MASAI MARA – THE HUNT EDIT

Before the Workshop
We will ask you for:

• some basic information about your equipment
• your photos/portfolio
• your expectations from the workshop

Whatsapp group of the participants will be formed 1 month prior to the workshop dates so that your learning starts much in advance and you are well prepared for the tour. You will be given access to the wildlife photography courses. Communicating your expectations beforehand will ensure that Sudhir addresses them during individual interactions with you.

During the Workshop

• Sudhir will demonstrate the best way to approach and shoot the subjects and give deeper insights on their behavioural aspects.
• He will introduce the advanced custom function settings of your camera. A firm understanding of these settings will be your first step toward shooting like a pro.
• In the park, he will continually guide you based on the field conditions and subjects.
• Knowledge sharing and image review will continue through the evenings as Sudhir interacts with you with focused inputs to reinforce the day’s learning.
• You will have assignments to complete, giving you ample scope to assimilate and apply all that you have learnt.

Wildlife Photography Learning:

As a part of the workshop, the 4 important pillars of photography – Subject Knowledge, Fundamental concepts of photography, Shooting Techniques / Understanding your equipment and Post processing will be covered.

The below topics from the advanced fundamentals of photography will be covered and you will learn how to apply these concepts in Wildlife photography.

– Importance of Subject Knowledge and understanding natural history
– The key to getting right colours – Use of White Balance
– In-depth understanding of Manual exposure (ISO, shutter speeds, Aperture)
– Understanding exposure – the 18% grey concept
– Diving deep into Metering modes (evaluative / matrix / Multi, spot metering)
– Exploring the AF points (both DSLR and Mirrorless)
– Exploring the advanced AF points for subject tracking
– Understanding the advanced menu options for auto focusing (for both DSLR and Mirrorless)
– Depth of field

– Motion (freezing, blurring and panning)
– When to use what: Aperture priority, shutter priority or Manual
– Shooting techniques
– Accessories in wildlife photography

Topics of Composition (framing):
– Understanding light
– Rule of 1/3
– Vertical vs Horizontal
– Angle of shooting
– Avoiding Distractions
– Getting complementary foreground/background
– Catchlight and head turn

Creative Photography:
– Backlit / rim lighting image creation
– Capturing Behaviour
– Extreme Close-up
– Eye Level
– High / Low key images
– Foreground OOF Images
– Portraits vs Habitat
– Using Reflections
– Complementary background
– Signature Shots
– Story Telling

Post-Processing:
During the course of the workshop, you will be taken through the fundamentals of image processing and the following topics will be covered (Processing using Lightroom and ACR / Photoshop will be covered):

– Fundamentals of colour management.
– Lightroom essentials: The Library and Develop modules of LR
– Importing and metadata of images into LR
– Key wording
– Filtering images
– RAW processing workflow covering advanced tools of LR
– Exporting images

During the Field Outing:
During the field outing, your mentor Sudhir Shivaram will help you make memorable images. Inputs provided on the field will enable you make the most of the opportunity.

Day 1
On arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, our representative will greet you, assist with immigration clearance and transfer you to Wilson airport where you will board the chartered flight to Mara for a prompt check-in at the Ashnil camp. After a lovely lunch, you will take some rest and have a hands on photography session in the afternoon by Sudhir. Dinner and overnight at Ashnil Mara Camp.
Day 2-5
A total of 5 nights at the Ashnil Mara Camp. The focus of these safaris will be to capture the hunting action sequences and general wildlife. The variety and density of wildlife in the Mara never disappoints. Sudhir will interact with the group during the workshop so that you can benefit to the fullest from his expert tutelage.
Day 6
We do the morning game drive and return to the camp for a late lunch. We relax for sometime and later will be driven to the airstrip for our flight back to Wilson airport and then a drop to to JKIA, Nairobi airport, from where you will catch your international flight home. The charter flight will be timed in accordance with the international flight departure timelines. Once again, this is door-to-door service, with no wasted time at all.

Accommodation: Ashnil Mara Camp

Ashnil Mara Camp, with 50 luxury tents, is located in the Masai Mara National Reserve and close to the Mara River, famous for the wildebeest migration.
Our luxury Masai Mara Camp is arguably in one of the very best positions in the Masai Mara for game viewing and also provides the perfect setting to sit and relax at the end of a exciting day of game drives. The Ashnil Mara Camp is a 4 – 5 hour drive from Nairobi or there are daily scheduled flights from Nairobi to the Masai Mara which take just 45 mins. You may also fly from the Mombasa Coast to our luxury tented camp in just 2 hrs.

USD $3800 (plus 5% GST) on Double Occupancy
USD $4700 (plus 5% GST) on Single Occupancy

For INR calculation we have considered the tour price as INR 3,19,200 for double occupancy and INR 3,94,800 for single occupancy. The final pricing will be calculated based on the exchange rates at the time of final payment to vendors. The participants will have to pay the difference amount. Sudhir Shivaram will be your tour leader and mentor.

INCLUSIONS
– Arrival – meet and greet at JKIA
– Drop-off and goodbye at JKIA

Accommodation
– Twin beds/Double beds
– Hot water for bathing
– Hot tea and coffee in the morning
– WiFi in camp and rooms
– Charging facilities in the cottages
– All park fees

Meals
– Vegetarian and Non- Vegetarian meals
– Indian food will be served courtesy a trained chef – vegetarian and non-vegetarian selection.
– Lunch on last day, since you are departing in the afternoon.

Activities
– Silver-level guides
– Flexibility of doing game drives as per requirement of group
– Full-day game drives to be done based on need, with hot Indian food (breakfast + lunch) delivered in the park.

Vehicles
– 4 open Landcruiser vehicles
– 3 persons per vehicle (sudhir will be the 4th person)
– Beanbags

Flights
– Private Aircraft – Wilson Airport to Mara and back.
– On this flight, you will be allowed to carry the camera bag (max. 15 kg) plus 25kg luggage.

EXCLUSIONS
– International air tickets and visa fees
– International travel & medical insurance and vaccinations
– Extra night stay at Nairobi if you arrive early or want to leave late.
– Porterage, tipping and gratuities to staff and guides
– Hot air balloon safari will be charged extra on actual
– Extra meals, visits and activities not mentioned in the “INCLUSIONS” section
– Shopping and other items of a personal nature
– Laundry
– Alcohol (House drinks, Gin, Vodka, Beer, soft drinks)
– Anything else not mentioned in the “INCLUSIONS”

YOUR CANCELLATION & REFUND
We understand that sometimes you unfortunately have to cancel a tour. Therefore, the following are the cancellation policies for our tours:

– 25% deposit is non refundable booking fee.
– Balance 75% to be paid 60 days prior to departure date.
– even though initial 25% booking fee will be non-refundable, in event of tour getting cancelled (for whatever reasons), we will refund full amount charged from the clients.

The below refund policy will be applicable to amount outside of the 25% deposit amount.
90-60 days before departure, 50% of above mentioned tour cost will be refunded.
59-31 days before departure, 25% of above mentioned tour cost will be refunded.
30 days or less before departure, no refund.

This policy also applies to pre- and post-trip extensions. Any airline tickets issued are subject to the carrier’s refund policy. Leaving a tour in progress will not result in a refund, and no refunds will be made for any unused portions of a tour.

All cancellation notices must be received in writing and emailed to info at sudhirshivaram.com

TOUR CANCELLATION

We reserve the right to cancel the tour due to few guests that have signed up for the tour, strikes, war, natural disasters or other unforeseen circumstances that make the tour inappropriate. If a tour is canceled prior to departure, you will be fully refunded.

We are not responsible for any refund for non-refundable airline tickets or for any airline tickets purchased by the passenger directly from an airline or travel agent.

EXCHANGE RATES AND PRICE CHANGE

Our tours are based on different currencies and exchange rates. The currency and rate used for calculating are listed under the “Cost” sections of the tour page. In terms of fluctuations in exchange rates a surcharge will be invoiced. Notification will be given at the time of final invoicing.

The prices are subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances such as increase in fuel prices, government surcharges and other increases beyond our control. While we will do everything possible to maintain the listed prices, if it is necessary to levy a surcharge, we reserve the right to do so, and notification will be given at the time of final invoicing.