Overview

Ultimate Photographer’s Safari

Join award-winning wildlife photographers Lou Coetzer and Justin Black for this superlative African safari experience in the Serengeti, for a small group of six passionate photographers, coinciding with the Wildebeest calving season and excellent big cat activity.

“This was the experience of a lifetime. Visionary Wild provided a terrific photo safari. The educational value of this workshop was unparalleled, and I have participated in many workshops. Justin Black and Lou Coetzer were both terrific in facilitating the photography learning experience and in finding the best locations to maximize the opportunities.” –2013 African Vision Safari Participant

In our experience, Lou Coetzer has proven to be the best there is at teaching the anticipation of animal behavior, timing, and camera handling skills that empower you to successfully capture “decisive moment” wildlife images. He and Justin Black of Visionary Wild have carefully chosen two distinct regions of Tanzania’s incredible Serengeti National Park – the Grumeti Western Corridor and Southern Serengeti near Ndutu – to offer a world-class, all-inclusive safari experience that features superb opportunities to capture stunning wildlife behavior, generous and effective photographic instruction, luxurious amenities, excellent photographer support, and a ton of fun! Lou and Justin are both renowned for the lengths they go to to ensure safari participants have an exceptional experience that exceeds expectations, all within a good-humored, collaborative atmosphere of camaraderie and mutually supportive exploration and learning.

• Unquestionably, the best photo-safari vehicles in the business: Our vehicles feature photographer’s chairs with fully adjustable 360-degree revolving, gas-assist-lifted Wimberley camera mounts. This makes it a breeze to work with big lenses and photograph dynamic wildlife behavior, repositioning and panning with ease.

• Loan of big telephoto lenses: We provide Nikon 600mm f/4 and 500mm f/4 AF-S super telephotos at no additional cost, so you don’t have to travel with them. Full-frame Nikon DSLR bodies are available for loan as well at no additional cost.

• Upscale &Beyond camps: Selected for their proximity to superb wildlife opportunities as well as excellence of accommodation, service, and catering, Grumeti Serengeti and Serengeti Under Canvas serve as first-rate safari base camps.

This package is designed to deliver a superb overall experience, and includes first-rate lodging, all meals, all beverages (including fine wines with dinner), expert guides, photographic instruction, loaner telephotos and cameras, use of custom photo vehicles, park entry fees, ground transfers, and charter flights during the itinerary.

Conceived as a unique wildlife photography experience optimized for opportunities to photograph peak action and behavior of Serengeti wildlife, this safari focuses on the heightened level of predator activity of early green season in the Western Corridor (when the grass is green but still short, and The Great Migration is not present so predators have to spend more time actively in search of prey), as well as the prey-rich Wildebeest calving in the south, when lion, cheetah, leopard, African wild dogs, hyenas, and jackals converge on the massive migratory herds to prey on newborn calves.

Rather than seeking to photograph a “tick list” of African fauna, we will give preference to excellent photographic scenarios: compelling subjects, dynamic behaviors and action, great light, and photogenic backgrounds. That said, other resident species we will encounter include elegant Thompson’s gazelles, Burchell’s zebras, elephants, giraffes, imposing African buffalo, impalas, topis, hippos, and crocodiles. If we are as fortunate as we have been in the past, we may even locate a few of Tanzania’s few remaining black rhinos. Diversity of birdlife is at its peak at this time of year as well, with over 550 species present in the Serengeti. From the brilliantly colorful Lilac-Breasted Roller, to the endangered dinosaur-like Southern Ground Hornbill, to the stately Crowned Crane, we will have ample opportunities for bird photography, which our photo vehicles and long lenses will facilitate tremendously.

Two new 4WD photo safari vehicles with innovative custom features deliver an ideal photographic experience. They seat three photographers along the centerline of the vehicle, with excellent lines of sight through pop-up hatches on either side. Each photographer has his or her own rotating photographer’s chair with fully adjustable revolving Wimberley-equipped telephoto lens mount.  Included at no additional cost is the loan of Nikon super-telephoto lenses (600mm f/4 and 500mm f/4) and pro camera bodies, so there is no need to carry big glass to Africa.

Click “read more” below right for the itinerary and more information…

Our itinerary makes the most of the incredible photographic opportunities, and offers attentive hands-on photographic instruction and expert guiding throughout:

Day 1: Feb 8

Arrive at Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO). You will be greeted at the airport and transferred to Onsea House Country Inn, on a hillside overlooking Arusha and Mt. Meru (14,977 ft.), to meet the group for dinner and settle into your lovely guest room for a restful night’s sleep.

Dinner and Overnight at Onsea House. (D)

Day 2: Feb 9

Early morning breakfast at Onsea House before transferring to Arusha Airport to board our charter flight directly to Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp. After settling into your luxury tent and a satisfying lunch, we will set out in our uniquely customized photo safari vehicles for our first game drive, returning just after sunset.

Overnight at &Beyond’s Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp (B,L,D)

Days 3–9: Feb 10-16

Based at Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp, we will make the most of the Serengeti’s Western Corridor and the Grumeti River – an area that hosts impressive resident wildlife populations, including the largest pride of lions in Africa – with early morning and afternoon game drives taking advantage of the dynamic low-angled light around sunrise and sunset. During the harsher light of mid-day, we will return to camp for image reviews, instruction, and some personal down time to enjoy the amenities of the camp. Most meals will be in camp, though we may on occasion arrange to have sundowners or lunch served in the field, as appropriate to our photographic activities.

Overnight at &Beyond’s Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp (B,L,D)

Day 11: Feb 17

Game drive and transfer to Serengeti Under Canvas Tented Camp, in the southern Serdengeti near Ndutu.

Overnight at &Beyond’s Serengeti Under Canvas Tented Camp (B,L,D)

Days 12-18: Feb 18-24

The highlight of this portion of the trip is the Wildebeest calving season, though the wildlife opportunities are diverse and plentiful. Our accommodation, Serengeti Under Canvas, is a mobile camp that moves several times over the course of the year to follow the Great Migration, and in February it is located in the southern Serengeti. Once again, we will be out in early morning and in afternoon until sunset for game drives, with image reviews, instruction, and some downtime mid-day.

Overnight at &Beyond’s Serengeti Under Canvas Tented Camp (B,L,D)

Day 19: Feb 25

Morning game drive, followed by lunch before our afternoon charter flight back to Kilimanjaro International Airport to catch flights home in the evening. (B,L)

The single-occupancy rate for this deluxe all-inclusive package is $18,500. Double-occupancy is $17,500 per person. 50% deposit required upon booking, and balance due by November 9th, 2015. For more information, please contact Justin at justin@visionarywild.com or 202-302-9030.

Not included: international round-trip flights from your point of origin to Kilimanjaro International Airport, Tanzania, incidental personal expenses, and gratuities for local safari guides at our camps.

TRAVEL NOTE: A passport (valid for at least three months after your date of departure) and tourist visa is required to enter Tanzania, which can be arranged either in advance through the Tanzanian Consulate in your home country or upon arrival in Tanzania. A Yellow Fever vaccination is required for those who have traveled recently in a country where YF is present, though as YF is present in Tanzania, we recommend it for all travelers. The Serengeti is a low-risk malaria area, and malaria prophylaxis is recommended.