Namibia photo Workshop

Dead Vlei

Trip Summary

Namibia has the world’s most spectacular and varied desert landscapes and one of the least populated countries on the planet…  its endless vistas will be permanently etched into your soul.

Nowhere else will you see families of desert elephant moving silently through the beautiful valleys in search of life-giving oases. No other desert has a Skeleton Coast where the great Atlantic Ocean waves pound a burning shore littered with shipwrecks, often shrouded in fog where only giant seal colonies live. 

Namibia’s desert winds have sculpted the world’s highest dunes out of red sand and it is these dunes that make the Namibian landscape like no other on earth. In some places the dunes rise out of endless fields of grass and in others the dunes are as high as mountains. In a special place the sand cut off the water supply to a seasonal wetland and today the result is the petrified trees of Deadvlei. In the far South, fine silica sands are now reclaiming what was once the site of a great diamond rush – the ghost town of Kolmanskop. To the West, a special combination of rocky ground and hot, arid conditions have created one of the most alien plants on earth; the Quiver Tree.

Join us for an opportunity to experience and photograph these one of a kind landscapes under professional guidance. Together with ur local experts we have designed a trip where we will take you to the most photogenic locations, not just carefully planned for the best light, but to aid you in mentally visualizing a scene before capturing the decisive moment.

Our goal during this trip is not only send you home with images you are proud of, but use your new found skills to improve and expand your photographic and post editing technique in general.

Trip Details

Dates: March 10, 2019 to March 24, 2019

Number of Attendees: 2 spots remain available

Price and Deposit: $8950USD for a shared room. 

A deposit of $3000USD will secure your spot. The remaining balance will be due December 1, 2018. 

If you need other payment arrangements, just ask... Contact me here

What is Included?

  • Airport pickup and drop off at Windhoek, Namibia
  • All shared accommodation during your tour. If you will travel alone and require a room to yourself, a single supplement of $1,000 is payable
  • All breakfasts and dinners are included except the evening meal on day 8 and 9, when you will have your choice from the hotel menu
  • Snacks, water will be stocked in our vehicles
  • A professional guide and driver to transport us safely around Namibia for the entire trip and two pro photographers
  • Admission fees to planned facilities and excursions and Non-commercial photo permit for Ghost Town (sunrise to sunset), Night photography at Quiver Tree Forest Rest Camp (sunset to sunrise) and a full day 4x4 Sandwich Harbour Excursion in Walvis Bay

What is Not Included?

  • Your flight and any other travel costs to Windhoek Airport and back home again after the tour
  • Any hotels while traveling prior to or following the tour.
  • Beverages at some lodges and additional items ordered during meals. (details will be supplied)
  • Entrance fees for any unplanned activities for which the opportunity may arise – you would be made aware of any additional costs before engaging in any such activity
  • The cost of any vaccinations that you require to safely attend this tour

Who Is This Tour For?

  • Anyone with a love for culture, landscape and wildlife photography, and an adventurous spirit
  • Anyone that wants to improve their photography while taking photographs of a lifetime
  • Jeff and Kevin assume you will have a basic understanding of photography and your equipment, but Photographers of all skill levels are very welcome, and will receive all the coaching you need to take amazing images.

What Should I Bring?

  • You’ll need at least one camera, ideally two to give you the opportunity to shoot with multiple lenses simultaneously, and also serve as a backup
  • Lenses from wide angle up around 400mm (or the 35mm equivalent)
  • A sturdy tripod and cable release, and a polarizer and neutral density filters also broaden your photographic opportunities.
  • A more detailed list including clothing etc. Will be sent to you after you sign up, and then covered again prior to your trip on a one on one phone discussion we will have with you.

Itinerary

March 10, 2019 – Day 1

You will arrive and be transported to our lodge in the hills over Windhoek and enjoy our first meal together in the beautiful surroundings.

Note: the easiest way to get to Windhoek is to fly to Johannesburg (South Africa) where the group can meet, and take the same flight to Windhoek together. Details will be included in your preparation guidebook.

March 11, 2019 – Day 2

Today we take a drive to Keetmanshoop, and visit the Quiver Tree Forest, and hopefully also get a little bit of astrophotography in to photograph the Milky Way with the Quiver Trees. We will have the opportunity to be out from sunset to sunrise shooting the iconic milky way and star images over the Quiver trees.

March 12, 2019 – Day 3

We will enjoy one final morning with a visit to the Quiver Tree Forest and Devils Playground. We will be heading west through harsh but beautiful terrain which changes to vast open desert plains to a small town called Aus where you can view and photograph the Feral Horses before heading on to Lüderitz.

March 13, 2019 – Day 4

Today is spooky as we head over to the Ghost Town, Kholmanskop. We will be there from dawn to dusk to photograph the ghost town in every kind of light.

March 14 and 15, 2019 – Days 5 & 6

From Luderitz we travel to Sossusvlei where we stay inside the national park so that we can get access to Deadvlei at dawn to photograph the iconic Camel-Thorn Trees in silhouette again the red dunes.

We will also have photo sessions of the surrounding dunes during our time in the beautiful Sossusvlei area. Sossusvlei is the iconic area for the Namibian dune photographs that you always see.

March 16 and 17, 2019 – Days 7 & 8

Depart after breakfast and head north crossing the Tropic of Capricorn, through the Gaub and Kuiseb Canyons via the Namib Gravel Plains to the coast. The Namibian coastline is known as The Skeleton Coast due to the barren areas, shipwrecks and whale skeletons scattered on the beach.

On day nine we have scheduled a full day 4×4 Sandwich Harbour Excursion in the sand dunes overlooking the coastline where sand meets the ocean.

 

Sourced image

March 18 and 19, 2019 – Days 9 & 10

We head towards Palmwag. We head north along the Skeleton Coast, via Henties Bay to visit the Cape Cross seal colony. We also plan to stop at the Lichen Fields as well as the famous shipwreck between the picturesque small town of Henties Bay.

From our base in the beautiful lodge at Palmwag, we’ll visit a Himba settlement. The Himba are a nomadic people who let us into their village and share aspects of their culture, giving us ample chances to capture their unique way of life.

March 20 and 21, 2019 – Days 11 & 12

We will switch gears a bit and go and visit the Cheetah Conservation Fund. A location where you will spend the next few days. Once we arrive at our lodge, we will enjoy a Serengeti Sundowner Drive with the lodge guide & vehicle.

March 22, 2019 – Day 13

You will enjoy a custom designed Cheetah Runs and Cheetah Drive activities that we created just for our guests. Get ready to get up close and personal with the fastest predator on earth. You will have an unparalleled photo experience with adult and juvenile cheetah. These special access photo sessions would be nearly impossible to photograph any place else in Africa.

March 23, 2019 – Day 14

We will head back to Windhoek late in the morning to our final lodge where you will spend your last night at Windhoek Country Club.

March 24, 2019 – Day 15

Our guide will transfer us to the Windhoek international airport in time for your onward travel arrangements. If time permits, our guide will take you on a short Windhoek City Tour before your flights home.

Are you ready to check off one of the best landscape photography workshops you will ever take? All you have to do is check on the "Register Here" button below 

Kevin A PepperComment