I visited Sepilok as a speaker at the Borneo Bird Festival a few years ago, and
can heartily recommend the place. The wildlife, the scenery and the people
were all terrific. Nowhere was I made to feel as I have in Bali and other
places, like a tourist and therefore a “milch cow” as Carl mentioned.
Denise Lawungkurr Goodfellow
PO Box 71
Darwin River, NT, Australia 0841
PhD candidate
Vice-chair Wildlife Tourism Australia
On 22 May 2014, at 7:42 pm, Carl Clifford <> wrote:
> Geoff,
>
> Unfortunately, Yayasan Sabah is a private company, whose main activities are
> timber and palm oil production. They control massive swathes of Sabah. They
> have strong links to the Sabah Chief Minister and his family and basically
> can do what they like. Good luck with with trying to get that demand for the
> fee rescinded.
>
> There are plenty of other places in Sabah where you can get excellent bird
> photographs without being viewed as a milch cow. I would suggest spending a
> week at the Rainforest Discovery Centre and the Sepilok-Kabilli Reserve at
> Sepilok. Same species as Danum and much cheaper accom etc. also at the RDC
> and Kabilli, you have a good chance of seeing wild Orangs as they go to and
> from the Orang Sanctuary for a free feed. If you want any info on the RDC,
> Sepilok-Kabilli contact me off line.
>
> Carl Clifford
>
>> On 22 May 2014, at 17:48, "Geoffrey Allan Jones" <>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Good Evening everyone.
>>
>> I have been reading with interest the thread about charges for using your
>> camera in National Parks and I have come across 2 experiences in Australia,
>> One at Lawn Hill were I was walking along a path beside the river carrying
>> my 500 lens & camera and was asked by the ranger if I was a professional
>> photographer which I answered no and moved on. The other time was down here
>> in my home patch at Pound Bend Reserve Warrandyte. When a couple of rangers
>> asked me was I a professional Photographer because of the size of the lens
>> that I was using, and again I said no. In both cases it was assumed that
>> because I was using a large lens I must be a professional photographer. What
>> is the reason for this? I believe that it goes back to a time when some
>> commercial filmmakers rope off certain areas in Nat Parks to shoot wildlife
>> docs and so it was for that reason the need for a permit is needed, but it
>> should not be for someone walking along a track and not interfering with
>> animals or people walking along the track. So there is always a presumption
>> that because you own a large lens and have a website you must be a
>> professional, a fine example of this is an email that was sent to my Travel
>> Agent from Borneo Rainforest Lodge last week, below is the email
>>
>>
>>
>> We understand that Mr Geoffrey Jones is a professional wildlife photographer
>> and wants to photograph birds at Borneo Rainforest Lodge/ Danum Valley. He
>> also has his own website with photographs that he has taken throughout his
>> travels. Please inform him that as a professional photographer he has to pay
>> a photography fee of RM500 per camera to do photography in the Danum Valley
>> Conservation Area (DVCA). This fee is not imposed by us, but by the Danum
>> Valley Management Committee (DVMC) under Yayasan Sabah. It will go towards
>> the conservation fund of the DVCA. He can pay this fee directly at our Lahad
>> Datu office, or the Danum Valley Field Centre office in Lahad Datu town
>> (just next door to BNT LDU office). Please inform Mr Jones of this fee.
>>
>>
>>
>> Once again I have contacted them to let them know that I would love to make
>> money out of my photographs but the cold hard reality is I would be owed
>> about $300,000 dolllars for the trips that I have done to secure my library
>> of photos that are on my website. So if you are heading overseas beware!
>>
>>
>>
>> So I am off to Bali next week for a wedding and I have a couple of days to
>> spare for birding and would appreciate some advice from my fellow brethren
>> and then too Borneo for 3 weeks chasing the Pittas of Danum Valley and the
>> Hornbills at Sukau Lodge
>>
>> Kindest Regards
>>
>> Geoff Jones
>>
>> Barraimaging
>>
>> Your Non Professional Photographer
>>
>>
>>
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