Growing up in Maun, school trips to Moremi Game Reserve as well herding family cattle along the Boro River were Ona’s earliest contact with wildlife. He grew up with a passion to work with wildlife.  He joined Botswana Predator Conservation Programme as a research assistant and interacting with guides influenced a switch to guiding. Ona started guiding with &Beyond Africa in the Okavango Delta and then joined Wilderness Safaris in 2010 when he couldn’t resist the urge to work in the Central Kalahari.  It was there that Ona bought his first camera. His work is regularly published in Peolwane, the Air Botswana inflight magazine, and annually in Discover Botswana; Botswana Tourism board’s annual publication.  Ona’s growing reputation is inspiring other Motswana guides to adopt photography and in the process promote their country and its natural heritage.

Shem is a naturalist and professional wildlife photographer working throughout Africa. His passion for natural areas and photography has led to a life of travel and creating environmental awareness through his photography. Shem is known for his creative representation of common subjects- leading to a diverse range of subject matter. His images have won national and international awards and his work is published worldwide. He has published four books. Shem also owns and runs a specialised photo safari company; www.c4images-safaris.co.za which run photo safaris and workshops. www.shemimages.com.

Cameron is editor in chief of Getaway, Africa’s longest standing travel magazine. Previously Cameron served as editor of Wild magazine. He has an MSC in Marine Biology from the University of Cape Town and his photographs and articles have been widely published both in South Africa and oversees. Cameron is based in Cape Town and is passionate about the environment and in particular is a strong advocate of the importance of tourism in conservation and rural development. www.getaway.co.za

Birds are particularly special to Albert and they present a unique challenge to photograph!  He always aims to show some action or behaviour in his photography.  His images have been published extensively over the past few years.  He regularly contributes to various magazines as well as numerous other glossy publications, calendars and advertorial material.  He has also received several local and international awards for his photography.He has been presenting workshops and leading bird photographic safaris for the past 8 years and says it is a wonderful experience to share knowledge, sightings and images with other keen bird and wildlife photographers!  He is based in Johannesburg South Africa but travels around frequently, whether it’s even just a quick afternoon outing to a local bird sanctuary or a week long excursion to a wildlife destination somewhere in Africa.  www.wildlifephotography.co.za

First there is the camera. Behind it there is the eye and then, most importantly of all, there is the heart. After completing a degree in zoology and botany, photographer Caroline Gibello embarked on a journey to explore the world. With money saved from her first job as a shepherdess on a Scottish Border sheep farm, she bought her first SLR camera, and with the instruction manual in her backpack set off for Asia, where she spent time exploring the Himalayas and the jungles and coastlines of the South East. Consumed by the beauty of the people and environment that surrounded her, a passion for photography was born. On returning to Cape Town she studied fine art photography at the University of Cape Town and since then, in between wild and exotic wanderings around the world, has pursued a career as a commercial and fine art photographer. With galleries in Cape Town, London, Barcelona and Mumbai, her work is exhibited internationally and has found homes in all corners of the globe. www.galleriagibello.com

Helen is the owner and manager of Nature Picture Library. The library represents more than 300 photographers and the collection illustrates nature in the broadest sense, from animal portraits and wildlife behaviour to plants and landscapes, pets and farm animals, the environment and conservation issues. The agency has collaborated with large photography initiatives such as Wild Wonders of Europe, 2020Vision, ARKive and Meet Your Neighbours. Helen is an associate of iLCP. www.naturepl.com

Hougaard has established himself as a name that is synonymous with landscape photography in South Africa. He has one of the most comprehensive and diverse collections of Southern African scenery, but he is quickly expanding his gallery beyond the shores of Africa. His work shows his understanding for creating images that communicate the essence of a location, instead of just being a pretty picture. He wants his photos to remove the viewer from their present location and transport them to the scene so they can feel the breeze and see the golden light of the setting sun on their skin. That is the purpose of a landscape photo, to experience the beauty of a place without being there. All adjectives aside, Hougaard is an ambitious down-to-earth person who is thankful to be in a position where he can make a living from travelling and nature photography.
www.hougaardmalan.com

For 32 years, Obie Oberholzer has been travelling the dusty roads of Africa. Once, after his country’s independence in 1994, he’d even travelled all the way up to Cairo from Cape Town. That trip took him 9 months. If asked about his own photography, he would merely shrug, smile and then tell you about some funny incident that happened along the road. With love and enthusiasm he has followed his travel dreams across these Happysadlands, reflecting people and places along the way. Never influenced by photographic styles (mostly imported from North America and Europe), he has stuck to his own brand of visual language, keeping his eyes on the road and the country in his heart.  www.obieoberholzer.net

Jason has been involved in the photographic industry all his life, with the influence of his father Mike, for inspiration and guidance. With the many changes that the trade has experienced over the years, ORMS  has always been at the forefront of photographic development and changing technologies. Jason is the Head of Development and Video Marketing, and will be talking about the many innovative and creative ways that photographers are able to express their images on different substrates. www.ormsdirect.co.za

Don is a director of Southern Write, an association of top travel writers and photographers in Africa. He is a former editor of Getaway magazine and has been an electronic engineer, lecturer in journalism and criminology, consultant to the Mandela government, a professional yachtsman, explorer, travel writer, photographer and a cable-car operator on the Rock of Gibraltar. He has travelled extensively throughout the world, writing and photographing and has won many awards as well as holding two gallery exhibitions of his travel photographs. His present passion is the impact of humans on planetary processes. www.southernwrite.net

Adrian Steirn is a leading photographer and filmmaker, based in Cape Town. He has been photographing Africa and its wild subjects for over fifteen years, and his fine art photography is represented by the Everard Read gallery in Johannesburg and a number of notable game reserves throughout Africa including Singita, Shamwari and Sabi Sabi.  Next to his wildlife photography, Steirn is also well known for his portraiture photography, and this year he launched the 21 Icons Project, a visual celebration of the most iconic South African men and women of the 21st century. Steirn was named Photographer of the Year at the 2010 African Photographic Awards, is both a Nikon and a Mercedes Ambassador as well as being the WWF – SA Wildlife Photographer in Residence. www.adriansteirn.com

Steve began his career as a specialist photographic guide in Botswana 16 years ago.  After publishing his first book Earth Ark – A Photographic Safari through northern Botswana, he went on to co-write Wildlife Photography in Botswana – A practical guide with James Gifford. Steve’s next major accomplishment was in 2012 when he co-founded Cameras for Conservation, an organization showcasing photographers and artists in Botswana as well as promoting conservation of the wilderness.  He knew that by using the images submitted for their annual competition they could educate, build awareness and promote change for the future of our planet. “Through photography we can express both a gratitude for the wilderness that remains and a hope that others will join in celebrating efforts of conservation and compassion for the wild.” www.camerasforconservation.com  www.eartharksafaris.com

Jean is a wildlife and landscape photographer specialising in underwater and aerial images. He lives in Cape Town and his passion lies in showcasing both his city and his country as a superb photographic destination for capturing alluring and unusual wildlife images. It is Jean’s belief that the official lack of protection for many of our underwater ecosystems stems from their very inaccessibility and an “out of sight, out of mind” mentality. Now he hopes that his images will inspire more people to both visit and conserve these beautiful places and their inhabitants. Jean is also a pilot and has found that flying and diving share a common trait in that they both allow a different and unusual perspective and viewpoint. Jean was named as the Getaway Gallery Photographer of the Year in 2007, had three commended images in the 2010 Fujifilm Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, won the Durban Undersea Club Photo Competition in 2012 and had a commended image in the BBC/Veolia Wildlife Photographer of the Year for 2012. Jean is a regular contributor to many diving and wildlife publications. www.underwaterimages.co.za 

Wim has had an interest in both photography and nature for as long as he can remember. He comes from a family where photography is more a lifestyle than a hobby, and they never missed an opportunity to visit the Southern African Game Parks. In 2006 Vim was able to combine his passion for photography and wildlife when he embarked on a career as a professional wildlife photographer. At first he supplemented his career with commercial photography projects, but in 2007 joined Hedrus van der Merwe from OutdoorPhoto to form a division for Camera Equipment Rentals and Safaris. Vim’s company currently hosts wildlife safaris in prime locations throughout the world, giving him the unique opportunity to spend a good amount of time in the field on location photographing what he loves – wildlife.  Recent awards and accomplishments include Runner Up in this year’s BBC Veolia Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the front cover of BBC Wildlife Magazine in October 2011. www.wimvandenheever.com