Guide: Johan Van Zyl

The ‘Best of Serengeti’ trip hosted by Johan van Zyl and Michael Laubscher was a really unique experience. Great sightings, outstanding photographical support and a great handling of the challenging situations due to the unexpected heavy rains made this trip as outstanding as my past tours with Wild Eye in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya.

Our Wild Eye Guide Johan Van Zyl was fantastic. He advised us about our camera settings to get the maximum from our photos while at the same time not encroaching on our personal creativity. We had time during the day when Johan helped us process our photos with Lightroom.

The guide, Johan van Zyl was truly amazing. He helped me so much with understanding my camera better, helping me compose and giving me tips and help with Lightroom! I’ve noticed such a huge improvement in my photos after this trip and I can honestly say it’s all thanks to Johan, without him I definitely wouldn’t have gotten those shots or improved the way I have.

In 2019, Andrew Beck and Johan had me to try new photographic techniques that pushed me out of my comfort zone. While I wasn’t thrilled with the results, I know that practice will only improve my images. All three were so kind and patient. They were fantastic guides and teachers and I’m so honored to now be able to count them among some of my greatest friends.

Johan and the Wild Eye team made my trip to the Mara amazing! We had many great sightings everyday and we were immersed in the action which lead to many opportunities for photographs. Sammy did a great job getting the vehicle in the right position and Johan taught me a great deal, which enabled me to advance my level of photography! This was my main goal for this trip, so I am very pleased.

Another amazing trip with Marlon and Johan who are such good company, and fantastic hosts. Their enthusiasm and knowledge are second to none.

“I LOVE Johan!!! He’s a down to earth guy which I really like, no airs and graces and will do anything to help, always cheerful, and always professional!”

I wanted to start by telling you again what a great experience we had. I’m so impressed by the Wild Eye operation and I also want to tell you (and I know I’m speaking for Gina too) how much we appreciated your guiding. You were just such a pleasure to work with, Johan, and I’d be glad to find some opportunity to do it again.

I thoroughly enjoyed Johan as a host. He went out of his way to assist, without ever making me feel like I’d asked a daft question!! He also made the trip a lot of fun and had us relaxed and laughing every 2 minutes.
I had never been on a photography course before, and he was really great at starting us all off, regardless of how much or how little we knew. He painstakingly made sure we could use the facilities of our cameras for what we needed….and repeated himself over and over again without turning a hair.

Johan is one of those guides where you don’t really want to travel with anyone other than him afterwards. His passion for both nature and people shines through his work, and spending time on safari with him is an absolute treat. We met on his Mana Pools safari and I subsequently booked his South Luangwa tour for the following year. Numerous great laughs guaranteed, wonderful photographic advice, and very importantly, Johan has a huge respect for the local drivers and guides we had on our trips. Couldn’t recommend traveling with him more! We left as friends and I look forward to the next adventures.