Birquash Camel Market
Yasser Alaa Mobarak
I regularly travel from Alexandria to Giza, usually on Fridays, to photograph Birqash Camel Market, one of the largest camel markets in Africa. The journey itself is part of the story, beginning the night before with the last train leaving Alexandria at 10:30 PM. The train ride takes around three hours, arriving in Cairo at approximately 1:30 AM, when the city feels suspended between night and morning.
From the station, I meet with fellow photographers. We gather at a local café and sit for a few hours over tea, talking, waiting. There is a quiet anticipation in those moments. By 4:00 AM, we begin the next leg of the journey: arranging transport to the market. Finding a taxi is not always easy. Birqash lies on the outskirts of Giza, far from typical routes, and many drivers refuse to go. When we do find one willing, the ride takes about an hour and costs between $4 and $6. Other times, we rely on improvisation, taking three or four different minibuses to get there.
We arrive just as the first light begins to break. The market starts at sunrise, and already there is movement—shadows of camels, figures gathering, the low hum of activity building into something louder and more chaotic. By early morning, Birqash is fully alive.
I travel light, carrying a Nikon Z5 paired with a NIKKOR 24–70mm lens. This setup allows me to stay flexible and unobtrusive. I prefer to move freely through the crowd, responding instinctively rather than following a fixed plan. Over time, I’ve learned that the strongest images come not from control, but from patience and presence, from being there, attentive, and ready.
At the same time, photographing in the market requires constant awareness. Camels are frequently moving at speed, and it’s not uncommon for them to suddenly run through the crowd, posing a real risk to anyone in their path. For that reason, I often shoot using the camera’s screen rather than the viewfinder. This allows me to stay aware of my surroundings instead of becoming too absorbed in a single frame. In a place like Birqash, paying attention to what’s happening around you is just as important as capturing the image itself.
An important part of my process happens after the photographs are taken. I always return with printed images to give to the people I photograph. These small gestures create a sense of trust and connection. The reactions are often immediate and genuine. There are smiles, curiosity, sometimes laughter. Over time, this exchange has helped me build relationships that go beyond the camera.
The busiest period in the market is between 7:00 and 10:00 AM. This is when everything intensifies. Buyers move from one camel to another, carefully inspecting them, checking teeth, legs, posture. Negotiations unfold in a rhythm that feels both urgent and routine to those involved. Voices rise, hands gesture, deals are struck.
Birqash is the only major market in Egypt dedicated specifically to the trade of camels, and it plays a central role in the country’s livestock economy. Thousands of camels are sold here every week, with annual estimates exceeding 150,000 animals. Activity peaks on Fridays, the busiest day of the week, when traders and butchers from across Egypt gather to purchase camels, primarily for meat. Prices are shaped by supply and demand, fluctuating based on market conditions as much as the physical qualities of the animals themselves.
By midday, the energy begins to fade. The deals have largely been made, and the market empties gradually, leaving behind dust, footprints, and a quiet that feels almost abrupt after the morning’s intensity.
The camels themselves are remarkable subjects. Most arrive from Sudan after long journeys across borders before reaching Egypt, adding another layer to the story of the market and its movement across regions.
While most of the camels are sold for meat, some are bought for farming, transport, or tourism. Prices vary depending on size, age, and health, typically ranging from $600 to $3,600 USD. Stronger animals command higher prices, and experienced traders can assess value almost instantly. Watching these exchanges feels like observing a language of its own.
Something that keeps me coming back to Birqash is not just the scale of the market, but the relationships within it. My work focuses on environmental portraits, images that place people within their context rather than isolating them. Here, the connection between trader and camel makes for a frame that is layered and complex. It is shaped by economics, tradition, and necessity. For many, this is more than a marketplace; it is a livelihood passed down through generations.
I chose this project because it exists at the intersection of movement, culture, and survival. There is a rawness to the market that resists simplification. Nothing here is staged or curated. It unfolds as it is, shaped by forces both local and regional. As a photographer, I am drawn to that tension, the meeting point between tradition and modern demand, between human lives and animal lives, intertwined in direct and tangible ways.
Each visit is different. The light shifts, the faces change, the rhythm evolves. But there is always a moment to be captured, sometimes subtle, sometimes intense, when everything aligns. A glance between a trader and his camel, a pause in the movement, a gesture that reveals something deeper. These are the moments I look for, the moments that define the work.
And when the market begins to empty and the noise fades, I pack my camera and begin the journey back to Alexandria. The images I collect each visit are more than just photographs. They are fragments of a larger story, one that continues to unfold with every visit.
About Yasser Alaa Mobarak
Yasser Alaa Mobarak (b. 1993) is a multi-award-winning photographer from Alexandria, Egypt, represented by ZUMA Press. He is a contributor to National Geographic Traveller UK, a Visiting Instructor at the Delhi College of Photography in India, and a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society in Great Britain.
Yasser has received international recognition for his images from esteemed competitions, including Travel Photographer of the Year Award, National Geographic Award, Sony World Photography Awards, Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, the Sarajevo Photography Festival, the International Photo Awards, Egypt Press Photo, Paris Photo Prize and the Royal Photographic Society.
His photographs have been featured by leading global media outlets such as The Washington Post, CNN, National Geographic, The Guardian, VICE, Deutsche Welle, PBS NewsHour, Street Photography Magazine, Wanderlust Travel Magazine, DRIFT Travel Magazine and Digital Camera World.
Up Next in the July Issue
July is proving to be quite the global issue of Street Photography Magazine. In the next article, we’ll travel to downtown Kashmir with photographer Saqib Ali.
