Join me in Antarctica!

Embark on an unforgettable journey to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands, and South Georgia to learn the art of visual storytelling!

Any number of ships can take you to Antarctica. And the incredible landscape, the wildlife, and Antarctica’s ethereal light – it will all be waiting for you regardless.  But how you experience this wonderous place and how deeply it touches you will depend in large part on who you travel with.

I am thrilled to announce that I will be partnering with Polar Latitudes to journey to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands, and South Georgia inNovember 2024. This will be much more than just a travel experience, it’s a chance to immerse yourself in the breathtaking beauty of this icy wilderness while also becoming an ambassador for its preservation. I will be leading an Immersive Photography Program, curated by Polar Latitudes, and meticulously crafted to empower photographers with a profound love for nature to harness the power of visual storytelling. You’ll not only capture the mesmerizing landscapes and wildlife but also convey the urgency of protecting this remarkable ecosystem. 

Adding to the excitement, I’m thrilled to announce that we are giving away one spot to a female-identifying photographer or artist to join me on this unparalleled expedition. Applications are open until March 28

About this Antarctic Photography Adventure 

The trip to Antarctica, the Falkland Islands, and South Georgia begins November 1st in Ushuaia and returns on November 21st, 2024. I am thrilled to partner with Polar Latitudes, who are renowned for their expertise in small-ship Antarctic expeditions. This is a wildlife lover’s dream journey!  With beaches covered in fur seals, elephant seals, and hundreds of thousands of penguins, it’s one of the most jaw-dropping nature scenes you will ever experience. It’s an experience that promises to be both humbling and exhilarating. 

Over the course of our 22-day expedition, we will have small groups and I’ll be offering on-the-ground photography guidance and conducting personalized photo reviews. Together, we’ll not only capture remarkable images but also cultivate a deeper understanding of how visual storytelling can serve as a tool for conservation and preservation.

This will be an environment where creativity thrives. I’m eagerly looking forward to providing feedback to both aspiring and seasoned visual artists as they expand their skills and utilize photography as a tool for planetary conservation. 

If you book your space now, you can  secure a spot  and enjoy a 10% off Early Bird pricing special, plus an additional 5% if paid in full here.  

Win a trip to Antartica!

This month in honor of international Women’s Day, Vital Impacts, Polar Latitudes and I are teaming up to  launch a contest for one aspiring or experienced female-identifying photographer to accompany me on this trip. To enter, contestants are asked to tag @polarlatitudes, @amivitale and @vital.impacts on social media, share one photo and either post a video or send an essay about how they’ll use the experience to create a positive impact. The deadline to enter is March 28. 

The trip is valued at $28,000 and this package includes one roundtrip economy class airfare ticket to Ushuaia, Argentina (up to $2,500), airport transfer, shipboard food and accommodation (a shared cabin with one female Vital Impacts team member), and more. In addition to training, workshops, and inspiration, this Antarctica trip offers a chance to become immersed in Vital Impacts, my women-led nonprofit that uses art and storytelling to support grassroots conservation. 

To apply and to find the contest rules and conditions, visit the Vital Impacts website. Or skip the contest and reserve your spot today.

Either way, I can’t wait to see you on the other side of the world! 

Shaba: A New Film by Ami Vitale

I am so excited to share my new short film, Shaba, about the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary’s first matriarch elephant and the extraordinary bonds she formed with a herd of baby orphaned elephants and the people who rescued her.

Shaba arrived traumatized after poachers shot her mother dead. This is a story about learning to trust those that we fear. She teaches us about love and our connections to all of life around us.

Ticket to view Shaba online are $10 and are available at Vital Impacts All ticket sales will go directly to Vital Impacts, a new non-profit supporting grassroots organizations who are protecting people, wildlife and habitats.

Shaba has been selected as a finalist in THREE categories – Conservation Short Form, People & Nature Short Form and Our Human Planet Short Form – at the Jackson Wild Media Awards. Widely considered the most prestigious honor in natural history media, the Jackson Wild Media Awards celebrate excellence and innovation in science and nature storytelling. These are the Oscars of nature filmmaking.

It has also been selected as an Award Finalist in the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, held in New York, where it will be screened on October 20. And the short film will be featured in the upcoming Innsbruck Nature Film Festival in Innsbruck, Tyrol, Austria from October 19 – 22, and at Docutah November 1 – 6 at Dixie State University in St. George, Utah.

Earlier in the year, Shaba won the LA Independent Women Film Awards and was an official selection of the EarthXFilm Festival, Walla Walla Movie Crush, the Toronto International Women Film Festival, the International Wildlife Film Festival and the Doclands Film Festival.

The fundraiser benefitting Reteti Elephant Sanctuary has ended. Together we were able to raise an astonishing $250,000 which will be used to buy milk, blankets and medicines to support the baby elephants and the people who have committed their lives to protecting them. Reteti Elephant Sanctuary is the first indigenous owned and run elephant sanctuary in Africa.

Thank you for caring and being a part of this journey!

Warmest regards,
Ami Vitale

Art for Conservation

I am excited to share this collaboration with the extraordinary artist Mantra, my wonderful friends at both Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, Sarara Camp and National Geographic, who conspired to make this wild dream into a reality! For many years, I have been using photography and filmmaking to tell the powerful stories of this community in northern Kenya. I wanted to use other mediums and think about ways to inspire creativity and pride around protecting our planet and the creatures we coexist with.

Reteti is the home of the first indigenous owned and run elephant sanctuary in Africa. Rock Paintings are the oldest form of storytelling. The Samburu elders living here guided us to a place that holds powerful symbolism. THIS ROCK was once used by elephant poachers as a place to hide but now, it is a place for community members, elders and visitors to gather. Mantra is the extraordinary artist who brought my two dimensional photo of a wild elephant from Namunyak to life using water based paints. My concept was to create something from nature that was meaningful and ephemeral. The painting will not last forever, but the memory of what has been created in this community will always live on.

Mantra is a self taught painter who has been painting in the streets since 2008. I was honored that he agreed to bring his genius talent and come to Namunyak for this wild idea. The team at Sarara Camp rallied together with friends at Reteti to build scaffolding and Mantra painted this photo free style in one day. Miracles can happen and we can all do more to make sure our children experience the beauty and wonder of this world.

I am working on another project and looking for financial support. Please email me at ami@amivitale.com if you are interested in helping me with more initiatives to bring together stories, art and conservation. I believe these stories and art shape us and can change the way we see each other. I invite you to be a part of it.

Nikon Donates New Z 50 and Lenses to Joseph Wachira at NYWild Film Festival

I was honored to introduce the moving documentary film Kifaru directed by David Hambridge about the last male northern white rhino, “Sudan” at the 7th Annual New York Wild Film Festival opening night. Joseph “JoJo” Wachira flew in from Ol Pejeta in Kenya for the festival where Nikon surprised him with a new Nikon Z 50 and two DX lenses, the NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR and NIKKOR Z DX 50-250mm f/4.5-6.3 VR presented by Steve Heiner, so he can continue to tell this important story!

I am so grateful to Nikon for this empowering gift. I also wish to extend a huge thank you to Kenya for donating his ticket and to all of you who came out for this powerful evening.
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Currently, I am running a print drive to benefit the rhino keepers who selflessly have committed their lives to these creatures. You can own a signed photo of the moving final moment with JoJo and Sudan while also helping them personally. Details are available at amivitale.com/product/sudan. 100% of the profits will go directly to all the keepers.

Print Sale to Benefit Ol Pejeta Keepers

I am honored that my photograph of Joseph Wachira saying goodbye to Sudan was chosen as the National Geographic best photo of the decade by the people of Instagram. I will never forget what it felt like to witness what I believed to be the end of a species. Yet, in a beautiful twist of fate, this image – an image documenting extinction – is the beginning of something powerful, something hopeful.

The coming decades will not be easy, but I believe we are making a real difference. You are my hope for a future that includes rhinos and other endangered species. 

This image is currently available for sale. I am donating 100% of the profits directly to the keepers, like Joseph, at Ol Pejeta so that they can continue on their mission of protecting and fighting for some of the world’s most vulnerable creatures.

Purchase the signed print here.

Behind the Scenes at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary

I am excited to release a new, behind the scenes film on my work in Kenya with Reteti Elephant Sanctuary for World Elephant Day. I hope it gives a glimpse into the powerful story of a community coming together to protect and save these magnificent creatures. I am grateful to Katy at Sprout Films for her sensitivity and commitment and Nikon for their endless support. Hurry, there is just one day left to buy a print or enter and win a Nikon D5600 camera and 2 lenses, Think Tank Photo camera bag and a print of one of the adorable elephants at at Reteti at amivitale.com/elephants

Film by Ami Vitale & Sprout Films with Dane Henry, Brett Lowell and Novus Select

Watch the companion film, Reteti Elephant Sanctuary: Community United for Elephants, here.


The Amazon Rainforest Workshop

I am thrilled to be offering The Amazon Rainforest Workshop, a trip and workshop of a lifetime with my two great friends and fellow Nikon Ambassadors, Joe McNally and Tamara Lackey. As your photographic leaders, we will be guiding you through the Ecuadorian Amazon Rainforest and the cultural historical capital of Quito.

Ecuador has the highest level of biodiversity per square kilometer of any place in the world. On this workshop, you’ll be immersed in it. You will float by the banks and tributaries of the Amazon River and spot a wide variety of wildlife all while surrounded by the sights and sounds of the jungle. In Quito, you’ll be overwhelmed by the color and the culture. You’ll see panoramic vistas, historic cathedrals and meet the loveliest people you’ve ever know. And, you’ll be able to capture it all, guided by some of the world’s top photographers.

The workshop will be a complete immersion in photography, storytelling and exploration and will focus on landscape, portrait and travel photography. It will include lectures from myself, Joe and Tamara and daily post-processing lab time as well as a number of optional add-ons.

For the majority of the trip, you’ll be staying in the breezy cabanas of La Selva Ecolodge & Spa, a 5-star luxury eco-resort in the heart of Ecuador’s Amazonian Rainforest. The resort is located inside the Yasuni Bioshere Reserve, home to millions of species of plants, birds, rare animals and stunning scenery. The rainforest will soothe you to sleep and birds will awaken you each morning.

As an all inclusive workshop, all freshly-made, deliciously cooked and table-served meals will be included.

A photographic trip of a lifetime awaits. Hurry and book your spot. This one will fill up fast. Learn more and sign up here.

B&H Feature: Ami Vitale Advocates for Mother Earth

B&H published an in-depth feature on Ami Vitale, covering the story of her career trajectory from conflict photographer to documenting the natural world. Thanks to one well-timed assignment focusing on people’s relationship to nature in remote locations worldwide, Ami’s whole photographic career shifted.

“That chance for reflection, to look at the natural world, helped me put all the pieces together,” Vitale says of this project. “I realized that all the conflicts I had been covering were ultimately about our resources. That the biggest story, which I had been missing, was our natural world and what we’re doing to it. It was one of the most transformative moments in my career.”

After receiving a Master’s degree in filmmaking, the scope of Ami’s work expanded further, which the story explores along with sharing her advice for other photographers and information on the gear she prefers. It emphasizes her mission to share stories of hope and to encourage people everywhere to take action to preserve the world for future generations.

Read the full feature here.

National Geographic Storytellers Seminar

The National Geographic Storytellers Summit is a multi-day celebration of story, featuring the photographers, filmmakers, journalists, and data visualizers who witness the major events of our time, illuminate critical issues, and inspire action.

Photographer and National Geographic Explorer Ami Vitale delivered the talk, “How to Photograph Hope.” Ami has covered conflict, violence, and heartbreak—like photographing the last Northern white rhino during his dying moments—but she’s also made it her mission to find and capture stories of hope.

Botswana Photographic Safari with Ami Vitale

Ami Vitale will be leading a 9-day photographic safari through two of Botswana’s most wildlife rich regions. The safari will take place Oct. 9-Oct. 17.

This safari will travel through Botswana’s Chobe National Park and the remarkable Okavango Delta, where guests can make use of Ami’s extensive knowledge as well as specially adapted safari vehicles and on-site photo labs, an experience which provides budding wildlife photographers with everything they need to craft the perfect shot.

Come join in! View the itinerary and learn more at Natural World Safaris.