Zimanga – Wildlife & Night Sky Photography

Typical Itinerary

1. Day 1: Depart UK

   Today, we depart the UK on overnight flights to South Africa.

2. Day 2: Arrive Durban & transfer to Zimanga Private Game Reserve

   On arrival in Durban on South Africa’s eastern coast, we are met and transferred north to the Zimanga Private Game Reserve. Once we reach our destination, we check in for a seven-night stay, and we have some time to settle into our accommodation before a briefing and dinner in the evening.

   Accommodation: Zimanga Main Lodge, 7 nights.

3. Days 3-8 : Photography sessions & overnight hides in Zimanga Private Game Reserve

   Over the course of the next six days we will have a series of photographic excursions which will combine game drives, hide-based photography and Zimanga's famous overnight hides. This combination of excursions and sessions will provide a myriad of photographic opportunities ranging from capturing iconic species in the golden hours of the day to working on our compositions as we photograph from the overnight hides. The results should be some fantastic images which we can all add to our portfolios.

   There is an incredible variety of species which we could photograph during our stay in Zimanga. From smaller bird species such a little bee-eater, malachite kingfisher and oxpecker to larger birds including the likes of black-crowned night heron, grey crowned cranes all the way up to the larger mammals including cheetah, African elephant, plains ungulates, lion, leopard, white rhino and buffalo, there is no end to species that we can photograph in Zimanga.

   The other intriguing option that Zimanga provides us is night sky photography from the overnight hides. Our tour has been timed to coincide with the new moon which is the best time to photograph the night sky and the lack of light pollution at Zimanga mean that the nightscapes and the stars are quite incredible. South Africa is known to offer a spectacular experience when it comes to clear skies, and particularly Zimanga. The sky at Zimanga is very dark as it is so far away from any light pollution produced by cities. Due to this lack of light pollution combined with a new moon the dark sky clearly reveals our galaxy the Milky Way.

   And if capturing images of the night sky wasn't enough, there are also opportunities to photograph some of Africa's most iconic species with a background full of stars if the weather permits.

   We return to the lodge during the day for our meals, to recuperate and Sean will also be around during downtime for any questions we may have regarding image post-processing, composition or different photographic techniques.

4. Day 9: Return to Durban & departure

   This morning, it is time to depart and transfer back to Durban for our international flights back to the UK.

5. Day 10: Arrive UK