Super Tuskers

Photography notes

Amboseli is an elephant photographer's landscape as much as a wildlife one, so pack for both ends of the range. A 100-400mm or 150-600mm zoom is the workhorse for portraits, tusk detail and family-group behaviour, and you'll often want a teleconverter or a fixed 500/600mm for the Super Tuskers, whose ivory is the whole point of the frame. But don't leave the wide end at camp: the signature Amboseli image is elephants small against the snows of Kilimanjaro, and for that a 24-70mm or even 16-35mm earns its place. We shoot from the vehicle almost entirely, so a beanbag over the sill or on the roof hatch is your tripod here; drop low and shoot at eye level with the herd whenever the ground allows. The animals are relaxed and we can work them at close and moderate distances, but we keep our distance from bulls in musth and never crowd family groups with young calves, both for their sake and because tension shows in a photograph.

The season shapes everything. We run this tour from October to February, and for most of that window the open plains and the pale, cracked lake bed are dry and dusty, with the elephants concentrating on the permanent swamps that Kilimanjaro's catchment feeds through underground springs. Late in the year the short rains can green things up and soften the dust for a spell, but the pattern soon returns. That dust is a gift and a hazard: backlit at dawn or in the last hour of light it gives you shafts, trunk-thrown plumes and rim-lit bodies moving through haze, ideal for the fine-art black-and-white work we come here for. We start before six for the good light and cross into a private conservancy to photograph family groups moving down to drink through the heat of the day, then work the low golden light again into the evening, staying out all day when the pictures are there. Kilimanjaro itself is shy: it usually clears in the first hour after dawn and again at dusk, so we plan the mountain compositions around those windows and keep a long lens on standby for the elephants that walk into the frame beneath it. Expect strong midday sun and haze, cold pre-dawn starts on open plains, and fine grit on everything you own.

What to bring

Camera equipment

• 100-400mm or 150-600mm zoom - the workhorse for portraits, tusk detail and family-group behaviour
• A fixed 500mm/600mm or a teleconverter for frame-filling Super Tusker portraits at moderate distance
• 24-70mm and a 16-35mm for the signature elephants-and-Kilimanjaro landscapes
• Two bodies if you have them, so you don't miss the wide moment while the long lens is mounted (and to avoid lens changes in the dust)
• Beanbag for the vehicle sill and roof hatch - this is your support platform; a small clamp head is useful too
• Plenty of memory cards and a laptop or backup drive for nightly downloads
• Spare batteries kept charged - long full days in the field drain them
• A blower, sensor-cleaning kit, lens cloths and rocket brush - dust is the constant enemy here
• Weather/dust-sealed bodies and lenses where possible, plus a rain cover pressed into service as a dust cover

Clothing

• Lightweight, breathable long-sleeved shirts and trousers in neutral tones (avoid bright colours and dark blue/black)
• A warm fleece or jacket for the cold pre-dawn starts on the open plains - it can be genuinely chilly before the sun is up
• Wide-brimmed sun hat, high-factor sunscreen and good sunglasses for the strong midday light and glare off the lake bed
• A buff or light scarf to keep dust off your face and out of your lungs on windy game drives
• Closed, comfortable shoes and a light layer that packs down for the temperature swing across the day

Documents, health & practical

• Valid passport and Kenyan entry authorisation arranged in advance - check current requirements before you travel
• Antimalarial prophylaxis and insect repellent; discuss the right regime with your travel clinic well ahead of departure
• Check your routine vaccinations are up to date, and confirm current entry health requirements with your clinic
• Comprehensive travel insurance covering your camera equipment as well as medical cover
• A dust-proof bag or drybag for cameras between shoots, and zip-lock bags for cards and small kit
• Reusable water bottle and any personal medication; keep well hydrated through the long, hot days in the field