2024, a finalist in the 2024 Natural History Museum Wildlife Photographer of the Year, and a winner in the British Photography Awards 2025.

Join Pandora in Slovenia

If Pandora’s time in the hides has you picturing yourself behind the lens, you can join her on our Bears of Slovenia Photo Tour.  Whatever camera system you use, Pandora will tailor her guidance to your goals from camera technique to light, composition and editing.

Hide places are limited by design and the bear season is short, we we recommend registering early.

View tour dates and details