This 7-day photo-safari starts at Maun airport in Botswana, from where you’ll fly over the lush Okavango Delta to Moremi Game Reserve. A luxury safari vehicle will then escort you to the campsite where you’ll receive a welcome drink – one of South Africa’s award-winning wines, craft beer or a famous local liqueur Amarula – and a briefing on daily activities and safety measures. Your glamping accommodation is a luxurious tent with a king size bed, and each tent has bathroom en suite.
You’ll have time to unpack your clothes and then head out for your first game drive in the top-of-the-range 4×4 game vehicle, where you could experience some of the magic of the bush and see elephants, hippos, zebras, giraffes, lion, leopards and even the elusive wild dogs.
Nights out under the warm African sky in a luxury tent let you breathe and experience the bush and its fauna and flora in a way you’ll never forget. Imagine watching the vibrant sunset with an Amarula (local liqueur), in hand, and eventually retiring to sleep under the stars, in complete silence, with a cool African breeze rustling through your tent.
Private chefs will cater for every meal in this all-inclusive trip, and the team will pack up and move your tent to a new location while you enjoy 4×4 game drives in the comfortable game vehicle. See the Big 5, and experience unique animal sightings (such as honey badgers and Kori Bustards) with the experienced guides.
The safari vehicle comfortably seats six guests to ensure maximum comfort for the best game viewing and photography. As part of the luxury African off-road driving experience, the vehicle is kitted out with comfortable bucket seats, storage pockets, arm rests and camera charging points. You will also find reference books for further reading, and for the sometimes surprisingly chilly African mornings, fleece blankets and hot water bottles will be provided.
What to bring:
Camera DSLR / mirrorless
Lenses 300 mm or longer
Lens for landscape 16 - 35mm (preferably f2.8) - lenses need lens hoods
Cover for dust and rain
Tripod
4x Memory cards (32 GB or more)
Ideally also bring Laptop with Lightroom and / or Photoshop
Card reader
Lens cleaning kit
Note block and pen
Also important to consider:
Binoculars
Sun block factor 30 or higher
Cap / sunhat
Light walking shoes
Shorts
Swimming costume
Rain jacket
Warm jacket (fleece) - sitting on an open safari vehicle at sunrise can be chilly!
If travelling during winter (April - October), also bring windproof jacket and scarf. It can be very cold early morning and evening on the open safari vehicle!
It is essential that you travel with adequate medical travel insurance, which should also include special medical evacuation cover.
This delta in north-west Botswana comprises permanent marshlands and seasonally flooded plains. It is one of the very few major interior delta systems that do not flow into a sea or ocean, with a wetland system that is almost intact. One of the unique characteristics of the site is that the annual flooding from the River Okavango occurs during the dry season, with the result that the native plants and animals have synchronized their biological cycles with these seasonal rains and floods. The Okavango Delta is home to some of the world’s most endangered species of large mammal, such as the cheetah, white rhinoceros, black rhinoceros, African wild dog and lion.
Rhino were extinct in the Okavango, but both black and white rhino have been reintroduced in the reserve, although sightings are still rare. All the other Big Five are easily spotted – even the hardest to find, the leopard – are quite relaxed here. Wild dog sightings (a once in a lifetime experience) are some of the best in Africa. The best time to go to see this incredible creature is the middle of the dry season, when the area is most flooded, and food is plentiful, and you can find the dogs denning.
For those who enjoy birding, there are some 500 different woodlands and water birds. Moremi offers very good bird watching year-round, but the best time is during the wet months, from November to April, when summer migrants make the reserve their temporary home. Wildlife viewing is better during the dry months, from May to October, when the brush has died down and the animals are easier to view.
Each day at your photo safari camp will follow more or less this programme (excluding arrival and departure day):
Early morning Wake up with tea / coffees and snacks - Morning game drive: (3 hours)
A photo safari morning starts a little before sunrise! For many, this is a big challenge, but nevertheless imperative, in order to take full advantage of the golden morning light which embellishes most wildlife and nature images. This is also the time of day when most animals are active, so the mornings should give you some great opportunities for capturing striking images. Remember, there is more to wildlife photography than lions; e.g. "the little things"!
An early wake-up call is usually made approximately 30 minutes ahead of departure. This allows for a quick wash and a hot beverage just to get those creative juices flowing….
After a pre-check and briefing by your photo guide (including giving some suggestions for camera settings and a brief over-view of what to expect on the drive), we set off. Your guide is always available on the vehicle to provide constructive suggestions and individual help during the actual drive.
About midway through the morning drive we take a comfort / coffee break in a safe area, to allow guests to stretch their legs and enjoy a hot beverage and some biscuits/rusks etc
Your photographic guide will help you with the camera settings for each specific situation and condition. You need to understand the basic photography terms such as aperture, shutter speed, ISO, metering, drive modes, focus selection points, etc. It is also important to know where and when you should change these settings (with wildlife photography you may miss the special shot if you are fumbling with your camera looking for which button to adjust).
Topics of Importance for Wildlife Photography:
- knowing your subject (the more you know about your subject, i.e. animal, the more likely you are able to predict its whereabouts and actions)
- Getting the shot perfect in the field – without having to do lots of editing in Photoshop afterwards
- using RAW for maximum results
- how and when to use autofocus / manual focus
- controlling Depth of Field
- settings for night (low light) photography
- focusing on the eyes
- know what you want the image to say. Have the images got a special feeling? Do they tell a story?
- composition: Rule of thirds
- use a flash: during day and night
- mastering birds in flight
- importance of supporting your camera
The morning game-drive usually takes about 3 hours (depending on what we see), and we then return to the camp for a delicious brunch / late breakfast.
Between Breakfast/Brunch and Lunch/High Tea
After breakfast, photo safari guests may retire to a quiet, private corner of the camp to assess the morning results. There will be free time or optional lectures on editing (Photoshop / Lightroom) as well as photography tips and tricks, depending on the group and their preferences. Edit images for the presentation of your best 3 images (which will be held after dinner).
What else? How about read a book, sleep or just sit still and listen to the sounds of raw nature?
Late Lunch / High Tea
We meet again early afternoon for a light meal, before setting off on the afternoon Game Drive (minimum 3 hours). Similar to the morning game drive, we try to find our subjects to photograph. The photo-guide will help you with some tips and tricks for sunset and night photography, and using flash and lights to enhance your shot. Just before twilight, a safe area is located for evening sundowners, where alcohol or soft beverages are served with lights snacks. (Drinks on the drive are usually pre-ordered before the drive sets out).
After sundowners, the guests will experience driving in darkness with a vehicle spotlight to find interesting animals/owls etc, then returning to camp.
Return to lodge after Sunset - Dinner
Time for a quick freshen up before we meet for dinner. After dinner we meet for maximum 1 hour. We will discuss and evaluate the 3 chosen images per photographer, from the last 2 game drives. These images are displayed for the group to see, with each image being discussed as a group and critiqued by your photo guide. It is NOT a competition, but an opportunity to learn by gaining an understanding of what constitutes a good image.
Bed time: a well-deserved rest after this exciting day in the African Bush. Remember, early start tomorrow!
Continue this photosafari with offers great flexibility as you will be the only guests in camp!
After a last morning game-drive we say goodbye to our camp hosts, before being transferred to the airstrip for a short light-aircraft flight back to Maun, where the tour ends.
