11 Nights / 12 Days
Cost: $12,800/person sharing, $2,100 single supplement
- Initial Deposit of 35% is $3,200
Maximum Number of Participants: 6
Safari Leader: Buddy Eleazer
Email contact to sign up: [email protected]
We love Kenya.
Few places in Africa combine such vast landscapes, dramatic scenery, and extraordinary wildlife. From the great elephants of Amboseli to the wildlife-rich plains of the Tsavo ecosystem, Kenya offers some of the most iconic photographic opportunities on the continent.
There is, however, one frustration that can come with visiting some of Kenya’s best-known wildlife areas: the crowds.
For our February–March 2028 safari, we have designed an itinerary around a different idea. Rather than simply visiting Kenya’s most famous destinations, we want to combine iconic wildlife with more exclusive, personal photographic experiences.
Our journey will take us to three very different regions—Lumo Conservancy, Amboseli, and Shompole Wilderness. Each offers something unique, and together they create what we believe could be an exceptional Kenya photography safari.
Lumo Conservancy: The Wild Side of Tsavo
Our adventure begins at Lion’s Head Camp in the Lumo Conservancy, part of the greater Tsavo ecosystem.
Lumo is an important wildlife corridor and offers excellent opportunities to photograph elephants—including some impressive tuskers—as well as lions, leopards, and a wide variety of other wildlife.
But Lumo isn’t simply about what we hope to see. The landscape itself is part of the photographic attraction.
The iron-rich soils of the Tsavo region produce the famous reddish earth that can dramatically influence the appearance of the landscape and wildlife. Dust and mud can give elephants and other animals a warm, earth-toned appearance, while the rich red soil can create striking contrasts with animals such as zebras.
For a wildlife photographer, that distinctive environment gives Lumo a visual character that is difficult to duplicate elsewhere.
Just as important, Lumo offers something increasingly difficult to find in Africa’s most famous wildlife areas: space and solitude.
With far fewer visitors and vehicles than many of Kenya’s better-known national parks, we should have considerably more freedom to enjoy sightings without competing with a long line of safari vehicles. That means more time with the animals, greater flexibility, and a stronger sense of being immersed in the wilderness.
Photographing After Dark
Lion’s Head Camp adds another dimension to the experience with overnight photographic hides and night game drives.
These opportunities can produce an entirely different type of wildlife photography. Instead of concentrating solely on traditional daytime game drives, we can work with low light, artificial light, silhouettes, movement, and nighttime behavior.
For me, however, the greatest attraction of Lumo is the combination of all these elements: excellent wildlife, dramatic scenery, very low vehicle density, night drives, and hide photography.
It should be a wonderful way to begin our Kenya adventure.
Amboseli: Elephants Beneath Kilimanjaro
From Lumo, we travel to one of my favorite places in Africa for photographing wildlife within the landscape: Amboseli.
Historically, we have stayed at Ol Tukai because of its superb location. Unfortunately, the lodge itself has become tired, and the overall experience has not always matched the extraordinary wildlife and scenery surrounding it.
Fortunately, a new option became available in 2026: Soroi Amboseli Camp.
I know the Soroi team well. We have stayed at their camps in both the Masai Mara and Samburu for years, and we have consistently enjoyed our experiences with them. Some of our favorite guides are also part of the Soroi team.
That gives me considerable confidence that Soroi Amboseli will be an excellent fit for our small photography group.
Why Amboseli?
There are two simple reasons I love Amboseli:
- Big-tusked elephants.
2. Mount Kilimanjaro.
Put those two together, and you have the ingredients for some of the most iconic wildlife photographs in Africa.
There is something magical about watching a large elephant move slowly across the open Amboseli plains while Mount Kilimanjaro towers in the background.
These aren’t simply wildlife photographs. They are landscape photographs with wildlife at their heart—the kind of images that can become large prints hanging on a wall rather than simply another file on a hard drive.
February and early March can be an especially interesting time to visit. If conditions cooperate, Kilimanjaro may still carry a substantial snow cap, adding even more drama to the scene.
I honestly don’t know many wildlife photographers who have visited Amboseli and haven’t wanted to return.
It is simply a special place.
Shompole Wilderness: Letting the Wildlife Come to Us
Our final destination is Shompole Wilderness, a place I have been wanting to return to for several years.
I have visited Shompole twice before, and it is one of those places that stays with you.
The region offers beautiful landscapes, excellent wildlife, and an opportunity to experience a more authentic side of Kenya and Maasai culture. But for photographers, Shompole offers something particularly exciting:
It allows us to photograph wildlife differently.
The Hides
Rather than spending every hour moving from one wildlife sighting to another, Shompole gives us the opportunity to slow down, settle into photographic hides, and let the wildlife come to us.
The camp has two overnight photographic hides, allowing us to work with wildlife at close range while experiencing changing light and behavior over extended periods.
This is an entirely different photographic experience from a traditional game drive.
- We can wait quietly.
- We can watch.
- We can anticipate.
And, perhaps most importantly, we can concentrate on behavior and photographic possibilities rather than simply finding the next animal.
The nighttime hide is particularly exciting. Photography after dark can produce images that look completely different from the photographs most of us bring home from a conventional African safari.
More Than Photography
Shompole also offers an opportunity to spend time with and learn about the Maasai in a setting that feels genuine rather than staged for tourists.
That cultural component, combined with the wildlife, landscapes, and hide photography, gives Shompole a character all its own.
In many ways, it is the perfect complement to the first two destinations.
Lumo gives us the feeling of a remote Tsavo wilderness—with low vehicle density, night drives, and hide photography.
Amboseli gives us iconic elephants against one of the world’s most recognizable landscapes.
Shompole slows things down. It gives us the opportunity to sit quietly, observe, and allow the wildlife to come to us—both during the day and throughout the night.
And I wouldn’t be surprised if Shompole ultimately becomes one of the highlights of the entire safari.
In fact, if we traveled all the way to Kenya and spent our entire safari at Shompole, I believe we could still say the journey was worthwhile.
That is how special I believe this place can be.
Three Very Different Kenya Experiences
What makes this itinerary particularly appealing to me is that we aren’t simply touring three popular wildlife areas.
We are experiencing three very different versions of Kenya.
Lumo Conservancy
The wildlife and landscapes of the Tsavo ecosystem, with red earth, impressive elephants, low vehicle density, night drives, and overnight hide photography.
Amboseli
Some of Africa’s most impressive elephants photographed against one of the world’s most recognizable backdrops—Mount Kilimanjaro.
Shompole Wilderness
Exceptional hide photography, wildlife, dramatic landscapes, nighttime opportunities, and an authentic opportunity to experience Maasai culture.
Together, these destinations offer what I believe could be an extraordinary Kenya photography safari.
Iconic wildlife.
Dramatic landscapes.
Unique photographic opportunities.
And, whenever possible, an escape from the crowds.
For those of us who love photographing Africa, that combination is what makes this trip so exciting.
The goal isn’t simply to come home with great photographs.
It is to come home with the experiences behind those photographs—the quiet moments, the unexpected encounters, the changing light, the incredible landscapes, and the memories that make us want to return to Africa again and again.
2028 Kenya Photography Safari
Group size: 6 guests + leader
Draft Itinerary
| Dates | Location |
| February 27–28, 2028 | Tamarind Tree, Nairobi |
| February 28–March 2, 2028 | Lion’s Head Camp, Lumo Conservancy |
| March 2–5, 2028 | Soroi Amboseli |
| March 5–9, 2028 | Shompole Wilderness |
Estimated Cost
$12,800 per person sharing
$14,900 per person with single supplement
This pricing should be very close to the final cost. We are calling it an estimated cost because the charter-aircraft companies have reserved the right to adjust their pricing based on unpredictable fuel costs this far in advance.
Included
In addition to lodging and meals at the camps, the trip includes:
- Arrival transfer from Nairobi International Airport to the hotel
- Charter flight from Nairobi to Lumo Conservancy
- 25 kg of luggage per person on charter flights
- Road transfer from Lumo to Amboseli (approximately 4½ hours)
- Charter flight from Amboseli to Wilson Airport
- Road transfer from Wilson Airport to Shompole Wilderness
- Road transfer from Shompole to Nairobi
- Hide sessions at Lumo
- Daily hide sessions at Shompole
- All applicable park and conservation fees
Not Included
- Gratuities for guides and camp staff
- Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
- International flights between the United States and Nairobi, Kenya
A Different Way to Experience Kenya
Kenya has no shortage of spectacular wildlife destinations.
Our goal with this safari is to experience something a little different: the best of Kenya without making the trip feel like a parade of safari vehicles.
With only six guests plus a leader, we can keep the group small, flexible, and focused on photography.
From the red earth of Tsavo to elephants beneath Kilimanjaro and the quiet photographic hides of Shompole, this journey offers three very different experiences—and the opportunity to see Kenya from a perspective that goes well beyond the usual safari circuit.
For a small group of photographers who want to experience Kenya rather than simply visit it, this could be a remarkable journey.