About Untamed Photo Safaris
Photographer-led wildlife safaris created for guests who want meaningful time in the field, expert guidance and ethical photographic experiences across Africa.
Built by Wildlife Photographers, for Wildlife Photographers
Untamed Photo Safaris was created by professional wildlife photographers Mark and Jaren Fernley for guests who want more than a standard safari. Every journey is designed around photography, with careful attention to light, behaviour, positioning, timing and meaningful time in the field.
We combine specialist photographic guidance with small-group travel, ethical wildlife encounters and carefully planned itineraries across Africa’s most rewarding wildlife regions. From the Great Migration and East Africa’s big cats to gorilla trekking, photo hides and rainforest expeditions, our safaris are created for photographers who want to come home with stronger images and a deeper connection to the wild.
What Makes Untamed Different?
Our photo safaris are designed around the details that matter most to wildlife photographers: time, space, light, behaviour, ethics and guidance in the field.
Created by Photographers, Not a Travel Agency
Untamed Photo Safaris is built and led by working wildlife photographers, so every journey is shaped by real field experience rather than standard safari planning.
A Personal Approach to Every Guest
We take time to understand your photography goals, experience level and travel style, helping you choose the safari that best fits what you want to create.
Photographic Experience in the Field
Our safaris are shaped by years spent photographing wildlife in real field conditions, from open savannahs and rainforest trails to photographic hides and low-light encounters.
Respect for Wildlife Comes First
We believe strong images should never come at the expense of wildlife. Patience, space and ethical fieldcraft guide the way we work.
Meet Your Photo Hosts
Untamed Photo Safaris is led by Mark and Jaren Fernley, professional wildlife photographers who guide, teach and support guests throughout each safari.
Untamed Photo Safaris is led by Mark and Jaren Fernley, professional wildlife photographers with years of experience photographing and guiding in Africa’s most rewarding wildlife regions. Together, they combine field knowledge, photographic instruction, ethical wildlife values and personal safari planning to create journeys built specifically for photographers.
From the first enquiry to time in the field, guests work directly with the people behind the company. This personal approach is central to every Untamed Photo Safari.
Our Philosophy
Untamed Photo Safaris is built around a simple belief: the best wildlife photography comes from time, patience, respect and understanding. Every safari we create is shaped by this approach, from the way we plan each itinerary to the way we work in the field.
Our Approach in the Field
We believe the best wildlife photography comes from patience, understanding and respect. Rather than rushing from sighting to sighting, we focus on reading behaviour, working with light, choosing thoughtful positions and allowing natural moments to unfold.
This approach gives photographers a stronger chance of creating meaningful images while keeping the welfare of wildlife at the centre of the experience. Whether we are working from a vehicle, on foot, in a photographic hide or in rainforest conditions, our goal is always the same: to photograph wildlife with care, patience and purpose.
Experience Across Africa
Our photography has taken us across the African continent, from East Africa’s open savannahs and specialist photo hides to Southern Africa’s wilderness areas, Uganda’s rainforests and the remote rainforest ecosystems of the Congo Basin. This wider experience has shaped the way we choose our destinations, focusing on places that offer exceptional wildlife encounters, strong photographic potential and meaningful time in the field.
We do not build safaris around every destination available. Instead, we focus on the regions we believe offer the most rewarding experiences for wildlife photographers, whether that means big cats, elephants, the Great Migration, mountain gorillas, western lowland gorillas, nocturnal hide wildlife or rainforest species.
Responsible Wildlife Photography
We believe wildlife should always come first. Our safaris are built around wild animals in wild places, with no baiting, no staged encounters and no pressure placed on subjects for the sake of an image.
We work with trusted local guides, lodges and partners who understand the importance of ethical fieldcraft, responsible tourism and protecting the environments we photograph. For us, a successful photo safari is not only about the images created, but about the way those images are made.
