Who I am
If you’re visiting Africa, I’m from there and it’s not foreign - come with me!
My Name is Ed Braz
Experience
As many of us do, I put my “hobbies” on the shelf, for the corporate world. I took up a rewarding career as a management consultant, working on exciting projects with international companies in Africa, Europe and the USA.
Time wore on, and through my constant work with entrepreneurs I began to see a way to recreate myself with my passion as a photographer.
Twenty-five years ago, I began photographing wildlife in Kruger Park. It wasn’t long before I began bringing friends with me, and I found a niche as a guide and teacher. Soon I had a “waiting list” of friends (and then their friends) who were lining up for “weekend tours” with me. As time has gone on, I have formalized my schedule and am happy to share the experience with a few more people each year.
If you are seeking an all-inclusive and exclusive photographic safari this may be what you have been looking for.
“Seeing a white piece of paper gather dark spots as the chemicals magically produced the image I’d just captured with my camera is one of my earliest and most powerful memories.”
Conservation
I am an avid conservationist and it pains me to hear of the slaughter of animals. Specifically I am perturbed by the trend in wildlife decimation that is taking place in parts of Africa.
The annual worldwide trade in wildlife exceeds $17 billion fueling conflict, terrorism and other serious criminal activities. For instance, rhino horn is consumed mostly in Asia, despite being illegal, to cure cancer, ingrown toenails, skin ailments, erectile dysfunction, headaches and is seen as a remedy for any conceivable malady.
Scientifically, rhino horn has no demonstrable medicinal benefits. When we consider that the horn is genetically similar to human nails, are we surprised that the myth is propagated by traditional custom, avarice and greed of intermediaries, poachers and traders?
I support the anti-poaching struggle – it is one of my personal projects to spread the word of this universal calamity to as many people as possible with a view to counter the practices.
Thanks for visiting my site. If you are passionate about photography you might be well-suited to join us on an upcoming safari.
Services
My travels to many destinations, whether in my corporate capacity as a consultant, as a photography safari guide or simply as a travelling adventurer, have given me insights which many can only dream of. Meeting different peoples gives me life perspectives I would never experience at home. Seeing wildlife in its natural environment is uplifting - seeing the joy felt and expressed by guests and the relationships that develop from those common experiences is truly rewarding and a deep motivating factor in my life.
In addition to designing specific destination tours for wildlife photography which I lead, I provide information to individuals or for teams willing to explore Africa privately. At times, I am asked to craft itineraries and subsequently make reservations on behalf of clients keen to explore destinations but wanting to avoid delving 'in the weeds'.
If you too want to explore destinations which may be unfamiliar and would like the guidance of a local expert who has been there and done that, do call me for a no obligation discussion.
In the spirit of UBUNTU, I am available to do presentations on the themes of conservation, travel and photography. Let's chat about spreading the word on these topics.
“And if travel is like love, it is, in the end, mostly because it’s a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end.”