MAGICAL MADAGASCAR: EXPERIENTIAL TRAVEL PHOTO TOUR - June 2017
Magical Madagascar Experiential Travel Photo Tour – June 2017
NOTE: This cost competitive photo tour is being organised by Nicki Geigert, USA. Iconic Images International or I have no commercial interest in the tour. My friend, Jay Collier from Canon Collective, Australia, is the photography guide on the tour. His role is to provide technical assistance to each client with their camera equipment. Jay will also be shooting and clients will learn a great deal from his technique, his use of light, his compositional expertise, especially when it comes to photographing wildlife (his special passion).
“On this journey with your camera you should capture memorable experiences in one of the few remaining, almost untouched ecosystems on the planet – the magical island of Madagascar” – Denis Glennon AO, Founder of ICONIC IMAGES INTERNATIONAL
The tour has been planned so that you can photograph villagers, children and fishermen, who will welcome you into their communities as well as Madagascar’s unique wildlife.
Together with tour leader Nicki Collins Geigert (USA) and professional photographer Jay Collier (Australia), you will participate in a photographic discovery of the island and an immersive tour that will bring you into intimate contact with the people, culture, environment and amazing natural diversity of Madagascar.
Madagascar has over 60 species of lemurs, including the elusive Aye Aye and the tiny mouse lemurs, are considered endangered. To help protect them and other unique species, the government has set aside over nine million acres (3.7 million hectares) of land.
Then, there are the most fascinating chameleons (some of the smallest in the world) and frogs, birds, butterflies and insects, that anyone has ever seen and that exist nowhere else. And that doesn’t even include the diverse plant life.
Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world. It would take years to photograph its kaleidoscopic collection of unique subjects.
Because of its unique flora and fauna (>80% of it exists nowhere else in the world and rivalling Brazil in its diversity), it is a dream destination for nature lovers and photographers.
The 16-day itinerary (one of the longest offered by any tour operator and is planned to take you to both the breadth and most of the length of Madagascar, through tropical rain forests, desert areas, seashores and everything in between. The on-ground logistics are being handled by one of Madagascar’s most experienced operators in the Madagascar travel industry, serving a clientele of outbound tour operators and independent travellers requiring private tours, luxury holidays and specialty travel thorough Madagascar. They are a “100% Malagasy” business meaning they are owned and operated solely by Madagascar nationals.
Most travel tours of Madagascar stay near the capital city of Antananarivo because of the limited road infrastructure across the island. This photo tour definitely takes you off the beaten track.
On this tour, 12-seater Cessna Caravan chartered aircraft will be used to transfer participants to the nominated destinations, thus avoiding the problems frequently associated with regular flights through the limited airports of Madagascar.
Because of this, there is a reasonably strict weight limit and type of luggage applicable on the tour. You should be able to carry your camera gear as hand luggage and if your other gear (clothes, tripod, etc.) is packed in soft-sided duffel-type bags, you will satisfy the pilot’s requirements.
Irrespective of your existing photography expertise or experience you will be taught how to capture the expanse of the island’s landscapes and photograph the best of its wildlife.
While you learn about camera technique and approaches to composition, the aim is to transform your photography, not merely add to it.
This small group photographic safari (a maximum of TWELVE participants, excluding Nicki Geigert and Jay Collier, has been created for experienced and emerging photographers who have a passion for photographing some of the best of Madagascar’s landscapes, seascapes, culture and wildlife.
Note 1: If you live in Australia and have any questions before registering please contact Jay Collier at Jay.COLLIER@canon.com.au or on 0410 608 790.
Note 2: If you live in the USA or elsewhere please contact Nicki Geigert at nickigphotos@aol.com or on +1 760 533 5154.
Overview
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do rather than by the ones you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, dream and discover” . – Mark Twain.
This experiential travel photo tour will take you to practically all of the iconic photography spots in Madagascar.
The locations have been carefully researched. To better the itinerary for photographers would be a challenge.
If you decide to join, you can expect to experience:
- Meticulous planning and a very high standard of on-ground operations.
- Exceptional wildlife viewing, unique opportunities fro macro and landscape photography.
- Good accommodation in pleasantly surprising settings.
- Food ranging from very good to gourmet.
- Drivers and a local guide whose knowledge will impress the most demanding photographer/traveller.
- Continuous professional assistance with your photography and post processing by one of the best teachers in Australia – Jay Collier.
- A carefully designed itinerary that reveals Madagascar to you at the right pace to maximise your opportunities for photography.
- Nocturnal walks in the rainforests – expect to see and photograph amazing chameleons, leaf-tailed geckos and insects like the giraffe necked weevil.
- A kaleidoscopic collection of lemurs, including the brown, bamboo, ruffed, diademed, indri indri, eulemur fulvus, hapalemur griseus, to name a few.
- Cruising by boat on the calm waters of Pangalanes – a memorable journey through time and history.
- Outstanding flora like you have never thought existed – orchids, carnivorous plants, granadilla wood, and the most beautiful and rarest palm trees.
- Vezo fishermen still living off the sea, still using pirogues to sail > 50 kms offshore, just as their forebearers did thousands of years ago.
- Baobab forests with trees up to 800 hundred years old – excellent subjects for sunset photography and inclusion in star photography.
- Arriving home with the best possible images and memories of your journey through Madagascar.
The island is full of exotic species with much still unknown about many of them.
This is an experiential travel photo tour, custom-made for photographers and spouses/partners having interests in endemic wildlife, exotic flora, nature, and breath-taking landscapes. For wildlife photographers, Madagascan wildlife has to be the most foreign. Usually when photographing wildlife in most countries you are able to relate an animal or a bird to the country you are in. Madagascar will change all that.
The tour is confined to a maximum of TWELVE participants, is suitable for participants of all levels of photographic experience and is a trip that a non-photographing spouse or travel partner will thoroughly enjoy.
Tour Leader & Photography Guide
The tour leader is Nicki Collins Geigert, from USA. The photography guide is Jay Collier from Australia. Jay’s role is to share his extensive technical expertise of camera equipment and photography with clients.
NICKI COLLINS GEIGERT – Photographer, Educator & Logistics Coordinator.
Nicki first started playing with a camera when she was 8 years old. Because of the joy she discovered in capturing a moment in time, she continued to pursue photography as a hobby until her recent retirement from corporate life. Since then, she has immersed herself in the art of photography and has had a number of gallery shows in Los Angeles, as well as many of her images published in several Fodor’s Travel Guides.
Nicki has many years of experience in travel to Madagascar, Africa, India, China, Southeast Asia, Antarctica and other parts of the world.
She writes children’s books and is currently working on two new photography-based books.
Madagascar remains at the top of her list of “most unique” places on the planet to photograph.
JAY COLLIER – Canon Collective, Australia.
Jay has been photographing Africa’s wildlife since 2004.
Having travelled to Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania, Jay has built up a very strong portfolio of images as well as s deep knowledge of the diverse species and behaviours of Africa’s wildlife.
He has worked in the professional photographic industry for over thirteen years and currently works for Canon Australia. Until recently he managed the Canon Professional Services (CPS) group which is responsible for supporting many of Australia’s leading professional photographers.
His technical understanding of photographic theory and photographic equipment and the features and functions of today’s cameras and lenses are second to none. This expertise has been accumulated from working with both Canon and Nikon, in the professional photographic divisions of both companies.
Clients on the tour will be able to avail of this expertise. He has co-led several photo safaris with Denis Glennon AO, owner of Iconic Images International.
His images and articles have been published in numerous magazines, including Africa Geographic and Better Photography, and in commercial advertising campaigns in Australia. In 2007, several of Jay’s images made it through to the semi-final stage of judging with the BBC World Wildlife Photo competition.
His passion for photographing Africa knows no bounds and he is one of the best teachers of camera technique and post processing of images, particularly using Lightroom.
Dates & Summary Itinerary
The tour commences in Antananarivo, Madagascar on 5 June 2017 and finishes in Antananarivo on 20 June 2017.
For your convenience direct links have been provided to each accommodation you will visit on the tour. To access, simply click on the name of the accommodation.
| DATE | TRANSFER | ACCOMMODATION |
|---|---|---|
| 5 June | Road transfer from Antananarivo Airport to hotel | Tamboho Hotel |
| 6 June | Road transfer to Anjajavy Hotel | Vakona Forest Lodge |
| 7 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Vakona Forest Lodge |
| 8 June | Road & boat transfer to Akanin'ny Nofy | Palmarium Lodge |
| 9 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Palmarium Lodge |
| 10 June | Road transfer to Antananarivo | Tamboho Hotel |
| 11 June | Private charter flight to Ranohira (Isalo) | Isalo Rock Lodge |
| 12 June | Ranohira (Isalo) | Isalo Rock Lodge |
| 13 June | Private charter flight to Morondava | Palissandre Côte Ouest Resort |
| 14 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Palissandre Côte Ouest Resort |
| 15 June | Private charter flight to Bekopaka Bemaraha | Soleil des Tsingy |
| 16 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Soleil des Tsingy |
| 17 June | Private charter flight to Anjajavy | Anjajavy Hotel |
| 18 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Anjajavy Hotel |
| 19 June | Transfers as necessary for photography | Anjajavy Hotel |
| 20 June | Private charter flight to Antananarivo |
You can also download a more comprehensive itinerary by clicking the DOWNLOAD ITINERARY button in the sidebar.
Costs, Terms of Payment, How to Register
The cost is: US$9,990.00 per person, excluding international flights to/from Madagascar, travel insurance and visa costs.
A single supplement of US$1,975.00, if specifically requested. Please note this single supplement is payable, in full, at the time of registration.
Please note, the cost is in US dollars.
Details of the bank account to which payment is to be made, are provided on the Registration Form.
Should you wish to use your credit card for payment please check with your bank or financial institution to determine the most cost effective way to do so.
Costs associated with the obligatory travel insurance, passport, visas, yellow fever and other medical certificates are personal costs and are additional to the cost of the tour.
Terms of Payment
Terms of Payment are as follows: 
1. A non-refundable 25% deposit at the time of submitting the completed Registration Form.
3. A final payment of the remaining 75%, on or before Sunday 30th April 2017.
How to Register
To register, you are required to complete the Nicki Geigert Registration Form.
To download the Registration Form click the “REGISTRATION FORMS” button in the sidebar. Print a copy, complete all three pages and return the completed form, together with payment of the first 25% deposit, to Nicki Geigert.
If You Would Like More Details
If you would like to discuss any aspect of international flights or the obligatory travel insurance for the photographic safari, please contact Nicki Geigert at: nickigphotos@aol.com or on +1 760 533 5154.
If you would like to discuss camera equipment suitable for the photo tour, please contact Jay Collier on +61 410 608 790 or Jay.COLLIER@canon.com.au
Please ensure you download the comprehensive itinerary containing most of the information you will initially need, by clicking on “DOWNLOAD ITINERARY’ in the box on the right hand side.
If this photographic tour is not for you, perhaps you might consider forwarding the information to a friend, who may like to know about it.
Pre-departure Information
To assist you prepare for this photo tour you will be provided with a comprehensive, downloadable and printable PDF outlining:
- Travelling with and looking after photographic equipment in Madagascar.
- Downloading and backing-up images every day.
- Power supply in Madagascar for charging batteries, laptop, mobile phone, etc.
- Vehicle etiquette and consideration for fellow passengers and photographers.
- Keeping healthy in Madagascar.
- Money Matters in Madagascar.
- Immigration and Customs at Antananarivo International Airport.
- Arrangements to meet you on arrival at Antananarivo International Airport.
- Travel documents, personal items & clothing checklist.
- Personal medical items checklist.
- Camera equipment checklist – this is a comprehensive general list.
- Summary itinerary.
- Guide to paying gratuities on the photo tour.
- Suggested choice of lenses and other camera equipment for this photo safari.
Perusing the information in this PDF will undoubtedly enrich your photo tour and help you to return home with iconic images, and many magnificent memories.
The information in the PDF will help you with selecting and packing your camera equipment and other essential items for the tour.
A copy of this PDF will be forwarded to all registered participants, approximately sixty days before the commencement of the photo safari.
Madagascar
QUERIES & CONTACTS
If you would like to discuss any aspect of the photo tour, before making a decision to join, please contact: Nicki Geigert on +1 760 533 5154 or nickigphotos@aol.com
If you have any queries about camera equipment suitable for the tour please contact Jay Collier on +61 410 608 790 or Jay.COLLIER@canon.com.au
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Download the PDF containing full details on payment terms and registration, the itinerary, what is/is not included, cancellation policy and fees, compulsory travel insurance, health considerations, responsibility, liability, and packing camera gear for travel.
Download: ITINERARY & OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION (Printable PDF)
REGISTRATION FORM
To reserve a place, download, complete and return the form to Our World Travel.
Download: REGISTRATION FORM (PrintablePDF)
AFFILIATIONS
Iconic Images is the exclusive representative/agent for C4 Photo Safaris, South Africa, in Australia & New Zealand.
C4 Photo Safaris provides the on-ground logistics for Iconic Images' photo safaris/tours in Africa and is a SATSA member.The SATSA logo signifies that C4 Images & Safaris offers services that are of the highest quality and the company is deemed to be a credible and reliable provider of services to the tourism industry in South Africa. These services are independently audited on an annual basis. SATSA members are bonded, providing a financial guarantee of deposits held against the involuntary liquidation of a SATSA member.
Note: C4 Photo Safaris are NOT providing the on-ground logistics for this particular photo tour.
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