How can I find out which photographic wildlife expeditions are best, particularly safaris? I'm looking for an emphasis on serious photography, but don't care to spend large amounts of money on luxury (if possible, other than the best photo opportunities). Thanks for all advice!
The equation here is that you get what you pay for.
This is an envelope that you cannot escape.
There are plenty of excellent expeditions advertised on many different websites - a simple Google search reveals them.
I will speak with regard to Africa because it is the place that I am the most familiar with.
Do not join an expedition/safari that is not specifically photographically orientated.
What tends to happen is that when you want to be out photographing the rest of the group will either want to be sleeping or enjoying sundowners.
The group will win out against the individual every time.
My experience of these trips is that they devolve into a pub crawl - just in the African bush!
Also, game viewing vehicles can hold as many as ten people - far too many to be doing any kind of decent photography.
Guides and drivers tend to have no clue about photographic imperatives.
There may or may not be opportunities to recharge batteries etc.
What do dedicated photographic safaris offer:
The entire organisation of the safari is dedicated to getting photographers to the right places at the right time of day - meals, sundowners, and sleep are all secondary considerations.
The leaders of the expedition are in a position to really teach one about wildlife photography. They are professionals and do need to earn a living from their endeavours.
The photographic leaders may or may not be absolute experts in the wildlife being sought - as long as the guides and drivers know their thing this is not an issue.
The guides and drivers (these are locals) are the ones who understand animal behaviour and how to position vehicles optimally for best photography - they are also very amenable to suggestions to reposition a vehicle subject to safety and other practical considerations.
Generally the entire discourse of the safari revolves around photography and the subject matter.
Prior planning ensures enough power points to allow everyone to use their computers, recharge batteries etc (you have no idea how big an issue this can be in some more isolated parts of Africa).
Vehicles that could hold ten people will only have five at most - plenty of space for camera bags, big lenses, and monopods etc - and also great fields of view for shooting.
Many of these safaris also offer tutorial sessions and feedback sessions designed to teach aspects of photography or post-processing.
These lists are not exhaustive but I think they serve to highlight the differences - and potential cost differences - between a normal safari and a photographic safari.
Sometimes one can get "lucky" but again this is usually a function of: "You get what you pay for!"
Last year I was in the Okavango Delta staying at a place called Pom Pom which is a fairly exclusive safari camp.
The only access for tourists is to fly in.
As it turned out the day I arrived another photographer called Mike Byrne from Canada arrived.
He had with him a couple of people who had accompanied him on a photographic safari to Namibia of which he was the leader.
The Pom Pom staff very quickly realised that our purpose was not the usual run-of-the-mill tourist one and although they had originally planned to have us in separate vehicles they changed this on the fly.
Our guide, a fantastically educated guy with a Bachelor's degree, was very very forthcoming in admitting that the approach they took with us (photographers) was very different to the rest of the tourists because they knew we would be intensely interested in birds and small animals and more subtle aspects of the environment and ecology of the area compared to the rest who were mainly concerned with viewing the "Big Five".
We had several fantastic days shooting together as a result.
In contrast my experience with one-on-one guiding on the Chobe River was not so good with my guide consistently not understanding that taking me to ten feet of a hippo or a crocodile with me wielding a 500m f4.0 with a 1.4X tele-extender attached was far too close. This even happened with birds were I was frequently taken in closer than the minimum focusing distance of the lens.
It was very clear that his usual experience was people shooting with iPhones and he could not understand my desire to back off.
The concerns about paying for "unnecessary" luxury are usually unwarranted because provision of adequate electrical power outlets, flexible meal times, appropriate numbers on a vehicle, knowledgable and insightful guides, and so on are really functions of the overall safari camp/business.
BTW this information may not translate at all to shooting outside of Africa.
I currently live in Australia and the rules and expectations for remote area travel and photography in Australia are very different.
However, the "You get what you pay for" mantra still holds true.
Tony Jay
