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Expedition Team Directory
Browse our directory of expedition team members who will join us on upcoming expeditions.
By Expertise
- Expedition Leader
- Naturalist
- Undersea Diving
- National Geographic Photography Expert
By Destination
- Alaska
- Galápagos
Expedition staff are subject to change.
Our Team
Naturalist/Certified Photo Instructor
Michael Nolan
Michael Nolan was born in Bitburg, Germany to an Air Force family stationed there. His first experience of the ocean came at age 12, when he learned to snorkel in the Italian Mediterranean. At age 17 he moved to Tucson, Arizona and became a PADI SCUBA instructor, before starting a SCUBA diving business that specialized in diving trips to the Sea of Cortez. Michael has since begun a new career in marine photography. He worked with National Geographic dolphin researchers in the Bahamas throughout the nineties, as well as running trips to the Silver Banks in the Dominican Republic to study and photograph Atlantic Humpback Whales. Today he is an award-winning photographer who specializes in intimate portraits of marine animals. He has traveled the oceans of the world in search of the world's most magnificent beings. His photography has appeared in hundreds of magazines, calendars, and books in over 45 countries worldwide. He currently "migrates" with the whales, spending his winters in the warmer tropical latitudes where whales mate and give birth and his summers in the cooler higher latitudes where animals migrate to feed.
Naturalist
Octavio Maravilla
Octavio was born in Mexico City and moved to La Paz at age 19, to study Marine Biology at the Baja California Sur State University. He began his field research on California sea lions, working at Los Islotes, a small rookery close to La Paz City. Later, he expanded his research to all the sea lion colonies in the Gulf of California and over the Pacific coast of the Baja California Peninsula — aside sea lions, he studied three other species of Mexican pinnipeds, harbor seals, elephant seals, and Guadalupe fur seals. His graduate work includes censuses of California sea lions in five different colonies on the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula. In 1986 Octavio travelled to Paris, France, where he spent a year obtaining a degree in animal behavior. Returning to La Paz in 1987, he began research with gray whales in Mexico; a directed and coordinated international effort to do censuses with the endangered vaquita porpoise of the Gulf of California. He joined Lindblad Expeditions for a first period in 1994 until the year 2000 in Baja California. Then he engaged in further research to obtain his Ph.D., working in the Bay of La Paz, analyzing and studying the interactions between sea lions and fisheries. He obtained his degree in August 2005. Octavio rejoined Lindblad Expeditions in 2006 season working only in Baja California. He lives in La Paz, Baja California Sur, recently he retired and works teaching French at the French Alliance of La Paz.
Naturalist
Marylou Blakeslee
For the past 20 years, Marylou Blakeslee has traveled the world sharing her love of wild places. She lectures on a number of topics from the bears and wolves of the Arctic, to the leopard seals and whales of the Antarctic, as well as the turtles and fishes of the Great Barrier Reef. Most summers Marylou works as a park ranger at Glacier Bay National Park. Fall finds her guiding trips among the “ice experts,” the polar bears of Churchill, Manitoba. Her naturalist work in Antarctica, in the austral summer, provides ample opportunity to share observations on interactions of ice, climate and marine life. Late winter, Baja beckons with grey whales birthing in warm lagoons and desert wildflowers in bloom. She also leads trips to Yellowstone for a glimpse of the winter world of the wolf. Marylou Blakeslee began her involvement with the natural world through her love of drawing and painting. Her work is included in collections across the country and internationally. Leading hikes, lecturing, kayaking, snorkeling, wildlife spotting and painting are some of her favorite things to do. Come share with her the varied natural treasures and beauty this world has to offer.
Naturalist/Certified Photo Instructor
Jennifer Davidson
Jennifer Davidson has been a lifelong lover of wide open spaces. She grew up in a ranching family in remote West Texas. Her roots run many generations deep in that land, which she has always considered home. She studied marine biology on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, participating in monitoring projects in the bays of Texas’s Coastal Bend Region and the Flower Gardens National Marine Sanctuary. In 2005, she moved back to the drier climates, this time to the mountains of Northern New Mexico, to pursue a career in photography, which had been a lifelong source of enjoyment. Jennifer has photographed across the globe, focusing her lens on cultures, wildlife, and landscapes to tell the stories of the places she visits. Jennifer has taught photography workshops throughout the United States with National Geographic Expeditions and the Santa Fe Workshops. Her work from South America and the Galapagos Islands has been published in National Geographic Traveller (UK). As a passionate and patient instructor, she enjoys teaching photographers to see the world in new ways through their cameras. Since she began traveling with Lindblad Expeditions in 2007, she has served as a photo instructor in Alaska, the Amazon, Baja California, Cuba, Europe, Galapagos, the Mediterranean, the South Pacific, and Southeast Asia.
Naturalist/Certified Photo Instructor
Steve Morello
Steve Morello has had a long and colorful career in the natural history world. Born in New Jersey he was lucky to be able to summer on the shores of Cape Cod. Whether it was exploring the tidal pools, snorkeling along the beach, or hiking in the dunes, it all came together to instill in him a deep connection to the natural world. It was no surprise that he would return to the Cape as a whale researcher in his adult years. It was on the Cape that Steve first became involved in guiding, and for 15 years acted as naturalist on whale watching boats in the Gulf of Maine. Steve worked with groups creating environmental education material for school programs and soon found another one of his passions, photography. Well known as a professional wildlife photographer and guide, Steve’s work has appeared in countless publications, including National Geographic magazines and books, The New York Times , and photo collections of the World Wildlife Fund. Steve has written numerous magazine articles on the subjects of travel and nature photography. He is the author of The Traveling Nature Photographer , which has been acclaimed as a must-have for anyone who travels and is interested in photography. Although now a photographer more than anything else, he stays active in the research field and is on the Board of Directors of the Alaskan Whale Foundation, where he assists on research of the whales of Southeast Alaska. Steve is also working on a new project off the coast of Peru where sustainable tourism, scientists, and local fishermen will be working together to conserve a newly created marine sanctuary.
National Geographic Photography Expert
Krista Rossow
For more than a decade, Krista Rossow has worked as a photographer, photo editor, and educator for National Geographic. She began her career as a photo editor at National Geographic Traveler magazine, where she shaped compelling stories from world-class imagery. In her freelance career, she has shot feature stories as a contributing photographer for Traveler in Japan, South Africa, Morocco, Costa Rica, New Zealand, and various U.S. cities. She regularly judges Instagram contests for @NatGeoTravel and photo edits for National Geographic Books. Krista travels with National Geographic Expeditions teaching photography around the world–from the Galápagos Islands, Patagonia, and Peru to Alaska, Antarctica, and the Arctic. She sees the camera as a tool for understanding new cultures, meeting the locals, and exploring the natural world. Her images are represented by National Geographic Image Collection.
National Geographic Photography Expert
Todd Gipstein
Todd Gipstein has been a photographer, writer, producer, and lecturer for more than 40 years. He has worked with National Geographic since 1987. For many years, he was the Geographic’s Director of Multi-Image and an Executive Producer of Media. His photographs have been published in National Geographic and Traveler magazines and in many books. His award-winning documentaries for the Geographic have dealt with a diverse range of topics, including photography, nature, the environment, history, exploration, travel, and National Geographic itself. His work is known worldwide for its evocative storytelling. He continues to take photographs for the Nat Geo Creative image library. An enthusiastic traveler and teacher, Todd has lectured, presented his documentaries, and given photography workshops for the Geographic around the world. His photography has been exhibited internationally, and he regularly participates in photography and media festivals in Italy. Born and raised in New London, Connecticut, a graduate of Harvard, Todd has written three novels—Legacy of the Light, Magician’s Choice, and In the Shadow of the Light—all historical fiction. He is currently working on another, Elephant Island. Todd is also a magician and collector of magic memorabilia. In their not so spare time, he and his wife Marcia, a photo editor and yoga teacher, are restoring New London Ledge Lighthouse. It is a mile out to sea off the coast of their home in Groton, Connecticut. You can learn more about Todd at his website www.Gipstein.com and on Facebook/GipsteinBooks.
Expedition Leader
Doug Gould
Travel and adventure were an integral part of Doug’s upbringing in a small town on the south shore of Long Island, New York. Growing up on the Great South Bay, his family claims Doug learned to sail before he learned to walk. Whether it was camping, sailing, birding, traveling across country or spending most of fifth grade living in Europe, Doug’s formative years left him with a love of wildlife, the outdoors, and a desire to keep moving. After receiving a B.A. in dramatic arts from the University of California, Santa Barbara, Doug mixed a short career in the film and TV industry with two summers working for the Catalina Island Harbor Patrol, which led to his owning the third largest private marine rescue company in California. Doug sat on the Board of Directors of the Vessel Assist Association of America for three years and has lectured extensively to the marine assistance industry about safety and risk management. In 2003, he volunteered to work for Oceanites as a member of their Antarctic Site Inventory wildlife census team (aka: a penguin counter). This opportunity included numerous trips to the Antarctic Peninsula over the span of three seasons. The Antarctic Site Inventory focused on gathering data about the impact of tourism on Antarctic wildlife, and helped to develop some of the Antarctic Treaty recommendations that govern tourism today. Since 2011, Doug has worked full time as a naturalist, photographer and expedition leader, working primarily in the polar regions. In 2015 he joined Lindblad Expeditions, and continues to share his enthusiasm for travel and adventure as an expedition leader and certified photo instructor.
Expedition Leader
John Mitchell
Raised in the mountains of Crested Butte, Colorado, John has always been a “child of nature,” where the natural world around him was life’s classroom. After graduating from Colorado State University with degrees in Speech Communication and Biology, John joined Lindblad Expeditions. Over the years with Lindblad he tried to learn every aspect of vessel operations while spending his “free time” learning all that he could from the naturalists on board. His time off the boats was spent traveling throughout North, South, and Central America learning more about the areas. John left “for a spell” to pursue a post-graduate degree in marine ecology in Hawaii, fell in love with island life and now calls Maui home. Most recently working as a Coastal Management Specialist for NOAA Pacific Region, he has also been the Program Director for an educational non-profit whose mission was to excite youth about science and all things natural. John has also served as a naturalist, junior high and high school marine science field teacher. He also worked on the Marine Turtle Research Project, and spent five years as the Fish and Habitat Monitoring Coordinator for the State of Hawaii. John is passionate about the need to re-connect our youth to the environment in order to sustain meaningful education.
Naturalist
Jeff Campbell
Jeff Campbell fell in love with the ocean while attending boatbuilding school in Eastport, Maine. Since completing his MS in Marine and Estuarine Science at Western Washington University, he has worked for NOAA documenting the ecological impacts of transoceanic fiber-optic cable; the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife developing an aging method for sixgill sharks; the Lummi Tribe as a Harvest Biologist; Northwest Indian College teaching Fisheries and Wildlife Biology, and as a volunteer for the Whatcom County Marine Mammal Stranding Network. He has been involved in research developing mitigation methods for harmful algae blooms, sterilization methods for oil tanker ballast water, and techniques for screening refinery effluent for harmful ecological effects. He also served as Principle Director on a USDA-funded grant using student interns to study the impact of nutrient-rich run-off on seasonal dead-zones in Bellingham Bay. Jeff is passionate about the marine environment, particularly the northeast Pacific, and believes that the key to preserving this fragile biome is lighting the spark in others by sharing his knowledge on the interconnectedness of seemingly disparate systems. He is particularly interested in the effects of ocean acidification on the larval stages of mollusk, and arthropod larvae. Summers for the last three years have found him driving expedition landing craft and sharing the joys of whale watching with guests. A Lummi Island, Washington resident for more than 18 years, Jeff lives with his wife Penny, who has been a marine naturalist on whale watch boats in the Salish Sea for many years, and their cat, Boo.
Video Chronicler
Ashley Karitis
Ashley was raised in Central Oregon where she spent her childhood ski racing, riding horses, playing classical piano, and working summer jobs on a dude ranch. She then attended the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles earning degrees in cinema-television, history, and international relations. Although immersed in the studies of narrative filmmaking, she gravitated toward the process, deeper on-camera conversations, and scientific and human themes explored in documentary production. Since graduating from USC, Ashley has produced, directed, photographed, and edited feature and short film projects that have ruminated on octogenarian romance, followed grassroots peace activists, and depicted a myriad of characters and cultures. She helped to produce documentary and public broadcast series such as History Detectives, Time Team America, and Oregon Field Guide that have taken her to the aisles of the Library of Congress, pits of archaeology digs across the United States, and to remote communities in the Americas, Africa, Central Asia, and more. As a Video Chronicler, Ashley enjoys the great privilege to be behind the camera shooting wildlife in remote & scenic environments and editing together a compelling, authentic story. Ashley currently resides in Bend, Oregon, and when not on assignment, enjoys skiing, hiking, horses, rock climbing, and water sports.
Amy Malkoski
Amy was raised near Cape Cod in coastal Marion, Massachusetts, and her relationship with the ocean and nature has always been an active one. Her parents, avid divers and marine biologists, introduced her to the underwater world when she was very young and she grew up participating in as many water-related activities as possible. Amy spent her summers sailing and exploring intertidal areas of Buzzards Bay. At age 12 she became a certified diver and is now a divemaster with the National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI). In high school her passion for nature and art developed into a love of photography, using the medium to share her explorations with others. Amy studied visual arts with a concentration in photography, as well as studying anthropology and sociology at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island. While studying, she worked as a lab assistant at a shellfish hatchery in Rhode Island where she gained experience in the husbandry, reproduction, and planting of shellfish, with a focus on oysters. Her interests in the undersea, photography, and the study of cultures have allowed her some wonderful experiences, including developing and leading a land tour and diving trip to the Azorean Islands of Portugal. She has dived and worked in Roatán, Honduras, throughout the U.K., and in the cold waters of Arctic Svalbard, Greenland, the Norwegian fjords and Iceland. Since joining Lindblad Expeditions, Amy has pursued her love for cold water diving and exploring unique regions. Her appreciation for the diversity of life, culture, and art means she’s always looking forward to the next adventure. Quite at home on the sea, she hopes to share her passion with others and inspire in them a love for nature and all of its inhabitants.
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