Madagascar 2017
I just wanted to thank Oryx for organizing the Madagascar tour for 2017 which was led by Dale Morris; an exceptional and exemplary guide who really demonstrated a passion for teaching photography and for being totally committed to ensuring the best possible experience for all the tour participants. It was my first tour with Oryx and certainly my best tour ever. I was so very impressed with the high level of professionalism and integrity that Dale displays.
Dale patiently taught me how to use my macro lens and flash and this introduction opened up a whole new and exciting world for me! I never knew that macro-photography was so interesting and it is only just the beginning! He was constantly trying to find the best angles for all the tour participants to photograph the lemurs. He taught me how to use my wide-angle lens to take the lemurs from a low angle with a sunburst effect! He taught me how to get down and dirty on the ground to obtain wonderfully low angles for photographing the narrow ring-tailed mongoose and the nightjar. He taught me how to pan fast-moving subjects. He taught me to take note of the background when taking photos. He even set up a mini studio in the forest for photographing the colourful frogs and magnificent chameleons. Everyday brought a new learning experience!! I was so grateful for some of the images which I obtained – something I never dreamt I would ever achieve. Dale even introduced me to fine art photography and night photography of the majestic baobab trees, and suddenly, the artistic potential of photography became so exciting! Dale has my highest respect as a guide. He was able to control the pace of the tour, ensuring that all participants were well taken care of. He has the innate ability to anticipate problems and, in fact, overcame all the problems with the internal flights in Madagascar, remaining calm, unflustered and in complete control throughout. He even anticipated that the final internal departure flight might be a problem (it was eventually canceled) and, in so doing, he averted a disaster by alerting Oryx, which then chartered a flight for our group. This speaks volumes for the entire Oryx team led by Marius, who must be a visionary leader to have hand-picked such a good team.
In summary, it really has been a singular honor and a privilege for me to have traveled with both Dale and Oryx. I hope to do so many more times in the near future. Thank you once again for making one of my childhood dreams to visit Madagascar come true.