Hello friends! Now I know this COVID situation hasn’t got people feeling their best, I hope this cheers you up a little bit.

As most of you probably know by now, about a month and a half ago I went on a 5 day Photo safari with none other than Pareet (Cheka Photography) to the Mara. You can all imagine this was a pretty HUGE deal and experience for me. There’s so much I can write about the whole 5 days but I don’t think you’d really want to read that… haha.

So don’t worry, I picked out my 5 MOST favourite & treasured things, don’t get me wrong the whole trip was amazing but these were just the first things I could think about when asked about the weekend. Also, this isn’t JUST a photography blog, it’s about a lot more. Here we go:

1)      Patience

I know this one sounds completely obvious when related to Safari & Wildlife Photography, but I promise it’s not.

This was the first time being on a Safari with like-minded people, for me. You know what that means? We were able to wait for as long as we needed to before moving on. Everyone was equally understanding if one of us wasn’t done and wanted to stay longer. You sit quiet and patient until everyone says they’re ready to move forward. When it comes to going with family or friends there’s always that one person who, after a few minutes, says ‘haya done, let’s go now!’, but going with people who have the same agenda is a whole different ball game. This is why we never reached the camp back on time too! Pareet, was very calm and patient with us and constantly encouraged us to get the shots, advised on different ways to approach the shot too!

Apart from just waiting patiently for others, I also learned to incorporate patience into my shooting and number of shots taken. The problem is that because our cameras are digital and we have a million memory cards of storage (exaggerated), we tend to blindly shoot (constant shooting just because you see an animal - I definitely did). Blindly shooting also meant increasing camera buffer time (all the photography geeks know what this is) and missing the actual shot! I realised this is why I have a lot of blank shots (nothing interesting happening) or repeated shots because of shooting bursts, randomly.

Something that Pareet made me realise, not just with Wildlife photography but photography in general, WAIT, for the moment - it’s about capturing QUALITY and it’s not about the QUANTITY! At the same time, it wasn’t about the amount of animals or big cats or wildlife you see but about the MOMENTS you witness. So be patient enough to wait, embrace the time and witness a beautiful moment! The whole trip was based on patience and one more aspect, keep reading you’ll find out.

This brings me to my second point.

2)      Thought Process

This ties in very much with patience, because without that you wouldn’t have enough time to really think about the way you want your end shot to look.

On the first day, before we set out on our very first game drive, Pareet sat us down and prepped us. He gave us a small introduction lecture - it was proper school in the wild! The best way to learn haha. He spoke to us about a couple of camera related things and helped set them up to make sure they’re working well too. I won’t go so much into detail about this because it’s very different for each person and each camera. It’s important to note, a week before the actual photo safari he would send us a reading assignment almost every day to prepare. Honestly, felt like I was back in Photography school. But I did feel prepared when I actually got there!

The best setting he showed us was the back-button focus setting (again very Photography oriented). This was the hardest thing to get used to - it’s basically changing the focus button to the back and using your thumb as opposed to having it on the shutter button. *You know when you’re taking a photo from a camera (any digital camera) you would normally hold the shutter button down just a little bit, let the image focus and then press it all the way to capture, right? With this you do the same thing but with your thumb on a button near the screen. It’s faster when you need to capture the image. It’s easier too once you’re used to it, it’s the best change I made. Use this link to set up and try the back-button focus.

Once this was done, he spoke to us about the three points you always need to remember when shooting which is basically the thought process you need to go through before you take the shot, these were:

L-ighting; firstly the way the subject is lit i.e. from the front, from the back or from the side (this means playing with shadows). When it comes to photographing in the wild the worst shooting time is mid-day because it’s TOO HOT and sun is directly overhead which means strong shadows. Also, this leads to over exposing of some areas in order to balance out the shadows. Unless you’re lucky and, it’s either a cloudy day or your subject is in the shade, try and avoid this time. We used a lot of this time patiently waiting or having our meals - once for 2 cheetah brothers to make a kill and the other for the wildebeest to start crossing.

U-niqueness - Yes very obvious - but when composing your photo don’t think about just how to get the shot but also think about how to make it different from the person next to you but also from your own previous shots of the same subject. Think about what you’ve never seen of the subject before and try and capture that!

C-omposition - The last point to tie the three together. Playing around with the rule of thirds and placement of your subject in these. How to make it look more dramatic or calm. Whether to zoom in to a particular area of the subject or to completely zoom out. He said try avoid placing your subject in the centre because this becomes too BORING - obviously unless the subject is majestic enough to be placed in the centre!

Once you’ve thought about all 3, collectively, you’ll notice a difference in the way your shots look from before. I definitely did as soon as I got back. Honestly, the way he explained it made me realise how obvious it is but how easily it can be looked over!

Did any of you notice that the letters from the above 3 points spell LUC? But actually it’s meant to be LUCK - the ‘k’ stands for LUCK to tie up the whole word. This brings me to my third point and the other aspect the whole trip was based on.

3. Luck

This is what all safaris are based on. You could be in the wild for a month and not see anything, it’s just about how lucky you are. I honestly thought we weren’t going to be lucky enough to see any leopard because the first two days (3 game drives) we saw just lots of lions and lionesses. In fact, we even got a call on the radio that a leopard had been spotted but by the time we got there she had gone into hiding!

Then we were surprised one evening when someone said they spotted Luluka. She’s one of the known, popular female leopards in Mara. We got there in time to see her in the open, right near our car. But you know what was better? When we saw her climb up a tree where she’d hidden food already! It was crazy. The third day and also the same day we were out the whole day, we were tired, exhausted, dehydrated but when we saw her nothing else mattered…

We were content, we at least got to see one leopard. Still hopeful but at the same time content. Then comes the next morning - the very adventurous morning. We left the camp pretty early but after a half an hour drive we got stuck. At this time, we were headed to see some lions with the sunrise - so we were all pumped about getting those beautiful back-lit shots. But there was obviously something else in store for us.

Stuck for already 45 minutes or so, including the time it took for another car to come rescue us. By now the sun was up and we’d missed our chance. Trust me, we were REALLY disappointed, I was so bothered by this I swear I was so close to crying. As in I was frustrated! But I decided you know what, it’s a beautiful Sunrise - take the shots you can from here and I did just that.

Finally out of the mud and not stuck anymore. Suddenly our driver throws the rope, runs to the car, gets in and drives off. I mean he even sprayed the other car, thank god it was just one of Tosha’s other drivers so it was all cool. What the hell just happened right?

He turns back and starts driving towards the camp again, by this time Pareet knew who was spotted - of course Kaboso (the other very popular female leopard). Her territory was quite close to the camp and we’d been trying to find her for the past 3 days but we just had no LUCK!

But that wasn’t even the best part…

They spotted her cub too! If we didn’t get stuck, if we made it to the lions we would have been way too far away from camp. Talk about everything happens for a reason! That’s what I call LUCKY. We must have spent about an hour with her and her cub, ah what a beautiful sight it was!

 If it wasn’t for our driver, Amos we would have never made it in time to her. The way he controlled the car, despite the muddy & wet roads and manoeuvred his way through. Woah, it was insane.

4. Finding the best guide

As much as learning, understanding and capturing of images is important, none of it is possible without having the best guide. According to Pareet, and I completely agree, you need someone who knows the park inside out - any park that it is. You need someone that knows the road without looking at a map and knows exactly how to manoeuvre around and between the roads in a safe manner.

 Our driver Amos was an amazing guide. Apart from knowing his way around the park he was able to read and communicate the animal behaviour to us and almost all times he was right about their actions. His sighting was even better, it’s like his eyes could see through the bushes and to a distance. If it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t have seen the Lioness and her cubs or been able to witness such a tender moment.

 Together with that, having the knowledge of photography is a bonus point because not only does this help him in positioning the car but also he is able to advice you better. Imagine knowing the animals’ actions and also understanding the photography aspect, he knew exactly where and how he needs to set up/park the car.

 And with all of that, it’s important to place all your trust in them. Don’t start pushing them and directing them about where to go and what to do. Because of their park and photography knowledge, they will know exactly where they need to be or where they can get to. Pareet advised that once you know you’ve picked a great guide, let him do his thing over the safari. He will know what to do without a word from you. That’s exactly what Amos did and wow, we were so happy with him.

5. Off the Radar

The whole time I was there I was completely off Social Media, I only had access to WhatsApp for a bit at night after dinner. The camp definitely helped with this because there was not very good network near our room so after the first day you stop even trying to get connectivity. There was WiFi at the dining area but again you’re only there for meals and because we were in a group you don’t really want to be anti-social.

 During the game drive you’re too busy trying to spot the animals or staying hydrated or just enjoying the view. For me, I was too busy getting sunburnt when the sun was out, I really didn’t want to be on my phone at this point. In the whole five days I was probably on my phone for a total of 12 hours, if not less.

 Being off the phone also meant I could focus on being in the moment and paying attention to what was going on around me. It was about connecting with people and the wild, the old fashioned way!

That’s a little summary of my trip, but all details are posted on my Instagram page as captions with a story behind each photo. The biggest thing I learnt was NOTHING EVER HAPPENS TO PLAN, and all you got to do is accept it and wait to see what’s really in store for you. This is the case not just with a safari but life in general. Things will never go to plan but just wait cause there’s always a reason why things happen the way they do!

This trip would have never been this good if it wasn’t for the people I went with. They were the most accommodating and friendliest people and helped me fit right in. Of course, none of it would have been possible without Pareet himself. Taking the decision to go on the Photo safari was the best thing I did. It’s an opportunity and an experience I’ll never forget.

If you’re thinking about it, do it! He is the most calm and patient teacher I’ve ever had… haha

To top it all off, the camp - Mara Olapa as well as the owner and staff were the most accommodating and hospitable people. It is a small camp, with a total of 7 tents only. The dining, reception & bar/chill area were all tents too but the décor was gorgeous. The coolest part for me was the shower, it was a complete eco shower. They fill a bucket outside according to the number of people showering and then all you need to do is a pull a lever and the water flows from the shower head inside. Cool right?

Oh yes the camp was not fenced at all. A few days before we got there a leopard walked through the camp - how exciting! It was so peaceful, at night we could hear the Lions roaring, the hyenas laughing and one day elephants walked behind the tents too! It honestly tied the whole trip together.

As much as the safari experience was beyond spectacular, not having the facilities to wind down can be a pain. Mara Olapa made sure this was never the case; from the rooms, to the water, to the tents and of course the FOOD!

Honestly, it was the best 5 day experience. I mean I can still go on but I’ll stop here… for now!

Do leave your comments below!