Photographing East Africa – A Glamping Safari
Dec 2025
This program will offer an immersive and informative look into a once-in-a-lifetime luxury African adventure taken by MAPS member Lou Gusmano, his wife, son, and five other couples in 2025. Lou’s presentation will highlight photos and stories of their unforgettable experiences searching for—and finding—rare mountain gorillas in Uganda, taking a vehicle expedition to see the Great Migration in Tanzania’s Serengeti, and traveling to the Mount Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania including the Ngorongoro Crater where African wildlife lives in an immense, zoo-like environment created by nature millions of years ago.
Lou will provide details, imagery, and stories of the adventure. Lou will share his experience with birding and primate tracking in Uganda’s lush rainforests, his exploration of the volcanic wonders in the Ngorongoro Crater, and his encounters with the legendary animal migration of adult and newborn Wildebeests and Zebras. Cultural interactions with Pigmy and Maasai peoples and insights into local citizenry, their living conditions, and everyday life, will add human context to the program.
His presentation will blend inspiration, education, and personal experience, and it will offer a rich resource for anyone considering a safari or simply seeking to enjoy the beauty and diversity of East Africa.
Our Speaker
Lou Gusmano is a semi-retired marketing consultant and market researcher whose lifelong passion for photography began at the age of 12, when a friend’s family gifted him a darkroom kit. Though he once considered launching a photography business after college, other career opportunities took precedence. Lou went on to enjoy a successful consulting career, advising radio and TV companies, the music and film industries, and top national brands on market tastes and consumer behavior. In semi-retirement, Lou has taken the opportunity to pursue what he once passed up, working in photography professionally.
Lou is committed to the continuous improvement of his craft through workshops and conferences such as Imaging USA, WPPI, ClickCon, and the Texas School of Photograph. He is accredited as a Certified Professional Photographer, and his photographic work has earned recognition—with multiple images meriting in various image competitions. He has twice been named a finalist in portrait photography at KelbyOne’s Photoshop World (2022, 2024). Lou is a member of the Professional Photographers of America (PPA), the Professional Photographers of Northern Illinois (PPANI), and serves as an Affiliate Board Member for the Mainstreet Association of Realtors. Lou also contributes his talents as Webmaster for MAPS and recently redesigned its website.
With more than 50 years behind the lens, photography isn’t just a profession for Lou—it’s a lifelong joy and a creative pursuit that continues to inspire him every day.