Botswana
May 29 – June 6, 2024
African Photo Safari in Botswana
May 23 – 31, 2023
Join us for unparalleled wildlife photography on this small-group safari at three exclusive camps in the Botswana’s Okavango Delta. At each camp, we’ll photograph from safari vehicles and also boats. Your own row in our safari vehicles will provide plenty of space for you and your equipment and allow unobstructed photography.
Learn what it’s like to pursue wildlife without stressing it, and become immersed in the experience so that you too can appreciate all the skills it takes to locate and compose wildlife photography in the wild.
Our camps are within the Khwai Concession, a nearly 100,000 acre reserve that shares its westerly border with the Moremi Game Reserve.
We expect to photograph lion, cheetah, leopard—and maybe even the rare white rhino! Photographing wildlife from a boat offers an excellent opportunity to create water-level compositions.
Take a hot shower and enjoy a drink by the fire before dinner and just when you think the day is done, share your images with our instructor to learn more about your camera and compositional skills.
Our camps offer Muench-style comfort, with all the expected amenities: fantastic food, luxurious accommodations with en-suite facilities, and hot showers. Expect to be immersed in photography and safari from before sunrise until after sunset. Learn from the pro while positioning the vehicle or maneuvering the boats to find the perfect background for each specific encounter. Then follow up with a one-on-one review of your images at night by the fire.
Come join us on this safari of a lifetime.
Your Pro
Location
Botswana
Tuition
$16,495
Dates
May 23 – 31, 2023
Availability
Sold Out
Limited to 7 Guests
Itinerary
About the wildlife: This workshop offers significant opportunities for photographing wildlife, and while we do our best to maximize our wildlife encounters—based on past experiences, local knowledge, and the current conditions—we need to impress upon you that the wildlife really is wild and that we don’t control it.
This itinerary is subject to change due to weather, local conditions, and other factors.
May 23, 2023: Arrive this day in Maun, Botswana, and you’ll be met by our leader in the airport lobby. Once all luggage is accounted for, you’ll be escorted to a charter flight to our first camp in the Khwai Concession. After we settle into safari life, we will have time for a sunset safari.
May 24, 2023: This will be the first full day of safari. We’re up early before sunrise, and are greeted with a cup of hot coffee or tea, a small snack, and then we head out on our morning game drive. We’ll stay out as long as we can, returning to camp for late breakfast, or brunch. Some days we bring breakfast with us for a safari meal under the towering ebony trees. We’ll be back to camp for lunch and a short rest, with enough time to download images from the morning. Then we’ll be off to photograph from a boat or vehicle until the sun sets.
May 25–27, 2023: Today we’ll transition to a new camp. After a morning photo safari and great breakfast, you’ll have time to pack up for a quick trip. Named after the river it borders, Gomoti Plains camp lies alongside one of the smaller of the water system’s flood plains. Framed by towering palm trees, our iconic canvas tents provide eco-luxurious comfort in an area that is alive with superb land and water-based game-viewing opportunities.
For the following three nights, we’re up early before sunrise and are greeted with a cup of hot coffee or tea and a small snack, and then we head out on our morning game drive. We’ll stay out as long as we can, returning to camp for late breakfast or brunch. Some days we bring breakfast with us for a safari meal under the towering ebony trees. We’ll be back to camp for lunch and a short rest, with enough time to download images from the morning. Then we’ll be off to photograph from a boat or vehicle until the sun sets.
May 28–30, 2023: On the morning of the 28th, you’ll transition to a new camp. After a photo safari followed by a great breakfast, you’ll pack up and be ready for another short trip to our new camp. Kiri Camp offers a combination of both game drives and water activities. Based on a private concession, these activities will take you to some of the more remote areas in the delta, previously inaccessible. A motorboat ride during peak flood times promises to enthrall you and captivate you, with the chance of seeing iconic wildlife from the river. Glide on quiet mokoro’s through the water lilies and view wildlife from below as you sail along at water level height. The wildlife in the Kiri area is diverse and plentiful, renown for its lion and buffalo interactions and rare wild dog numbers. As Kiri Camp is in a private concession, off road and night driving are allowed, as are armed nature walks through the surrounding islands with knowledgeable guides.
May 31, 2023: We have time for a morning game drive and a hearty breakfast before packing up for our flights back to Maun. We’ll all fly together to Maun, in time to connect to their 2:30PM flight to (JNB) Johannesburg
Safari Camp Life
In short, you'll feel like you're in a luxury hotel! We've handpicked our camps for comfort, knowledgeable and friendly staff, great food, and convenience to our main objective, the wildlife. We also place considerable value on isolation and exclusivity. You won't find us in areas where there are dozens of other vehicles at a sighting—you'll feel like you own the land, and the animals are there just for you! Typical tented accommodations feature twin beds or queen bed, high thread-count linens, storage for clothing, sitting area, verandah, and of course en suite bathrooms, with toilets, hot water, and showers. They are enormous in size, bright, open, and airy.
Food in our camps is superb—you'll be served both dishes you know and local specialties, too. Of course any dietary needs can be accommodated.
We've arranged for the best safari vehicles—custom Land Cruisers which feature ample room for you and your gear, and excellent visibility. And only one photographer per row of seats (note that front seat next to driver counts as a row). All of our camps feature optional daily laundry service (but not on days we travel in between camps). We will also accommodate you with the same requirements in all boats used.
Amazing Camps
Gallery
Fitness
Easy: You must be able to get in and out of the safari vehicles, be able to ride in the vehicles on bumpy tracks, and handle carrying your own gear.
Flights
Arrive Maun Airport (MUB), Maun, Botswana before 2:00 PM on May 23, 2023. Flights out can be made after 1:00 PM on May 31, 2023.
What to Bring
Please see our page How To Prepare For Your Workshop. We will send you a detailed information document 90 days before your workshop. This document will include specifics of where and when to meet, gear and clothing recommendations, and more.
What’s Included
- Double occupancy lodging. Single available for $2,300 supplement. (8 nights in 3 camps only )
- All meals, soft drinks, and snacks during the workshop.
- All permits and park fees.
- Internal flights during the workshop.
- All transportation during the workshop.
- Tips for crew, drivers, and local guides.
- English-speaking local guide throughout the workshop.
- Photographic guiding and instruction from Randy Hanna.
- Image reviews and post-processing instruction.
- Adventure, fun, inspiration, and a great time!
Not Included
- Travel to and from Maun, Botswana.
- Passport and visa fees (if applicable).
- Any meals or accommodations before or after the workshop dates.
- Items of a personal nature.
- Alcoholic beverages.
- Medical Evacuation Insurance (required).
- Travel Medical (required).
- Trip Cancellation Insurance (optional, but recommended).
- Anything else specifically not listed as included.
- Single rooming available for $2,300 supplement. (8 nights in 3 camps only )
Payment Terms
- Your non-refundable deposit of $5,495 will hold your space in this workshop.
- Further non-refundable payment of $6,000 is due by October 1, 2022.
- The non-refundable balance is due not later than February 1, 2023.
- In addition to our standard Terms and Conditions, for this workshop all payments are non-refundable, and this is why we recommend comprehensive travel insurance including trip cancelation.
- Need special payment arrangements? No problem, just ask us.
Testimonials
“Exceeded my expectations! Animals, accommodations, food, drivers, staff at camps, Randy's leadership and camera instruction all added to a five star vacation. I plan to travel with Muench Workshops in the future. ”
