Chumbe Island Coral Park
World's first privately managed marine protected area
Our collaboration with Chumbe Island Coral Park began with an invitation to capture the full experience of a three-night stay. Located just off the coast of Zanzibar, Chumbe is a privately managed marine sanctuary where a small eco-lodge supports the protection of its coral reef and forest reserve. Through film and photography, we followed the guest journey from arrival on the island and life in its off-grid eco-bungalows to guided snorkelling, forest walks, shared meals and encounters with the island’s wildlife.
Spending several days on Chumbe allowed us to work with the changing light, tides and character of the island, while understanding how deeply conservation shapes every part of the experience. Our creative focus was to bring hospitality and environmental protection into one connected story, showing a place where visiting directly supports the ecosystems being explored. The resulting work captures Chumbe as both a peaceful island retreat and a living example of how responsible tourism can actively protect the natural world.
Location: Chumbe Island, Zanzibar Channel
Client: Chumbe Island Coral Park
Lodge Photography
Conservation, wildlife & community
Chumbe’s conservation work is inseparable from the people who sustain it. The island’s team is drawn predominantly from Zanzibar’s coastal communities, while its rangers, many of whom previously worked as fishers, bring their knowledge of the sea to protecting the coral reef sanctuary and forest reserve. Through monitoring, guiding and environmental education, they place local experience at the centre of the island’s long-term protection.
Our cameras followed this work across the island and beneath the water, capturing the staff behind the guest experience, the rangers sharing their knowledge and the coral ecosystems their work safeguards. We wanted to make conservation visible as a continuous, human effort shaped by care, skill and close observation. Together, these images show Chumbe as a shared commitment between community and place, sustained by those who understand the island and its surrounding waters most intimately.
