Kenya Photo Safari 2016

After several years of enthusiastic encouragement from Jack McLeod, I finally traveled to Kenya for my first safari in January, 2007. What I found was wildlife that surpassed anything that I had ever imagined. Through Jack’s experience and leadership, we visited three separate locations and observed and photographed all the famous African species and many others that were just as intriguing from a photography stand point. Every day in each location was different and we were constantly stopping to photograph new wildlife in new situations. Since 2007, I have returned to Kenya three more times for additional trips, one each in 2008, 2009, & 2010. Each trip was an adventure unsurpassed by anywhere else I have traveled. I expected the mammals in Kenya to be unsurpassed, but what surprised me was the incredible bird photography opportunities. The landscape also offers wonderful sunrise and sunset images. Based on my experiences and guides recommendations, I have decided there is no bad time to visit Kenya. The advantage of the summer months is the migration and I chose to schedule this workshop in July to August which will be during the huge wildebeest and zebra migration in the Masai Mara. Approximately 1.5 million wildebeest migrate each year (See The Migration Story) and we will be there to capture their journey and river crossings in camera. Following are all the details for this once in a lifetime trip.

Kenya is a country about the size of Texas that has preserved much natural land in reserves and parks. We will visit the three very best areas in the country. We will start out in Samburu National Reserve northwest of Nairobi. This reserve is a wonderful location to find the ever illusive leopard. There are also large numbers of elephants in the Samburu and the area also has five species that are not found anywhere else on our trip: gerenuk gazelle, reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, Beisa oryx, and the Somali ostrich. From the Samburu, we will next travel south to Lake Nakuru. Here we will find thousands of flamingos and pelicans along the lake side. This is also wonderful country for fish eagles and rhinos (both white & black). Lake Nakuru is also known as the bird capital of Kenya. Our last stop will be the crown jewel of Kenya, the Masai Mara. This is the best of big cat country with cheetahs and lions seen daily and leopards also frequently found. Elephants are also very abundant in the Mara and this is also the scene for the huge migrations of wildebeest and zebras, where we will do our best to observe and photograph a Mara River Crossing. Here is a day to day schedule of our trip:

July 23- arrive in Nairobi, we will be met by our safari outfitter and taken to the Karen Blixen (of Out Of Africa fame) Cottages in a Nairobi suburb to overnight.

July 27- July 28 - drive to Lake Nakuru. We will spend two nights at Lake Nakuru.

July 29-July 30 - drive to Mara and spend two nights at first Mara location.

July 31- Aug 4 - move to a different location in the Mara (Mara Intrepids) and spend five more nights.

At some locations, we will stay in tent camps, but to call these quarters tents is a grave injustice. They do have canvas sides, but these tents are very large, they must be at least 10 foot height on the inside. They are built on decks with a hard floor and thatched roofs that cover the entire tent. Additionally, each tent has its own bathroom with a shower and flush toilet. All the tents also have four poster beds and electricity. These camps preserve the old safari tradition and also have the benefits of a modern motel. Each morning your wake up call will be someone delivering coffee, tea, or hot chocolate to your room. In other locations, we will stay in more conventional lodges very similar to those back home, but most prefer the tent camps.

We will travel in very versatile, specially modified Land Rovers. These vehicles are designed for eight passengers plus the driver, and many trips fill them up with people. We will put three photographers in each vehicle. Each person will have his/her own row of seats to spread out with camera gear. Additionally, each person will have their own overhead hatch to work from. This allows a full 360 degree view for photographing, no matter where the subject is located. The Land Rovers are four wheel drive and very ruggedly built to handle mud and river crossings. The animals are accustomed to these vehicles being around in the parks and basically ignore them. It is not uncommon for a lion to walk right up to the van. Much of the expense of this trip is due to the limited number of people we have in each vehicle, but this configuration provides the very best photographic opportunities.

The single most important ingredient for a successful photo safaris are the guides and our drivers/guides are the very best in Kenya. I have used the same guides each trip and am convinced they are why our trips have been so successful. Each of them is licensed by the country and have over twenty years of experience. Besides being skillful drivers in every situation, they are also all extremely knowledgeable about all the wildlife that we will encounter. They are eager to answer any questions and always ready to position the vehicles for the best light and location for each photograph. We have hand picked the guides for photo safari experience and we know them for our prior safaris. By the time you leave to head for home, you will have new Kenyan friends that have led you during you stay. On a recent safari, the persistence of our drivers got us thirty minutes of unobstructed photography with a leopard. At one point, there were at least ten different vans looking for this leopard, but all the other vans except ours gave up and left before the leopard appeared from its hiding place. The experience of our drivers made for some wonderful leopard images.

A typical safari day starts at 6:30 am as we depart camp for sunrise and the warm early morning light. Our drivers will usually bring along a box lunch for each of us for breakfast and we will stop and eat sometime during the morning. We will continue to photograph until around 11:00 - 12:00 pm. When the sun gets high and the light gets bad, we will return to camp to down load, recharge, and have lunch. There is also time for a swim at the camp pool or a nap. At 4:15 pm, we will meet again at the vehicles and head out for our second game drive. This one will be shorter and we will be back at camp soon after sunset at around 6:30 pm. We will then have dinner and coordinate our next morning wake up call.

laundry, beverages (coffee and tea are included), and other personal expenses

We will also offer one seat at a discount in each vehicle as a non photographer location. This person will ride in the front of the vehicle next to the driver and will have full access to left front window. This person will not have access to an overhead hatch and can photograph only from the window in the door. This extra person will not affect the other locations in the van and each photographer will still have the same area available if we add a person in the front of the van

Basic Trip (3 Locations) - $10750, single supplement $2150, Non Photographer Discount $1000

If requested, we will help you find a roommate, but if not found, you will be at the single rate.

For at least the past decade, the U.S. State Department has issued a travel advisory for travel to Kenya. I believe this started with the bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi around fifteen years ago. Just prior to our first trip, Jack did extensive research with the State Department and the U.S. embassy in Nairobi concerning the dangers of a trip such as this safari. Traveling anywhere in today’s world climate is not riskless, but both agencies agreed there would be minimal danger in this trip. The person at the embassy said she was not afraid at all in Nairobi and she was making plans to bring her parents over for a visit. We will spend minimal time in the cities and almost all of our time in the parks. We will be met at airport by our outfitter and driven by private van to our motel. We will not be traveling alone, but always escorted. Our outfitter has been leading safaris for many years and U.S. photo workshops have been operating in Kenya for over twenty years without incident. We believe that Kenya is no more dangerous than many other places through out the world where Americans travel every day. There has been zero Ebola in Kenya.

If you are a person interested in wildlife photography, Kenya is unequaled anywhere on earth. The number of animals, variety of species, and the proximity to our van make each day a new and different adventure. Kenya is now actively preserving its wildlife, hunting is illegal everywhere in the country. No where else can give you this type of photo experience. I hope you can join us and witness the Kenyan wildlife yourself. We anticipate this workshop will fill quickly, so sign up soon if you want to go.

During a trip to Kenya, we visited the Samburu tribe. Part of their show for us was a jumping competition of the warriors. We sent Albie, our most seasoned warrior, to represent our group. As you can see he beat their best. Photo by Bill Kirms, with a little help from Photoshop.

"I can never thank Roger enough for the trip to Africa. It was very well planned to the last detail. David and Felix were the best guides in Africa. The chefs always cheerfully prepared my food to avoid my food allergies. the accommodations were excellent, especially the tents. Every day we saw lions and monkeys. The jackals with smiles on their faces captured my heart. In addition we photographed leopards, elephants, cheetahs, zebras, giraffes and a mother hyena nursing her young. I could go on and on but you get the idea. It was fantastic!" Penny, Coco Beach, FL

"Before your trip to Kenya we had previously taken a safari to Tanzania. I thought I had some very good images from that trip. The images from our Kenya trip were far superior to those I shot in Tanzania! Felix, Davis, and Joseph were excellent guides and really got us in position to take great images. There was a huge difference between a safari and a photo safari. Thanks for the trip of a lifetime. We hope to join you again." Bill, Brick, NJ