FLOATING HIDE PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE KAZAKH STEPPE
Korgalzhyn area, Kazakhstan
For passionate photographers, we have created a unique floating hide workshop visiting the exciting steppes of northern Kazakhstan: for a week, we’ll immerse ourselves into the Korgalzhyn State Nature Reserve. The reserve territory ranges from marshes into semi-deserted steppes covering the area located west of the capital Nur-Sultan. Korgalzhyn flaunts with wild and primeval, inexhaustibly untamed looks which seem almost everlasting. The spacious ground of the reserve lays even under the golden rays of the heated sun. The fair-colored grass sways in the wind as if it’s lost in a quaint dance. From a distance, cheerful voices of jubilant birds are heard with their wingbeats disturbing the air.
The reserve carries the name of “The pearl of the region” as it is lavish with astounding nature. Korgalzhyn State Natural Reserve berries significant importance worldwide due to the abundance of rare steppe species found only here. For hundreds of years, the reserve territory has been habituated by myriads of mammals, amphibians, and reptiles. However, the most outstanding feature of the park is characterized by the fact that the area is highly popular among migratory birds due to the availability of hundreds of small lakes, allowing them to feed and rest. During the season, the endless fields of the reserve burst with colors and turn into a real bird fest.
We focus mainly on the migratory waders that number in the millions during their adventure north during this particular outing. Equally interesting are those rare steppe species like the Black Lark, the Pallid Harrier or the Pallas’s Gull. The specially designed hides we use will get us close to photograph these wonders, and our experienced photographic guide Samuel Bloch leads this trip to ensure you have an exciting photo journey!
A floating hide is a strange device: it’s essentially a floating tent, with a structure to install a camera on a gimbal head inside. The photographer, wearing waders or a suit, is in the water, under the hide. Being hidden, it’s possible to approach birds with care, and enjoy a very low viewing angle doing so. It is however a physically demanding activity.
This trip is all about photography, as we optimize our time in the field to take advantage of the best light of day. Sleep and fine dining take the back seat here! As such, it’s a very intense workshop, but also a rewarding one, in a place very few photographers ever visit. Come with an open mind, and prepare to be blown away by the immense Kazakh steppe.
Throughout this photography journey, we have a specific shortlist of exclusive species in mind. We will primarily aim at these species to get the best possible images. Besides these targets, we will also have opportunities to photograph other sublime species.
The reserve carries the name of “The pearl of the region” as it is lavish with astounding nature. Korgalzhyn State Natural Reserve berries significant importance worldwide due to the abundance of rare steppe species found only here. For hundreds of years, the reserve territory has been habituated by myriads of mammals, amphibians, and reptiles. However, the most outstanding feature of the park is characterized by the fact that the area is highly popular among migratory birds due to the availability of hundreds of small lakes, allowing them to feed and rest. During the season, the endless fields of the reserve burst with colors and turn into a real bird fest.
We focus mainly on the migratory waders that number in the millions during their adventure north during this particular outing. Equally interesting are those rare steppe species like the Black Lark, the Pallid Harrier or the Pallas’s Gull. The specially designed hides we use will get us close to photograph these wonders, and our experienced photographic guide Samuel Bloch leads this trip to ensure you have an exciting photo journey!
A floating hide is a strange device: it’s essentially a floating tent, with a structure to install a camera on a gimbal head inside. The photographer, wearing waders or a suit, is in the water, under the hide. Being hidden, it’s possible to approach birds with care, and enjoy a very low viewing angle doing so. It is however a physically demanding activity.
This trip is all about photography, as we optimize our time in the field to take advantage of the best light of day. Sleep and fine dining take the back seat here! As such, it’s a very intense workshop, but also a rewarding one, in a place very few photographers ever visit. Come with an open mind, and prepare to be blown away by the immense Kazakh steppe.
Throughout this photography journey, we have a specific shortlist of exclusive species in mind. We will primarily aim at these species to get the best possible images. Besides these targets, we will also have opportunities to photograph other sublime species.
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Targets
Common Shelduck Red-crested Pochard Red-necked Grebe Black-necked Grebe Pallid Harrier Black-winged Stilt Black-tailed Godwit Little ringed Plover Spotted Redshank Marsh Sandpiper Wood Sandpiper Terek Sandpiper Little Stint Temminck’s Stint Dunlin Curlew Sandpiper Ruff Red-necked Phalarope Black-winged Pratincole Pallas’s Gull Slender-billed Gull White-winged Tern Gull-billed Tern Black Lark Collared Sand Martin (colony) Booted Warbler Western Yellow Wagtail (beema and thunbergi) Bobak Marmot |
Little Stint
Next departure(s)
2025, please enquire! |
Highlights
- have fun experiencing the massive wader migration of Central Asia
- float in steppe lakes to approach iconic species such as Red-necked Phalarope, Marsh Sandpiper and Terek Sandpiper
- challenge yourself to capture White-winged terns in flight, as they hunt insects from the water surface.
- witness the endless green steppes of the Korgalzhyn State Reserve, rich with Black Larks and Pallid Harriers.
- document a fascinating ecosystem with like-minded photographers
Itinerary
Day 1: early arrival in Nur-Sultan, and transfer to our guesthouse in Korgalzhyn. Breakfast then rest. The afternoon is devoted to an introduction, some scouting and maybe the first photo session.
Day 2-6: full days of photography around Korgalzhyn, according to conditions. We typically start early, have a rest in the middle of the day and shoot again until late.
Day 7: morning photography session, then transfer back to Nur-Sultan for a little sightseeing and the final dinner. Departure from Kazakhstan during the night.
Highlights
- have fun experiencing the massive wader migration of Central Asia
- float in steppe lakes to approach iconic species such as Red-necked Phalarope, Marsh Sandpiper and Terek Sandpiper
- challenge yourself to capture White-winged terns in flight, as they hunt insects from the water surface.
- witness the endless green steppes of the Korgalzhyn State Reserve, rich with Black Larks and Pallid Harriers.
- document a fascinating ecosystem with like-minded photographers
Itinerary
Day 1: early arrival in Nur-Sultan, and transfer to our guesthouse in Korgalzhyn. Breakfast then rest. The afternoon is devoted to an introduction, some scouting and maybe the first photo session.
Day 2-6: full days of photography around Korgalzhyn, according to conditions. We typically start early, have a rest in the middle of the day and shoot again until late.
Day 7: morning photography session, then transfer back to Nur-Sultan for a little sightseeing and the final dinner. Departure from Kazakhstan during the night.
Equipment
What we provide
Floating hides (FH2, by MrJanGear)
Low tents (Hoki, by Tragopan)
Camouflage
What you need to bring
Waders or a drysuit
Thermal underwear
Beanie-gloves-scarf
One or more camera bodies
Telephoto lens, minimum 400mm
Wide-angle lens (optional)
Teleconverters (optional)
Tripod or monopod, according to taste, and head
For low-angle situations we recommend a tripod that can spread flat, a ground pod or a bean bag
Situations
Our working location, in the buffer zone of Korgalzhyn State Reserve, is ideally located to offer a variety of photography situations.
We have three main lakes nearby, each different in terms of habitat and thus bird species.
The Flamingo Lake is very shallow. It is also quite sheltered from the wind, which means the surface will remain flat like a mirror even when the other lakes are troubled by waves. The iconic species here is the Greater Flamingo, but it’s a shy one. More accommodating are the Common Shelduck, the Little Stint, the Curlew Sandpiper, the Terek Sandpiper, the Dunlin and the Red-necked Phalarope. Because the Flamingo Lake is so shallow, it’s very complicated to tread with a floating hide. We prefer to lie down on the shore, either in a hide or under a camouflage net, and let the birds come to us.
The Grebe Lake is the largest in the area, and also the deepest. It’s the realm of Black-necked Grebes, Whooper Swans and Red-necked Phalaropes. The shore attracts many waders, including Black-winged Pratincoles, terns and gulls. The banks have quite a gentle slope underwater, so it’s possible to take the floating hide to the water there. When the wind blows, the waters become choppy; then, the best strategy is often to strand the hide on the shore and wait for birds to come close. On dry ground, a colony of Collared Sand Martins offers more opportunities.
The Tern Pond is smaller but also richer in bird life. It’s a hunting ground for Red-necked Phalaropes, White-winged Terns and Pallas’s Gulls. The sandy and muddy shores attract stints, Ruffs and Marsh Sandpipers, along with Caspian and Gull-billed Terns. The reedbed offers rare but precious possibilities to shoot Paddyfield Warbler and Great Bittern. The creek that leads into the Tern Pond hosts Terek Sandpiper, Red-necked Grebe and Black-tailed Godwit.
The water there is very shallow (rarely more than a meter), making it an ideal location to work with waders in a floating hide.
The surrounding steppe areas are also rich with stunning species, such as the common Black Lark or the elegant Pallid Harrier. Western Yellow Wagtails (breeding beema or migrating thunbergi) and Bobak Marmots can also be exciting targets. In this open habitat, we will patiently stand, sit or lie down in a tent or under a camouflage net, to photograph without being seen.
The village offers yet more photography opportunities: there may be Common Cuckoos on migration, Oriental Turtle Doves in the trees, Booted Warblers in the shrubs or Lesser Kestrels breeding in a ruined building.
With so many possibilities, we strive to remain flexible and allow everyone to get a taste of all situations. With a whole week of shooting, we get to choose who does what on a bi-daily basis, as a group. Wildlife photography, and floating hide photography in particular, is an exhausting activity – it’s totally ok to take it easy sometimes, to skip a session or stop early and come back to the bus to rest.
Equipment
What we provide
Floating hides (FH2, by MrJanGear)
Low tents (Hoki, by Tragopan)
Camouflage
What you need to bring
Waders or a drysuit
Thermal underwear
Beanie-gloves-scarf
One or more camera bodies
Telephoto lens, minimum 400mm
Wide-angle lens (optional)
Teleconverters (optional)
Tripod or monopod, according to taste, and head
For low-angle situations we recommend a tripod that can spread flat, a ground pod or a bean bag
Situations
Our working location, in the buffer zone of Korgalzhyn State Reserve, is ideally located to offer a variety of photography situations.
We have three main lakes nearby, each different in terms of habitat and thus bird species.
The Flamingo Lake is very shallow. It is also quite sheltered from the wind, which means the surface will remain flat like a mirror even when the other lakes are troubled by waves. The iconic species here is the Greater Flamingo, but it’s a shy one. More accommodating are the Common Shelduck, the Little Stint, the Curlew Sandpiper, the Terek Sandpiper, the Dunlin and the Red-necked Phalarope. Because the Flamingo Lake is so shallow, it’s very complicated to tread with a floating hide. We prefer to lie down on the shore, either in a hide or under a camouflage net, and let the birds come to us.
The Grebe Lake is the largest in the area, and also the deepest. It’s the realm of Black-necked Grebes, Whooper Swans and Red-necked Phalaropes. The shore attracts many waders, including Black-winged Pratincoles, terns and gulls. The banks have quite a gentle slope underwater, so it’s possible to take the floating hide to the water there. When the wind blows, the waters become choppy; then, the best strategy is often to strand the hide on the shore and wait for birds to come close. On dry ground, a colony of Collared Sand Martins offers more opportunities.
The Tern Pond is smaller but also richer in bird life. It’s a hunting ground for Red-necked Phalaropes, White-winged Terns and Pallas’s Gulls. The sandy and muddy shores attract stints, Ruffs and Marsh Sandpipers, along with Caspian and Gull-billed Terns. The reedbed offers rare but precious possibilities to shoot Paddyfield Warbler and Great Bittern. The creek that leads into the Tern Pond hosts Terek Sandpiper, Red-necked Grebe and Black-tailed Godwit.
The water there is very shallow (rarely more than a meter), making it an ideal location to work with waders in a floating hide.
The surrounding steppe areas are also rich with stunning species, such as the common Black Lark or the elegant Pallid Harrier. Western Yellow Wagtails (breeding beema or migrating thunbergi) and Bobak Marmots can also be exciting targets. In this open habitat, we will patiently stand, sit or lie down in a tent or under a camouflage net, to photograph without being seen.
The village offers yet more photography opportunities: there may be Common Cuckoos on migration, Oriental Turtle Doves in the trees, Booted Warblers in the shrubs or Lesser Kestrels breeding in a ruined building.
With so many possibilities, we strive to remain flexible and allow everyone to get a taste of all situations. With a whole week of shooting, we get to choose who does what on a bi-daily basis, as a group. Wildlife photography, and floating hide photography in particular, is an exhausting activity – it’s totally ok to take it easy sometimes, to skip a session or stop early and come back to the bus to rest.
Conditions
This trip is all about photography, and we work hard to put all participants in the best conditions for photography.
We leave the guesthouse at 3.30 in the morning, when it’s still dark, and start the 30-40min drive to our working location. This allows us to have everyone ready in the water, inside their floating hide, when the sun appears over the horizon around 5.30. We have some snacks (fruits, pastries) to survive until breakfast, which we enjoy at the guesthouse around 9.00. We then take a nap break until 15.00, have lunch at the guesthouse, then head back to the field for the evening, until after sunset. Our packed dinner is enjoyed there or back at the guesthouse, around 22.00 or 23.00.
This schedule is meant to enjoy the best light of the day in the field. Of course we remain flexible, and may adapt it on cloudy days.
Temperatures may go as high as 25ºC in the afternoon, but at the break of dawn it might be close to freezing. It’s primordial to pack accordingly.
The steppe tends to be windy, which creates waves on the lakes we photograph. Being such a tiny watercraft, the floating hides tends to bob in the waves in such conditions, making it difficult to photograph birds. To counter the wind, we can seek shelter behind the reedbed, strand the hides on shore or remain on dry land.
Conditions
This trip is all about photography, and we work hard to put all participants in the best conditions for photography.
We leave the guesthouse at 3.30 in the morning, when it’s still dark, and start the 30-40min drive to our working location. This allows us to have everyone ready in the water, inside their floating hide, when the sun appears over the horizon around 5.30. We have some snacks (fruits, pastries) to survive until breakfast, which we enjoy at the guesthouse around 9.00. We then take a nap break until 15.00, have lunch at the guesthouse, then head back to the field for the evening, until after sunset. Our packed dinner is enjoyed there or back at the guesthouse, around 22.00 or 23.00.
This schedule is meant to enjoy the best light of the day in the field. Of course we remain flexible, and may adapt it on cloudy days.
Temperatures may go as high as 25ºC in the afternoon, but at the break of dawn it might be close to freezing. It’s primordial to pack accordingly.
The steppe tends to be windy, which creates waves on the lakes we photograph. Being such a tiny watercraft, the floating hides tends to bob in the waves in such conditions, making it difficult to photograph birds. To counter the wind, we can seek shelter behind the reedbed, strand the hides on shore or remain on dry land.
Day to day (hypothetical)
Day 1: even though we meet very early at the airport, everyone is very happy and energetic, because it’s the beginning of a special adventure. Those who want buy a coffee, change or withdraw some Kazakh tenge, and then we board our bus and start driving towards Korgalzhyn. We have about 2 hours to chat and sleep a little. As the sun rises, we arrive at the village that will be our base for the week. We enjoy a warm hearty breakfast, then check-in at our accommodation and go to sleep. We get up around noon, enjoy a wonderful lunch, then head to the field for scouting. We survey the 3 main lakes where we will photograph, and the adjacent steppe areas, identifying the most promising areas. Clouds of Ruffs and Western Yellow Wagtails already surround us, and Black Larks are singing. We do a little bit of photography from the shore, and then head back to the village, where we have dinner and assemble the floating hides so that they are ready for our early departure on the day after.
Day 2: we start early, drive to the lakes and take the floating hides to the water. At 5.30, when the sun rises, we are all ready to shoot! Temminck’s Stints put up quite a show on the sandy shore, as they chase each other between two meals. Above the Tern Pond, a whirlwind of stunning White-winged Terns puts our skill to the test as they grab insects from the surface and eat them in the air. The sheer number of birds, combined with their absence of fear, offers many opportunities to try, fail and re-try within a matter of minutes. When the sun is high in the sky and the light harsh, we leave the water and head back to Korgalzhyn for a delicious breakfast followed by a nap. A few hours later, we have lunch and then return to the steppe. The evening light is ideal to capture the elegant Marsh Sandpiper as it wades in shallow water. Placing the hide near the shore, we can create wonderful backgrounds for our images. Right after sunset is the best time to photograph the shy Pallas’s gulls, as they seem to forget we are here and instead focus on catching insects from the water’s surface. We enjoy our packed dinner in the field and then head back to our guesthouse for some well-deserved rest.
Day 3: as always, we leave the village early to be in the field for sunrise. While some of us go in the water again, others set up some low-lying tents on the muddy shore of another lake. Dry and comfy, we lie down out of sight and wait for flocks of waders to stride in front of us. As it’s spring, they sport their most colourful plumage. Among Dunlins and Little Stints, it’s the Curlew Sandpipers that shine the brightest, with their rusty belly and curved bill. Further but well within reach of our cameras, small groups of Common shelducks display with much splashing and posturing. In the evening, we can return to the same location to try our hand at backlit imagery. If we are lucky, the iconic Terek Sandpiper will nicely pose, allowing us to highlight its silhouette with delightful rim light. Such creative photography makes us forget how tired we are, but soon it’s sunset, so we leave for a short night in Korgalzhyn.
Day 4: early morning is a good time to photograph Pallid Harriers as they glide above the steppe in search of a meal. We know a meadow they seem to favour, so we stand there with tripods and camouflage, and wait for them to come to us. This is a unique opportunity to capture this exciting long-distance migratory raptor in typical habitat. Hopefully we can photograph a successful hunt! While we wait for the harriers, Western Yellow Wagtails will probably perch on shrubs around us, singing and surveying their environment. From the floating hide, we witness a pair of bonding Gull-billed terns, one of them flying in to gift voles and lizards to the other, which sometimes doesn’t accept them! The evening photoshoot is very exciting, as hundreds of Red-necked Phalaropes are dancing on the water, fearlessly feeding or taking off in a frenzy only to land back a minute later. These small endearing waders don’t mind humans, so they can be photographed up-close, even from the shore.
Day 5: if the day is cloudy, we can sleep a bit longer and head to the field later, after breakfast. Overcast conditions are a boon for 2 reasons. The first one is that we can shoot longer (as long as it lasts!), because we don’t need to worry about light becoming harsh. The second reason is that it creates the perfect setting for high-key pictures, in which the subject is only surrounded by white, be it the sky or its reflection in the water. It seems to work well with Little Stints, their pretty orange back feathers being the perfect counterpoint to the white background. On sandbanks, we look for Little Ringed Plovers and Black-winged Pratincoles. Later, we hide under camouflage near a Bobak Marmot den and try to photograph the chubby mammal. We also approach a Collared Sand Martin colony and patiently wait, trying to create awe-inspiring flight shots of the fast swallows as they install their nests in sand banks. If the sky remains cloudy, we enjoy a relaxed dinner in the steppe and head back to the guesthouse when we feel like it.
Day 6: windy days are not uncommon in the steppe, and choppy waters are not a photographer’s best friend when one uses a floating hide. Fortunately, we have a few tricks to continue making images. We can hide in the reedbed, a bit further from the main action. There, we may find a Red-necked Grebe, a Paddyfield Warbler or a Black-tailed Godwit. There might even been a Eurasian bittern booming there! Another option is to strand the hide on the muddy shore. What we lose in mobility, we gain in stability. Chosen well, the location may yield a pair of Terek Sandpipers or a spectacular group of Ruffs in full breeding extravaganza. If it’s too windy, or if one wants a change of scenery, it is much recommended to spend an evening with the Black Larks. By then, they will be quite used to us parking in the same spot every day, so they will use their favourite mound as if we weren’t there. Singing, feeding, showing off: these cute creatures are a show of their own, and one big reason to visit the Kazakh steppe in spring. Lying down near their spot, under camouflage, allows use to create stunning images of them without disturbing them. It’s also a great opportunity to try backlit situations, for our last day near Korgalzhyn.
Day 7: our last early morning brings us to the lakes again. It is time to seek a species we have missed so far, or simply take in the great steppe show one last time. The bushes near the village sometimes hold Common cuckoos, Oriental Turtle Doves or the tame Booted warbler and its fluttery song. Pied avocet and Greater flamingo are usually quite shy, but maybe they want to show off to celebrate a successful photography tour in Kazakhstan? After our morning shoot, we head back to the village for lunch, pack our gear and depart to Nur-Sultan. There, we spend a bit of time enjoying the futuristic architecture of the Kazakh capital around Baiterek, before a tasty farewell dinner at our hotel. We depart in the middle of the night, heads full of memories and memory cards filled with great images.
Interested? Have any question? Get in touch!
All pictures are mine. Do not use without authorization.
