7 top tips for taking photos on safari

1) You don’t need the latest and greatest camera to take brilliant pictures. Nor do you need to huge amounts of equipment. While a quality digital SLR camera and lenses can help you get professional-looking shots, a decent compact camera is a perfectly suitable for a less experienced photographer. Often the best moments out on safari are captured by keen-eyed amateur on a modest camera who have pointed and shot the action at just the right moment.

2) If you do have an SLR camera, the most important extra lens to bring is a long lens. This will allow you to zoom in on distant wildlife with clarity. Carrying a tripod is likely to be an unnecessary burden – carefully resting your lens on a solid surface such as the side of a safari vehicle is usually adequate to prevent excessive wobble.

Karen lines up a holiday snap.

3) Remember to take enough spare batteries or recharging facilities and extra digital storage, or film if you’re using this medium. Don’t underestimate how many photos you might want to take. The low price of compact flash cards makes it well worth investing in the extra capacity should you need it.

4) Prepare for the conditions of the African bush. The dusty air can present problems for your equipment, especially in the drier seasons, so it can pay to take a soft cloth wrap with which to cover everything, and a small paintbrush or specialist blower to clean off dust particles when changing lenses out on safari. Heavy rain can be another issue so waterproof camera carrying bags are a sensible precaution.

Professional photographer and Africa House guide Bob Demchuk
 shows his work to Pokot tribesmen.

5) Get familiar with your camera’s functions before you get to Africa, especially if it’s new or you’re out of practice. Out on safari, you’ll want to concentrate on the action and sights around you rather than struggling to figure out what all the buttons on your SLR do.

6) If there’s one technical aspect of photography worth mastering for wildlife photography, it’s controlling the depth of field through your aperture setting. A larger aperture (lower f-number) keeps the subject in sharp focus while blurring the background, ideal for wildlife shots. For landscape photos it’s usually better to keep everything in focus by using a smaller aperture (higher f-number). The right choice here can transform an ordinary shot into a professional-looking image.

7) Experiment and use your imagination when taking shots. As well as taking the more predictable, conventional photos, use unusual angles and think about overall composition, not just the main subject in view. Try juxtaposing foreground and background objects in novel ways. You'll come home with photo album which is unique and personal to you.

Embracing responsible tourism

The chance to travel to remote reaches of the planet is one of modern life’s great privileges. Escaping for a week or two to immerse yourself in places and cultures which are a world away from your own is a unique experience which may be relaxing, invigorating, educational, or even spiritual.
 

Responsible tourism is about
treading lightly.

But there is an increasing awareness that alongside these profound benefits, tourism can also come at a cost to local communities and to the environment. This concern is behind the rising trend towards more ethical forms of tourism.

Being a responsible traveller entails making an effort to minimise the negative impacts of your holiday – both socially and environmentally. It is about interacting meaningfully with the people and places you visit, treading lightly and developing a respect for and an understanding of the cultures and environments you encounter.

More than just business

Small, bespoke travel operators like us at Africa House Safaris have ethical principles embedded in the way we operate. For a start, we’re based in East Africa, so the places to which we take our guests are home to us. And our relationships with our guides and with the owners of the lodges and camps we use are personal, lasting friendships – rather than just business arrangements based purely on profit and gain.

The camps we use are friendly and personal,
allowing guests to get to know their hosts.

One of the ways we like to foster a connection between our guests and local communities is through arranging stays at the homes of some of our friends here in East Africa. These occasions afford an intimate insight into the culture and lifestyle of people who live and work here — and are a far cry from the custom of package holiday tourists descending on communities en masse to scrutinize them. In home stays, the onus is on authenticity and mutually respectful connections.

Sustainable destinations

At Africa House, we’re keen to take guests to lodges and attractions which are run with sustainability in mind. A great example of this is the Ol Malo Trust, a private game sanctuary in Kenya. Ol Malo is engaged in a number of projects aimed at empowering the Samburu people in terms of education, employment, sustainable environment practices and health. Notably, the Trust has enhanced the lives of hundreds of local families by treating and helping to prevent trachoma, an eye disease which is common in the region.


A guest at Ol Malo, Kenya, a game sanctuary
with positive social and environmental aims.

Our forthcoming special tours also feature visits to important social and environmental projects. For example, guests on next month’s Spring Break Safari will pay a visit to Daphne Sheldrick’s Elephant Orphange. In late June, our Painting Safari will include a trip to the Lumo Community Wildlife Sanctuary, which is doing valuable work in protecting its rich biodiversity. Going to places like these serves the dual purpose of providing a valuable insight into the cultural and natural heritage present in East Africa, and in supporting the very projects which help to protect it.



Eco credentials

For guests who’d like the full eco-experience, we can incorporate accommodation with the very highest green credentials when we design your safari itinerary. A striking example of this is Lemarti’s Camp, in Laikipia, which we featured in last month’s newsletter. With its use of locally-sourced, eco-friendly products and materials, natural construction and low energy demands, it’s hard to imagine a more sustainably run camp.

Guests enjoy opportunities for cultural insights
through spending time with tribespeople.

Even with the best intentions to travel with ethical principles, one sadly inevitable impact for most people visiting Africa is that of air travel. At Africa House, we do what we can to offset the contribution to climate change caused through aviation emissions through our tree planting pledge. To help reduce our carbon footprint we are planting ten trees for every guest we take on safari this year.

Travelling to somewhere as beautiful as East Africa can never be enjoyed without some impacts. But at Africa House we believe we minimise these effects through the choices we make in supporting the people and places which are run sensitively and sustainably. We think that the opportunities for mutual understanding brought by the interaction between our guests and the communities and natural wonders they visit can even be a force for good.

A luxury camp with heart and soul

As seasoned safari designers, we have seen more than our fair share of African accommodation. So if a camp we choose for own holiday leaves us impressed, you can safely assume that it must be something special. Lemarti’s Camp is thoroughly deserving of this description, if our recent stay there is anything to go by. The camp is situated on the bank of a river in a remote reach of Laikipia, Kenya, nestling in a serene spot below a palm grove and an imposing fig tree.



The tent in which we stayed



Having just returned from a late December break there, we are full of praise for Lemarti’s. It’s the ideal place for those seeking relaxation from an African safari holiday - somewhere to fully unwind and de-stress, in true style. It also offers the freedom to choose how you spend your time - with no set schedule as such, the day is yours to do as little or as much as you like.

The sense of tranquillity here is undoubtedly due in no small part to the stunning look of the camp. And style is what you’d expect when the design and furnishings are by fashion designer Anna Trzebinski, co-owner and founder of Lemarti’s. Through the use of understated but beautiful textiles and furnishings she has succeeded in creating an atmosphere of relaxed elegance. The style is unpretentious and welcoming, its rich textures and warm hues providing the ideal complement to the beauty of the area surrounding it with no attempt to upstage it.


The view from the Lemarti's mess tent

There’s a distinct feeling of authenticity about everything at this camp. This has much to do with the fact that Loyapan Lemarti, the camp’s other owner and Anna’s husband, is a genuine Samburu tribesman with roots firmly in this beautiful patch of Africa. For Anna and Loyapan, who met in the African bush, the camp has been a labour of love. With the help and support of the local community, the couple have poured their passion into the project at every stage from conceiving the idea to looking after the guests on a daily basis.

Every aspect, from the bed linen to the napkins, has been either sourced locally by the couple or designed by Anna herself – it’s this attention to detail that helps make a stay at Lemarti’s not only exquisitely comfortable but also inspirational. And in keeping with the exceptional standards on offer here, the food is sensational.



The mess area at Lemarti's

Loyapan, along with some help from his close friend and colleague Boniface, provides a rich insight into Samburu culture. The pair entertain, educate and inspire guests with their natural charisma and infectious energy. Their presence is especially loved by children, who are invariably keen to get involved in tribal activities. This is one of the reasons why Lemarti’s is so well suited to families. During our stay there was also a family on camp, with two boys aged 11 and 9 and a daughter of 4 - the mum and dad were thrilled that the children were entertained by the Samburu staff in camp, giving them 'down time' too. There is the river and its sandy beach just below the camp, where the kids spent endless hours swinging from a rope attached to the branches of the huge fig tree.

The view from the sundowner spot

While Lemarti's is great for families, its versatile layout also affords the privacy sought by honeymooners and other couples on safari. The camp's series of more secluded tents, each with its own veranda overlooking the river, means that couples can take in the atmosphere of this magical setting and enjoy the perfect romantic safari holiday.

Anyone wanting to experience the best in luxury camping on safari need look no further. After our stay at Lemarti’s, we are proud to endorse it as the most exceptionally beautiful, authentic wilderness camp we have seen. With so much love and care invested in Lemarti’s, you’d be hard pressed to find a camp which better captures the heart and soul of Africa.

Getting there

There are four options for reaching Lemarti’s once you arrive in Kenya:

• A private charter to the Kimanju airstrip, then collection by the camp's 4 x 4 vehicle
• A schedule flight to Loisaba airstrip, then collection by the camp’s vehicle
• A scenic drive from Nanyuki
• A helicopter journey to the camp’s doorstep. Some guests drop in by this method just for afternoon tea and a massage!

If you'd like Lemarti's to be part of your next safari, we'd be delighted to include a stay here in the itinerary we design for you.