DAY BY DAY
Day 1 – Colombo & Yala National Park
After arriving in Colombo, you'll be transferred straight away on a scenic drive to Yala National Park. There, you'll meet Lucia Griggi and your safari guide, Milinda De Silva. The evening will be spent relaxing and settling down in the luxury safari camp.
Day 2 –Yala National Park
Orientation and brunch will start the day off right as everyone gets to know one another. Your first visit inside the park will be in the afternoon, after everyone creates a plan for shooting together. The rest of the day will be spent shooting away - the park is teeming with wildlife, so there will always be something new and interesting to photograph.
Day 3 – Yala National Park
You will take part in an all-day wildlife photography expedition. Waking up before dawn, you will take a jeep ride to the nearest water hole for sunrise. This is prime time to photograph leopards, who are oftentimes by water holes as the sun is coming up. These early hours are the perfect time for predator encounters and dramatic predator action. Furthermore, you will get to experience the uneasy peace between animals sharing the water source. However, the relative calm is sometimes broken by the circle of life. Sunrise in Sri Lanka is magical, and activates the Yala jungle in a different way from night.
The morning stalk for leopards will be briefly interrupted by a brunch – either a picnic in the jungle or a return to camp. During the warmest and brightest parts of the day you will have time to relax and recharge. When the light is harsh, animals are at rest, so we won’t miss photographic opportunities for down time.
The majority of the day will be spent driving the dusty roads of Yala - watching for leopard, elephant and whatever wildlife is out for an afternoon stroll. In the evening, there is a return to the water hole to coincide with the habits of leopard, and then a return to camp for dinner, editing, stories and luxurious sleep, lulled by the sounds of the jungle.
Day four will be similar to day three with one notable difference - you will be exploring the bush by foot. This opportunity will allow you to get up-close and personal with the local plants and wildlife. All meals will be provided throughout the day to be eaten in the jungle.
Day 4 – Yala on Foot
After your days out in the bush, you will have some familiarity with Yala. On Day 5, the guides and drivers will be ready and willing to take your tour group wherever they want to go. This day is all about you exploring parts of Yala you haven’t yet seen – or want to see again. In the evening you will return to camp for photo critiques and editing. Lucia will review your work at camp and suggest postproduction ideas and techniques.
Day 5 – Yala National Park
We will wake up before dawn, have a visit to close-by waterholes, and then spend the day in Yala, covering parts of the 378 square mile park that you haven’t yet visited. You will be out of camp all day, and have a picnic lunch in the jungle. You will return to camp in the evening for an (optional) presentation of your most impressive photos, followed by a photo critique.
Day 6 – Yala National Park
The morning will be spent getting your last shots of beautiful and serene Yala. On your 7th day, you will say goodbye to the friends you have made, the mentors you’ve met, and the gorgeous wilderness.