𝐗𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (/ˌɛkspɪˈdɪʃn/)
𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒏
1. 𝘢 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘯 𝘟-𝘗𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦, 𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘤 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.
Rami Dibo is an international award-winning photographer, visual storyteller, and Fujifilm photographer based in Dubai. With more than 11 years of professional experience, he is known for his iconic moon photography, atmospheric fog-covered cityscapes, and dramatic weather imagery, capturing compelling stories across the UAE and destinations around the world.
For his landscape and travel photography, Rami relies on the FUJIFILM GFX100 II, using its medium-format capabilities to capture exceptional detail, dynamic range, and the emotion of every scene.
His work has been featured in international exhibitions and publications, while his online community has grown to more than 200,000 followers and over 200 million views across social media, where he inspires photographers and travelers through his passion for exploration and visual storytelling.
Travel photogrpahy is all about the experience and story. For more than a year we’ve been planning with my Kazak friend Jandos to visit some of the Hidden Gem places in Kazakhstan. A 2 weeks trips going across the country.
Kazakhstan spans across a huge landscape from western Caspian sea coast with dry sea floor canyon looking ladscape to the greenery and mountain in the center and east. The culture and divertisty goes deep with many stories & legends across.
We planned the trip around the full moon period and one of the main vision I had wast to capture the Legendary eagle hunter and eagle with a full moon. But it was no easy task!
It started with a bit of logisitcal complexity and unpredictable weather, many flights were canceled during that persiod and the weather forecast showing clouds and possible rain. We took advantage of this to spend few days in the surrounduing capital canyons then fly west few days later to the main spot in Mangustaw region.
Several intersting spots around Almaty including the Cheryl canyon and other mountain forest and lakes, however due to rainy weather we decided to enjoy the city, taste some local food and learn about the culture and story . We then visited Cheryl canyons overnight before we Headed to airport the next day. Destination to Aktau.
First Impressions: Almaty is the new modern capital of Kazakhstan, an interesting city to visit, enjoy local food , cultural places monuments and parks. As it was raining and a long journey ahead we decided to rest for 1st day and head to Cheryl canyon located few hour drive from the city the next morning. We sent the night at the canyon in a newly constrcuted hotel cabins. It was the perfect setup for the planned sunrise shoot.
We were greated with a beatuiful weather at sunset capturing the layers of the Canyon and the far mountain behind covered with snow. Woke up at 3 am with the hope of some nigh shots before sunrise, we ended up having a magical foggy morning.
The scene was one of a fairy tale, my friend Jandos wore his traditional Kazakhstan ancestor costume for some amazing scenes and shots
The destination is easily accessible with a car, and I would suggest to spend some times during golden hours for the best light to photograph the canyons.
Kazakhstan is a huge country, going from Almaty (East) to Mangustau region: Aktau (West) was a 5 hour direct flight spanning 3,500Km. that would take a week or two to drive!
As soon as we landed in Aktau, we went for a traditional Kazak dinner, a tasty fishbarmak from the Caspian sea. We then hit the road for a 1 week journey around Mangustau region.
Our next desination Airakty, the valley of castles. A blend of interesting rock formations and green fields, a unique scene carved by nature.
The place is magical, specially during the golden and blue hours. A beautiful contrast of nature’s beauty. We climbed the top of the nearby mountain, a 15-30 minute hike to capture the landscape from above.
We slept in a typical Kazak Yurt tent for the night to kep us warm.
It could be extreemly windy & cold at times
This area is basically the bottom of a dried ocean with 2 levels. The formations of carved rocks and rainbow colored mountains are very unique. You can also dig up some million year old fish teeth between the rocks if you are lucky.
The rainbow mountains are magical with the Golden hour. The scene looks like from another planet. We enjoyed walking through and capturing different composition around Sunset & Sunrise.
We camped in Rainbow mountains and explored the nearby dune formations by walk. The colors are especially vibrant during golden hour
It was very windy during our stay and couldn’t fly the drone in Bozjyrak. The guides suggested October as the best month to visit that area.
The goal was to photograph an eagle hunter with the full moon.
For the entire duration of our stay, we tried to get in contact with local eagle hunters. We soon realized it was much harder than expected. April–May is the annual molting season, when the eagles lose some of their feathers, and eagle hunters are not as common in the western part of the country. The right place to find them is further east, closer to Mongolia.
But I didn’t give up on the plan.
Finally, we found our eagle hunter just two days before the full moon.
Blue Mountain was never part of the original plan. The day before the full moon, we had to evacuate Bozjyrak because of a storm. The conditions became muddy very quickly, with a high risk of getting stuck. After closely monitoring the weather, I decided to cross my fingers and head north, where the forecast showed the skies clearing in the afternoon.
We arrived at the location early in the afternoon. It was still very cloudy, with light rain falling. At that point, I almost lost hope of getting the shot.
But over the years, I’ve learned to trust my gut feeling.
Almost like magic, just one hour before moonrise, the sky started to clear.
Perfect timing.
Had we been just 30 minutes later, we would have been completely covered by clouds.
After all that planning, searching, waiting, and putting everything together, the hard work finally paid off with one of the most incredible moon-alignment shots I’ve ever created.
For these images, I chose the GF500mm F5.6 paired with the 1.4x teleconverter. This combination gave me the extreme reach I needed while still maintaining portability and the sharpness required for such a precise shot.
I also captured both photos and video, and some of the footage looks like it came straight out of a movie scene.
I’m extremely pleased with the final results from this combination of the GFX100II and GF500mm.
Why this camera?
It allowed me to capture print quality images with some extreem dynamic range and perfect sharp images.
For what it does this lens is super compact while delivering telephoto and extreemly sharp images. I specifically packed this lens for the moon shots with the eagle hunter
This lens delives onf the best portrait shot’s I’ve seen on any system. Very sharp and allows to compress the scene.
A compact and portable lens, great for hikes when I need minimum gear and perfect for ladnscaped shots.
This is my go to lens for wide angle shots, it’s perfectly sharp, 725g only making it a portable lens to carry for these extreem wide angle shots.
Best season to visit: is probably October
Recommended trip length: 1week
Road conditions: offroad
Accommodation: tent – hotels within 1.5 hours drive
Food: Camping / food on the go is recommended
Language: Russian/English
It’s my first time to visit Kazakhstan and I loved it! The coutry has a lot to offer. Tasty food, good weather, amazing nature and divertity of landscapes, deep and intersting culture, friendly people, affordable prices, adventure ready! I would definitely visit it again
Instagram: @pixtarami
Website: https://ramidibo.myportfolio.com
Other links: https://tr.ee/vXLMpAI1xl
