MYSTIC MONGOLIA

Overview

Wild, powerful, beautifully desolate and unforgettable. Filled with wonderful people, eerie and unearthly landscapes, incredible night skies and dancing light. Sandstorms, nomads, camels, steppes, dunes, canyons and endless surprises. Lowest density of population in the world, the highest density of horses. And, for the photographer, an absolute paradise.

Join us for 11 days of adventure and discovery in one of the most unique and exotic locations on the planet. This trip is all about the Gobi Desert. Its vastness and emptiness are haunting. And in between dusty stretches of road are geological gems that offer countless photo opportunities. There are no iconic shots here, so get ready to head off the beaten track.

What Mongolia lacks in luxury it rewards in photo opportunities you won’t find elsewhere. We have worked hard to put together an itinerary we are truly proud of and excited to share with you. After working with locals to overhaul some of the existing journeys, we created what we feel is the perfect itinerary for photographers.

Location: Mongolia - Gobi Desert

Dates: June 8-18, 2021

Tour Leaders: Paul Zizka & Dave Brosha

Assistant: Curtis Jones

Itinerary (Full itinerary to be provided to participants upon arrival.)

Mongolia is a big country and, for that reason, we decided to focus on what we feel is its most unique area: the Gobi Desert. Other than our time in the capital, we will spend the rest of our stay exploring this unique and exotic part of the country.

The finer details:

Included:

• One-on-one and group photography instruction from Dave Brosha and Paul Zizka (and assistant Curtis Jones)
• Airport transfers
• All accommodations
• Transportation in Toyota Land Cruisers
• All meals
• Local guide and drivers

What’s Not Included:

• Travel insurance
• Flights to and from Mongolia
• Alcohol
• Souvenirs
• Any weather-caused delays/extensions to stay.

Price/Payment Schedule:

Full Cost: CAD $6950 

Payment options: Full payment or non-refundable deposit to secure a space with equal installment payments.

Non-Refundable Deposit: CAD $1500 (due upon booking)

• Payment #1: CAD $1362.50 - due April 30, 2020
  
• Payment #2: CAD $1362.50 - due July 30, 2020
• Payment #3: CAD $1362.50- due October 30, 2020
• Payment #4: CAD $1362.50 - due January 30, 2021

Note: Failure to pay by due dates means forfeiting deposit and spot will be freed up and potentially sold to another interested participant (see more in cancellation policy below).

If unforeseen circumstances arise, participants are welcome to transfer/sell their space to another interested participant. In such case, participants are responsible for handling payment for the transfer.

Participants:

• 8 minimum

• 16 maximum

We require a minimum of 8 participants in order to run this workshop. If the minimum numbers are not reached by June 30, 2020 the workshop may be cancelled and deposits will be refunded to participants. See our cancellation policy below for more details.

Accommodations

Note: workshop price is based on shared room occupancy. For those participating in the workshop that are not traveling with a friend, partner, or spouse, we will ensure all participants are partnered with a roommate of the same sex.

What to expect

The workshop will include several short 2-3 kilometre hikes over uneven terrain such as uneven terrain, hills, and dunes. There is nothing technical involved, but participants should be comfortable and prepared to walk and/or climb areas in warmer temperatures with a backpack for periods of up to an hour at a time.

LEAVE NO TRACE

We encourage and live the ethics of "leave no trace" photography, which means that the utmost care is given, while hiking and photographing, to leaving zero impact on the natural environment. Participants are expected to approach this tour with the same ethics at all times.

What to Bring

Please come prepared for a variety of weather conditions as the more comfortable you are, the more enjoyable your experience will be.

• suitable and comfortable clothing, which you can layer. It will be hot during the day, but it can cool down considerably at nights - layers are important
• a fleece jacket/sweater
• a headlamp or flashlight
• your own camera equipment (preferably DSLR, which allows manual control of shutter speed, aperture and ISO settings and a range of lenses, if you have). Our recommended lenses to bring would be one wide angle lens with a fast aperture (useful for night photography), and something in the strong portrait range (50MM-135MM). Other lenses are useful, of course, but those two lenses were our most frequented "go-to" lenses.
• a sturdy tripod
• a cable (or wireless) shutter release
• off-camera and/or studio equipment if that style of photography interests you
• sunglasses

As well, we optionally recommend:

• small first aid kit
• blister bandages
• water bottle
• bandana (keep dust out of nose and mouth, protect eyes from sweat
• air blower for sand/dust around camera/electronics
• voltage adapters
• a laptop for editing (with editing software, preferably Adobe)

Cancellation and Insurance Policy

CANCELLATION: Spots are non-refundable but are transferable, with the exception of a $250 administration fee. For instance, we will provide a refund, minus the administration fee, if the participant is able to find someone else to take his or her spot and can sell/transfer the spot to a new participant. Please contact us at erin@offbeatphoto.ca to make arrangements.

Although extremely unlikely, OFFBEAT Photography Inc. reserves the right to cancel the tour at any time for a variety of reasons (i.e. if a minimum number of participants is not met or if unforeseen circumstances dramatically impacted cost of the tour or global conditions somehow warranted a cancellation). In the very unlikely event of a cancellation, all monies/deposits made to OFFBEAT Photography Inc. would be refunded to participants, however, no compensation would be made for participant flight cancellation fees or any other associated travel costs. See Insurance Policy for more details.

INSURANCE: It is not only advised but required that workshop participants have trip cancellation/interruption insurance, as well as emergency medical/illness insurance and rescue coverage (proof required within 4 months of departure).

Weather and other unforeseen factors can cause delays in travel, particularly from some of our more remote locations. It is the participant’s responsibility to cover any costs in the case of a travel delay of any length. Please ensure your trip cancellation/interruption insurance accommodates this possibility.

By purchasing a spot you are acknowledging that you accept these conditions.

 Travel Visa

It is the participant's responsibility to ensure they have a valid Travel Visa (if applicable/required) for the duration of the workshop.

About Dave Brosha

"Critically acclaimed....spectacular photos." - The Globe and Mail

Holding a passion for the world and an eye for the beauty it contains, northern commercial, personal, and landscape photographer Dave Brosha is on a continual journey to seek out and capture the beauty of this world – whether it’s the beauty of some of the most extreme and pristine environments in the world, or the beauty of some of a person’s most personal moments. In addition to living throughout northern Canada for much of his life, Dave – along with his wife and children – have also lived in Asia and have traveled extensively through both the many provinces and territories of their native country and numerous countries abroad.

Dave’s personal affiliations and representations include the First Light agency, Aurora Images, Offset, Getty Images (stock), National Geographic (stock), and the Canadian Press, for which Dave is a freelance photographer.

About Paul Zizka

Specializing in photographing in difficult conditions and hard-to-reach places, Paul has a passion for shooting alpine sports and backcountry experiences, capturing the spirit of adventurers and finding unusual angles of common mountain subjects. As a landscape photographer, he particularly enjoys the challenge of capturing nature’s beauty at night and the unique features that come with a dark sky – stars, Northern Lights and dramatic silhouettes.

Paul’s award-winning photos have been featured in a variety of publications, includingIMPACT, Alpinist, Canadian Geographic, Islands, PhotoLife, Fodors.com and explore magazine. In addition to his work for a number of clients, over the past few years Paul has created a signature collection of images for Banff Lake Louise Tourism, which are used to promote Banff National Park throughout the world.

In the Canadian Rockies, Paul has hiked extensively in the backcountry and photographed from the summits of countless peaks. His adventures abroad include a 1400-km unsupported double-crossing of Iceland on foot (2004), which is believed to be the first of its kind, and a 1488-km solo crossing of the South Island of New Zealand (2007). Recent travels have taken him backpacking in the Caribbean, exploring tiny insular nations of the Pacific, trekking in remote corners of Scandinavia and Nepal, and ski touring on Baffin Island.

For any additional questions, please contact us at erin@offbeatphoto.ca