My wife and I took Tahoe Photographic Tours on our first day in Tahoe - September 24, 2009. I highly recommend doing this early so you can get to know Tahoe right away. Craig, our guide, picked us up at our hotel, right on time (9am). We got into his spacious SUV and went to pick up one other couple at a hotel right down the street. Somebody got the dates wrong and the other couple wasn't there…we had our own personal tour…but even with one other couple it still would have been very personalized. We started on our way and our first stop was a quiet beach on Lake Tahoe. It was very beautiful and we got some awesome pictures with the mountain's reflection in the water. The next stop was overlooking Emerald Bay. After that we stopped at 4 other sites which included beautiful rivers, waterfalls, woods, and lakes. All of which had amazing places for pictures. Craig took us back to our hotel around 2pm. It was just the right amount of time. He had water, fruit, and granola bars to keep us from getting hungry.
Craig took us off the beaten path to get some great pictures. He even helped us climb down to get very close to a waterfall. Every time we went off the beaten path Craig showed us how to get to where we wanted to go, telling us which rocks to step on and which to avoid. He helped my wife up and down rocks, he even gave me a hand on some of the tougher ones.
I'm making this sound like the tour is only for those who can handle rough terrain…don't worry if you don't want to or are unable to handle lifting yourself up and down rocks and tree stumps or walking on rocks across a stream. You'll still get some awesome pictures if you want to stay on the road-more-travelled. Just make sure you wear tennis shoes.
As for the pictures…see for yourself. I've attached some to this review. Abosolutely amazing. We will definitely be blowing some up to hang on our walls.
Craig was very knowledgeable about Lake Tahoe. He was good company and had some entertaining stories. He gave us a some good tips on what else to do in Lake Tahoe and some good places to eat.
Overall, I would recommend this tour to anyone who wants to take pictures of one of the most beautiful places in the world. Even if you forget your camera, your guide will take plenty of pictures…most of which will be better than most amateurs can do. One more word of advice…be creative with poses. Your guide will be willing to take as many pictures as you want. Craig also took a lot of candid photos which turned out great. If you see a picture you want your guide to take, just ask.
Have fun!