A (Disappointing) Morning with Lions

The resulting images... Not the lions!!

I have been hoping to find the Kgala and Bulayo Lion Pride in decent 'golden' light and this morning it finally happened!

After hearing lions roaring in three different directions the night before, we headed out early morning to go and find the Kgala males, Bulayo females and their five youngsters.  We followed the direction in which we heard their last calls that morning and after only about twenty minutes of searching we saw the cubs. 



The last time I saw these five playful youngsters was when Grant and I tracked and found them up on the hill where they proceeded to give us a beasutiful show of playing and fighting with each other.  This morning was no different and again they waited until we positioned ourselves until they started their show.

These three were very active and it was sometimes difficult to see where one started and the next one started.  Great to watch!

If you have been reading my previous Blogs, you will recall that one of these youngsters had quite a serious injury to his one ear.  In the above image you can see him on the left hand side.  I have no idea how he got the injury to the ear but it seems that he is a kind og an outcast.  Always slightly on the fringes of the cub-action and always being 'picked on'.  The ear is still bothering him slightly and he still scratches it a lot.

You can see him above next to one of his brothers. Great morning light but up until now no sign of the adults.  Suddenly the cubs stopped and all looked in one direction.

Apart from a few tracks and the previous night's audio this was the first sign of the male in quite a few days.

Almost shark-like in his appearance the male was fast asleep but we realized soon enough that he had other things on his mind along with relaxing in the early morning sun.

The Kgala male was VERY interested in one of the pride's females.  Everytime she moved or got up to change position he would be right there testing her reproductive status by smelling her urine and doing the Flehman grimace.  Not going into any detail now but the idea is that the smell molecules gets forced (through muscular contraction) into the organ of Jacobsin in the upper lip which gives the male an idea of the females willingness to comply to his endless advances!



This specific morning she did not want anything from him and he reluctantly made his way back to a nice sunny spot to sleep the day away.

Now I have been looking forward to get this specific pride in golden light, but was actually quite dissapointed by the resulting images.  When I checked the mornings images on the pc everything was blown out even though I also tried underexpose just slightly during the shoot (making the lions sound like models now!)

I reckon taking pictures of lions in winter grass with early morning light is actually quite a challenge as they blend perfectly and it can prove quite difficult to meter correctly as the winter light tends to be a little bit hazy.  When looking through the hundred plus images of the morning I found that only a few was actually usable.  A little bit of tweaking in Photoshop did save quite a few but I still think that metering differently might make a difference.  White balance, saturation, contract and even brightness was off the charts even though I checked ISO, shutter speed and aperture all the time.

Must admit, I still have a few things to learn and be 100% sure of on the D300 (love that machine!!) which I have been using for about two months now and luckily I got another chance this afternoon but more on that in the next Blog.

I don't have a problem 'fixing' images in Photoshop as long as it is only minor tweaking of the histogram.  I am not too fond of erasing leaves, adding a cloud or any of the other fancy things people do in Photoshop.  There is most definitley a time and place for that kind of thing and I do enjoy messing around every now and then, but I feel you should try and get as much of your shots correct when you click the shutter. I would rather be a photographer then a photoshop-er.  I reckon that is why I felt dissapointed and felt I have to go out and try again!

Anyway, the images uploaded in this specific Blog are a few of the mornings shots that I quickly tried to save from total disaster but once I get back home I will have a decent look through all the raw images and see what can be done.  I might actually do a blog in a week or so with some of the above lion images that have been properly images to try and get them right.  (Any comments?)

On with the morning drive.

As we left the lion sighting, where we spent almost two hours, we saw this Purple Roller sitting watching us from the top of a tree.

Beautiful bird (yes I know the colours are still off!!) and very chill as he was trying to warm up in the morning sun.

As we got home we heard this little guy singing in the tree.  A Black-Backed Puffback. 

In Afrikaans this guy is called a 'Sneeubal' which translates directly to Snowball - referring to the way he puffs the white feathers on his back up when he gets excited.  I was quite happy to get a few shots of this little guys and I am sure the final images will be great!



So, it was a great morning out in the bush but the resulting images did not get me very excited.  In a way it is a good thing to get a wake-up call like this every now and then so that you remember the basics and hopefuly learn something in the process so don't take any of the images in this Blog too seriously! :)



As luck would have it, we found the lions again in the afternoon and this time I was ready.  The light was perfect and this time the images are more something that I am proud to say is some of my better work!  As soon as I have had a chance to go through them I will upload some of them to the Blog as well.



I have still not uploaded any of my latest (last two weeks) images to the Photo-Africa Stock Library.  Once I have finalized all these images (on my desktop in JHB) I will do a huge upload.  Make sure to keep an eye on the Blog as I will mention it here as well.  In the meantime you can visit the Stock Site to view some of Gavin Tonkinson's many new images that was uploaded today.



As always I look forward to hearing from you!



Gerry

Weekly High Five #5

It was not my intention to choose this many lion images for this weeks High Five, even though it would have been quite easy since I have been searching for, and obsessing about, the Kgala males the entire week. 





It just so happend that included in the hundred plus images uploaded to Photo-Africa this week there were many brilliant pictures of lions.  This week features eight images again of which four are of lions.  So here goes with the fifth Weekly High Five.





Image 1 - Lion Silhouette by Andrew Fullerton

The only thing that I would change in this image would be to place the lion further to the left of the frame.  When shooting an image like this it is always difficult to get the image nice and dark without burning out the sky.  It might require the photographer to under expose the image slightly which, in this case, was done perfectly. 

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Image 2 - Double Lion by Quintin Janse van Vuuren

A lion image with that little bit of extra. The mane that is blowing in the wind gives the image a slight dynamic feel and gives you an idea of what the moment must have been when the image was captured.  For me that is one of the things that will make one wildlife image stand out above another - making your viewer feel like they were there.  Great image of one of the Kgala males.

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Image 3 - Rose Macro by Warren David Diack

Something different - a perfect close up of a pink rose.  The photographer pulled this one off brilliantly by keeping the image focused and very sharp in the centre and then fades it out towards the edge of the frame.  Whether by very clever cropping or good in camera framing, the rose petals close to frame in the image rounds it off very well and draws the viewers eye to the centre of the image.  Great macro.

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Image 4 - Kgala Male Lions by Quintin Janse van Vuuren

Even though the sky is burnt out a little, this image still works.  The two lions are obviously resting in the sun but the image captures the power of these beautiful males perfectly.  The fact that the two manes are touching also creates a nice bond between the lions which is true for real life as well when looking at the behavioural patterns of a coalition such as this.  Awesome animals.

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Image 5 - Moon by Warren David Diack

Have you ever tried taking a 'decent' image of the moon?  It is not all that easy and the above image pulls it off perfectly.  Capturing the slight colour variations and even the sharpness in the craters makes this a very good image.  I also like that it is not a completely full moon and leaves a slight bit of the moon out of the scene - a full moon would almost have been too cliché.

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Image 6 - African Fish Eagle by Craig Muller

One of Africa's most beautiful and graceful raptors captured perfectly. 

To capture any bird in flight takes a great bit of luck or a great deal of skill.  If I could change anything in the aboce image it would be to extract a small bit of detail from the left wing (which is totally black).  Other than that a great bird image.

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Image 7 - Blurred Lions by Quintin Janse van Vuuren

This is not an image you can plan.  It is clicking the shutter at the correct time and allowing nature to complete the process.  This image shows why wildlife photography is not always about planning and trying to get everything in the frame perfectly in focus and sharp.  Yes - luck is a part of what we do!  There is an element of 'wild' in this and the fact that both lions are blurred gives you a feel for the action that was taking place at that precise moment.  This is an image I would expect to see in a wildlife book or magazine.  Amazing wildlife image!

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Image 8 - Lonely Tree by Gavin Tonkinson

On the other side of the scale.  This is an image that the photographer planned.  You could sit at the same tree for five days and never get the opportunity to capture this image again.  The diagonal foreground starts the image very nicely and allows the tree to lead your eyes up the branches and to thge beautiful clouds in the sky.  In a previous Blog I mentioned Wildlife & Nature photgraphy in the same sentence as Fine Art Photography.  This images is one of those which I will use should I have to create an argument that it IS possible to create Fine Art from Wildlife & Nature images.  Great image and my pick for this week.

All these and other images uploaded during the week can be found at the Photo-Africa Stock Library.  To view the latest images that have been added click here.

As always I look forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback on this weeks High Five!

Gerry

Madikwe Gardens - An Oasis in the Bushveld

Whether you have been on safari, browsed through a coffee table book or watched a African wildlife television program - this is the African bushveld we all know and love. On the Eastern side of Madikwe there is an oasis that is a stark contract to the semi-arid conditions which houses Africa's natural heritage.

I have, in the past, heard about the Madikwe Gardens but as it was to far to travel from the West of Madikwe and the fact that it is on a private concession made it very difficult to follow up and see what the story is.

Adele and I have for the last few weeks been helping out at Morukuru which is on the same property as Madikwe Gardens and this gae us the perfect opportunity to visit the Gardens.

Amazing.

The old couple who take care of the Gardens, Frikkie and Gerda, have been living on the property for more than thirty years. Originally their own propety, they recently sold the Gardens to an American who asked them to stay and 'manage' the property.

When speaking to the old couple, who are almost eighty years old, knows exactly when each tree was planted as they took the Gardens from what you see in the first image...

To this...

The talk with passion about how they planted all the plants, except for three trees, from seeds or seedlings.  Amazing!  They also have a vegetable garden which feeds about fifty people a week.

 

Adele and I went to visit the Gardens to walk around and try and capture some of the beauty of this oasis in the middle of the African bush.

When walking through the Gardens it feels more like you are in  tropical jungles then in Southern African bushveld.  They have been able to accomplish this by pumping water from the nearby Marico river and as a result of the successful expansion of the gardens they have had to increase the size of the fence around the property five times.

It was an amazing experience to walk around the Gardens and get the history of this beautiful place.

Next Blog will be the Weekly High Five and I am still looking through all the images, more than 100, before I upload!  Make sure to check back soon!

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

A Wild Morning at Morukuru

What was the first thing you did this morning?  Perhaps make a nice cup of coffee or read the newspaper?



This morning this was mine...

This is Holiday, the tracker at Morukuru, and me carrying a freshly killed Impala out of the staff village.  During the early morning hours the Wild Dogs made it into the fence around the lodge and killed the female impala right next to our house hence my not so pleasant first-activity-of-the-morning! :)



There are currently two packs of Wild Dog in Madikwe and this was the 'Collection Pack'.  Originaly about six strong, there are now only two left as a result of fighting with the much larger 'Dwarsberg Pack'.  The Kgala lions (my photographic obsession for this week) also comes into their story as they killed the pups of the Collection Pack about two weeks ago.  Very sad story but something for a different Blog.



So anyway, before even having a chance to have a cup of coffee we had to get the carcass out of the fenced in area as the female dog was inside the fence and the male was still outside.  She was visibly uncomfortable with us walking towards her and not having the safety of her pack.  I think she was also still quite 'emotional' (at the risk of giving the dog human emotions) and stressed at having lost her pups less than two weeks ago.



We got the carcass out of the fenced area and dropped it about a hundred meters from the entrance gate.  The male, who was circling us the whole time, was there in a flash but the female was now stuck inside the fence as the electric gate closed before she could get out.

After trying for about twenty minutes we eventually got her out of the fence and she joined the male at the kill.  It was very sad to see how she ran away from the kill every ten minutes or so to scan the surrounding bushes, obviously looking for something.  They might not intelectualise about things like we do but the mother's insticnt is definitley still a very strong factor in nature.

I was still a great feeling to have these two very endangered animals close to us as they fed on the impala.  Even though there were only two of them, they ate very quickly.  One of the reasons for this is that they do not rank very high on the predator hirarchy and even a hyena or leopard can steal the kill from them.  Kill, eat quick and move on has worked for them for hundreds of uears so why change it now.

My original plan was to do a Blog about the Madikwe Gardens today but with the Weekly High Five also due I might only get to that later this weekend.  I also have a lot of images of the fanily of Banded Mongoose who we have been watching around the property the last week.  Very cute but I just had to upload a quick Blog about our Wild Morning at Morukuru!  I will upload all of the images from this morning to the Photo-Africa Stock Library with next weeks big upload.

Make sure to check back over the weekend as I upload Blogs on the Weekly High Five, Madikwe Gardens and the Banded Mongoose.



As always I look forward to hearing from you!



Gerry

The Power of Possibilities

"Tracking

is a gift of the wild,

of retracing steps;

looking back

from time to time

at our first spoor,

our other signatures."

~ Sir Ian McCallum

Finding a lion as you drive around a corner in the bush is absolutely amazing. The shock. The surprise. There is however one thing that is even better still.





Finding a track. A lion track. Following it. Following the possibilities that is signifies and following through until you eventually find the animal who left you that one single sign that it has been there.



Yesterday Grant Marcus, who is also one of the Photo-Africa photographers, went out early morning in an attempt to find the Kgala and Bulayo lions in Madikwe. You might have read in an earlier Blog that these are the lions I have been trying to find the whole week but up until now no luck. Tracks all over, but no sign of thee majestic animals. We left the lodge just after six in the morning and headed East towards the last confirmed sighting of one of the Kgala males It was still dark and very cold but the horizon was just starting to show the promise of another beautiful winters day in Africa. As we reached Rondawel Dam the wind was also starting to blow which, even though it adds to the atmosphere of a chilly winters morning, makes tracking a little more difficult.



We spotted a lion track.



It was heading towards the dam, but it was pretty hard to determine how fresh it was as by now the wind was increasing in strength and blowing little bits of loose sand grains into the tracks thereby hiding the history of that particular lion. We walked around in a circular pattern to try and get an idea of direction but neither of us was convinced this was the tracks we were looking for. It felt right, but everything you read or hear about tracking runs through your head. It is amazing how your mind is quiet and very busy at the same time. You focus completely on the tracks and all the other signals around you such as birds and wind direction but at the same time your mind is racing through all the possibilities of what could have happened here. Where could they have gone? Are we on the right tracks? How old are they? Are they watching me through the bushes?



We decided to head to the plains to see if we could find any other signs. Not five hundred meters from there we found very fresh track that were also heading to the dam. There were tracks for all the lions. Two large males, two females and five youngsters. Nice that there are so many lions as they obviously leave a lot of signs to read but there are many lions. And walking into or around a thicket where nine lions might be waiting is also makes your mind think of ‘the possibilities’.



We went back to the dam and picked up on the original tracks we found (lesson #1 – go with your gut feeling). For about forty-five minutes we followed the tracks as the winded North up the mountain side. Drive for a while. Get out and walk on the tracks to see where they go. Back to the vehicle and drive again. As we slowly edged our way up the mountain side the sun was rising in the East, waking all the birds and creating fantastic light for photography.



It was getting rocky and following the tracks was getting more and more difficult to follow but as we almost got to the top of the ridge…



We saw them.





Four of the cubs next to and on top of an old broken Marula tree.







Sharing something like this with guests, friends and families is amazing but every once in a while to have it to yourself and just have the opportunity to sit, watch and become a part of their story is an indescribable experience.









The light was great and it was as if the cubs were just waiting for us to find them before launching themselves into their morning bout of playing.









Fantastic sighting and even though it was amazing watching these 11 month old cubs slapping each other around the question remained. Where is the rest of the pride? We were missing five lions, including the two big males. Normally when cubs get left somewhere and the adults disappear it means only one thing.



Hunt.



We drove a small way from the cubs and tried to find as track of the adults and the missing cubs but the rocky terrain made this very difficult. Nothing. We walked around, always keeping an eye on the cubs, but to no available. We could not find any tracks. No sign at all.

We moved back to where the cubs were but they were slowly moving West, further into the rocky hills. No way of following with a vehicle so we slowly followed on foot to see if they might lead us to the rest of the pride. No luck. The four cubs only moved about three hundred meters into the hills and went to lay down under a large thicket. It seemed that were not supposed to find the big guys that morning.



However, that afternoon was a different story as Adele and I headed out with a few friends to try our luck.



We drove to the same dam to check if they pride did not return to the water. After confirming that there was definitely no sign of the lions we moved back towards the hill to see if we could pick up where we left off that morning. Still no luck and we were not even able to relocate on the four youngsters.



Oh well, back to the lodge we go. As we took the last turn, probably about three kilometers from where we had the cubs in the morning, heading back to the lodge there they were. No tracking. No searching. They came to us.







The Kgala males walking out of the bushes on our left hand side. These males are magnificent. The ‘perfect’ light was about ten minutes from disappearing and these guys showed up at exactly the right time. They both walked right next to the vehicle and onto the road in front of us.





The two males lead us about four hundred meters along the road where they joined the rest of the pride, minus the four cubs we had that morning, and threw themselves down on the floor like only a lion can. The two females were ‘flat cat’ and the one cub was laying down continually scratching his ear.







The cub had a pretty serious wound on his left ear and it was obviously bothering him quite a bit. Now the first thing everybody on the vehicle starts saying is loaded with emotion and points to how sad and miserable this young lion mist be due to the injury. Not quite the case. They don’t work like that. In nature you cannot, like in the human world, stop and feel sorry for yourself or attempt to gain pity from your friends and family. Life goes on and you cannot wallow in your misery like some people like to do.



Gavin Tonkinson uploaded the following image to Photo-Africa this week which shows the same kind of scenario.





This lion, one of the Thola-Mateya coalition, was injured in a fight with the Batia brothers (who you might have read about previously). The wound is obviously quite serious and his mate also had a very seriously injured leg but they just carry on. Keep on doing what they are supposed to do. A lesson in their somewhere?



Anyway, back to the Kgalas.





The perfect light unfortunately did not last long enough and the shot I have in mind, the Kgala males together looking straight at me with sun from behind, was not going to happen today. The sighting was spectacular though. The one female was busy waking up and grooming while the rest of the pride was still out cold and still no sign of the four cubs.

I tried to play around with my flash and different ways to capture the two males other than in that golden afternoon light and all in all I was quite happy with the results. It's all to easy to just pop your flash no and fire on full strength bbut I wanted to try and keep the feeling that light was fading and night was approaching. (Any thoughts?)





As this was happening two zebra were slowly grazing down the road towards the lions and immediately the ‘power of possibilities’ comes into play again. What if? Will they?

The lions only realized the zebra where close to them after about ten minutes and the two females were up and ready to hunt immediately. The two males were lying down with their heads up as the two females starting moving around the zebra.





Ultimately nothing happened and after a very brief charge the females returned but immediately there were speculations as to why the males never hunt. This is a whole different story and a myth that I will write about at a later stage.



So, I finally got to see the two beautiful Kgala males but I am still waiting for the opportunity to photograph them in the early morning or late afternoon light. Hopefully the next week will bring a few more opportunities.



This afternoon Adele and I will be returning to the Madikwe Gardens to try and capture some of this oasis in the middle of the bushveld on film (or rather digital). I will be uploading a Blog on the Gardens tomorrow and also be adding these images and those I have been able to capture this last week or so, including the images in this Blog, to the Photo-Africa Stock Library during next week. I will post a Blog as soon as I have had the chance to upload. In the meantime you can visit the Stock Library as there are a few new photographers and a lot of new images that have been uploaded during the last week.



As always I look forward to hearing from you!



Gerry

The Air of Expectation

Whenever you head out into the African bushveld you are surrounded by a great air of expectation. There is so much diversity out there and to, for a short time at least, truly be a part of Africa’s splendid natural heritage is something that never loses its appeal.

Yesterday Adele and I went for a drive on the Morukuru concession. As you will remember from a previous Blog post I am very keen to get a hold of the two Kgala male lions. These two cats are around 7 years old, in their prime and in absolutely perfect condition. You see, they have not had many run-ins with some of the other dominant lion coalitions in the area. Whether they are slight cowards, which I think is taking a lot of credit away from them, or whether they have just been lucky they are beautiful with almost no scars on their faces. Text book male lions.

So my mission for the next few days is to find the Kgala males for a bit of a photo shoot and yesterday we saw them for the first time.

From when we left the lodge we were looking for any sign that they have been around. As we got to the first watering hole we picked up fresh tracks of the Bulayo pride. This is a female, her sister and five of their ten month old youngsters. We know that they spend quite a bit if time with the Kgala males so we got on the tracks to see if they could lead us to the big prize.

It is lucky for us that lions do prefer walking on game paths and roads (softer on their feet) which makes it much easier to track them. You follow them on the road and at some point they always seem to divert onto a small game path. Out the vehicle, walk on the tracks to get a direction of where they were heading. Back to the vehicle and circle around to the other side of the block to see if they came out and crossed into the next block.

While tracking the Bulayo’s we had a few nice sightings as well.

As we passed by the river we saw this little Brown Hooded Kingfisher sitting next to the road. The birding in this area, with the river and lots of watering holes, is spectacular. Summer time must be amazing as all the migrants return from the winter holiday but even now, while it is still very cold, the birding is great. Yesterday while visiting Madikwe Gardens (watch for a Blog on this spectacular oasis in Madikwe later this week) we saw a breeding pair of Gymnogenes (African Harrier Hawks). This was only the second time that I have seen these unique raptors in Madikwe and have never been able to get a proper image of these birds. I find time this week I would love to see if I can find where they are nesting.

Back to the lions.

We followed the tracks into and out of many blocks and bumbled along the roads looking for the lions. As we moved towards Rondawel Dam the plains opened up next to us with a beautiful African scenes of Wildebeest, Zebra, Impala and Warthog all grazing around the plains. The sun was slowly edging towards the horizon and we were approaching that perfect ‘golden light’. My ideal would be to find the Kgala males early morning or late afternoon to photograph them in that awesome golden light.

We cut across the plains and while I was still focused on the road to see if the lion have not crossed anywhere, Adele spotted another one of our possible subjects for the week. Aardwolf


This was the first image I have been able to get of this diminutive member of the Hyena family. Not an award winning photograph but this week looks promising. Earlier this week my tracker, Holiday, saw three of them on that same plain area which means there might be a den site somewhere. We watched the Aardwolf scratching around for a while and suddenly he disappeared into the ground. Gone. We drove in a straight line to where we last saw him and actually found the den site. We will take some time later this week to come and wait at the den site to see if we get lucky and see them up close and possibly perhaps even the pups.

The Aardwolf has also been called the werewolf which typifies the mystery that surrounds it. Even though it is part of the Hyaenidae family it fees almost exclusively on Snout Nosed Termites (Trinervitermes) and feeds at night. In winter time, when it gets too cold for the Snout Nosed Termites (and most early morning safari goers) to be active above ground, the Aardwolf switches to feeding on the Common Harvester Termites (Hodotermes). This means that the Aardwolf becomes diurnal during winter as a direct consequence of the change of diet.

After waiting for a short while to see if he reappears we decided to get back on the lion tracks.

It was not long until we picked them up again and as we followed them around the corner there he was. One of the Kgala males laying in the middle of the road looking away from us. Even from the back you could see he was big.

Now the sun was going to give us about another 15 minutes of workable photographic light and this male lion decided to play hard to get. He turned his head only once to look at us and that was it. As we got closer he got up, walked away from us and then cut into the bush directly to the sun. We followed off road for about 50 meters but he was able to put himself in the thickets with the sun right above him. There was about as much chance of getting any kind of decent image as Robert Mugabe has of actually getting a clue… swiftly moving along.

As we pulled back and reached the road again we saw the rest of the pride. They were all there.


We did not have much time to sit and watch Africa’s largest predator as they were in full hunting mode (as seen in the image above) We followed the Bulayo female as she stalked the Zebra on the plains. Long story short – we found ourselves trying to keep up as the females stalked the zebra and the males, which we could not see, started roaring in the background. Amazing experience, but only got a chance to get one image. The pace at which things was happening and the light that was now all but gone. The two females chased the zebras towards the hills and returned a few minutes later. Breathing heavily and still looking hungry. They walked back into the thickets where the males were still giving us the occasional roar. A stunning sighting and at least now we know for sure that they Kgala males are on the property. I will find them!!

We decided to head back as it was by now very cold and when adding the wind chill factor on the open game viewer it can get almost as unpleasant as listening to Robert Mugabe carrying on about a free and fair election… Moving swiftly along.

As always, we saw a few Mozambique Nightjars on the road.

These little birds sit on the roads in the evening as they use the canopy of the sky to see their insect prey better. This gives you a great chance to see them but unfortunately also leads to man of them being killed on roads outside of the reserve.

It is a true privilege to be out in the African Savannah and it is always exciting. There is so much magic out there and when you are watching nature’s story unfold in front of you everything else fades away and, at least for those couple of precious moments, it is not important. You become a part of nature and not just an observer.

To have the opportunity to photograph Africa’s Natural Heritage every day is a real challenge and something I am very passionate about.

Is it possible to freeze a perfect African moment?

Can you convey the sense of humility and awe you experience out in the bush through one single frame?

Can the beauty of Africa be shown in one photograph?

I would like to think so and that is my challenge.

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

Weekly High Five #4

I have finally gotten around to browsing through last week’s images and putting together the Weekly High Five.

This week there were more than 70 images added to the Photo-Africa Stock Library which includes the work of three new photographers. It is great to see the work of the new guys and girls on Photo-Africa. I believe one of the best ways to improve your own photography is to look at the work of other people or, even better, go and on a shoot with them and see how they approached the same subject. We can all learn from each other!

Anybody can take great images of an elephant if he is feeding within five meters of your vehicle – not difficult. The challenge is to try and capture that animal, that moment, in a special way and convey your own interpretation of the scene in front of you. Focus on a small part of the animal. Create an abstract of the natural lines. Taking a wide angle shot and including some of the surroundings. Zoom close into the eye. Capture a moment of movement. The possibilities are endless if you just allow yourself to keep an open mind (or eye?) and learn from the way in which other people approach their photography.

There is still a debate as to where one can draw the line, if at all, between wildlife photography and fine art photography. Some people think that there is no way in which these to art forms can be mentioned in the same sentence. I disagree. There are most definitely times when they are the same thing.

It is VERY challenging and frustrating to capture these moments in nature that can pass for fine art, but they do happen and I think it is possible. When the natural light illuminates your subject and they give you that one single moment of perfection. That beautiful moment when everything just falls into place and you capture that moment on film - fine art photography is possible. I am digressing and could carry on, so will pick up this again at a later stage.

So anyway, on that note here goes with this week’s featured images.

Image 1 – Elephant Splash by Gerry van der Walt

What makes this image is the splash of water. Whenever you can freeze some kind of an action in wildlife photography you are onto something. The light here feels a little off and the image could have been a little sharper but the focus is not on the elephant. The trunk leads you to the ‘action’ along with the ellie leaning into and looking at the water and because of that this image pulls it off.

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Image 2 – Elephant Abstract by Matt Jones

Clever image. The framing on this image is perfect. By losing the curl of the trunk (at the bottom) it looks like there are two different subjects to the image. The focal area is obviously the point where the eye and tip of the trunk get together and everything in the image helps this. The eye is placed off centre at the point where the ‘Rule of Thirds’ tell us you should place your focus point. This is balanced by the tusk in the opposite corner and everything is rounded off by the trunk leading your eye from the bottom of the frame at a slight diagonal to the focus point. Nice abstract and an image that could be used in class during a Photography 101 course.

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Image 3 – Crazy Eyes by Gerry van der Walt

If the small patches of sunlight fell over both lions eyes this would have been amazing. Technically this image lacks a bit in terms of contrast and sharpness but it tells a story and that is why I like it. Both cats are obviously focusing on something very interesting and the fact that both there tongues are out also adds to the drama. The older of the two, on the right, has the scars on the face which also just give it that slightly ‘edgy’ look. This is not the way you want lions to look at you when you are on foot and somewhere in that feeling that the image creates is what makes it a winner.

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Image 4 – One and a Half Rhino by Sharon Bishop

This is a great image of the White Rhino - technically good with great composition. My main concern would be the bodies of the two rhinos in the right side of the frame. If they would have kindly moved out of the way (which is something I say quite often out in the field) this image would have been perfect. The mom’s horn gives her a very dominating presence in the image which is combined with the innocence of the youngster staring at you from the safety of mom’s side. Lovely image.

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Image 5 – Springbok by Craig Muller

I like everything about this image (perhaps a little more on the exposure side, but with digital easy to fix) You really get the feeling that this animal is dominant and surveying his territory from the top of the hill he is standing on. Should the image not have had the dead plants in the foreground it would have been a good image, but the inclusion thereof makes it brilliant. Nice contrast of colors, great positioning of the Springbok and an overall beautiful wildlife image – this is my pic of the week.

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To view these and many other images that have been uploaded during the last week you can visit the Photo-Africa Stock Library and click on ‘Newest Images’.

Make sure to visit the Blog again soon as I have a few different shoots and ideas that I will be uploading during the week. Remember that you can also subscribe to the Blog and receive all updates via email.

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

Product Review - The Vertex 200 Lowepro Camera Backpack

First I would like to thank Lowepro and Singer Photographic for the sponsorship. As a wildlife photographer you always need a good bag or case to protect your gear against the elements. Singer photographic supplied me with a bag that does that and more.

With all equipment there are pros and cons.

Positives

• The bag is big enough for any camera body with a big lens up to a 70-200 and additional lenses and bodies.
• The bag has got enough space inside for all your accessories. Outdoor storage panels provide easy and quick access for my digital accessories like filters.
• Very important are the zips, they are wide and strong YKK zippers with a canvas strip covering the zip to keep the dust and moisture out, I like!! Normally it is the first thing that packs up of a camera backpack. This one looks and feels stronger than any of my other bags.
• Most of the bags you get are not padded enough for heavy equipment, but the 300 is very sturdy on the out and the inside and your camera is very well supported on the bottom, top and sides. That’s the first thing I look for when buying a bag because I am outdoor and in a 4x4 vehicle most of the day, that goes apart with a lot of bumping around.
• All the straps on the bag are very comfortable for when walking long distances with your equipment and they are very supportive to the lower back. Another bonus is that the harness is very lightweight and comfortable.
• The material used for the 200 is excellent and especially for outdoor use -well that is what I think and I am sure most wild life photographers will agree!!
• The reason you would get a bag like this is to protect your equipment against the elements. Especially in the summer, I do work when it is raining. This bag has its own all weather cover, well tugged away at the bottom of the bag, neatly zipped away. Very important….. it is easy accessible!
• There are three areas on the bag where you can fasten your tripod with an adjustable glide lock.

Negatives

• I really don’t have anything negative to say about the bag. The only thing for me is the time it takes to get my camera out of the bag is an issue. I lose that vital first few seconds of the shot. This is where I think a hard case is better, especially for me on the vehicle but as far as bags go, right up there!

I really cannot fault the Vertex 200 and I am honestly very happy. It is the best bag I have ever owned. This bag gets a 9/10 from me especially for protection and padding. Thanks again to Lowepro and Singer Photographic.

Grant Marcus

Reptiles we tend to forget about while on night drives!

The Chameleon... A slow moving colour changing reptile you normally see at night in a dense green tree or bush. When you are driving around at 40 km/h with a spotlight and suddenly you slam the breaks on and reverse. Evverybody thinks this is it , the leopard everybody wants to see so badly. Then a big surprise when you get out and everybody in great suspense thinking - what this mad game ranger is going to do now?

To everybody's amazement you gently pick up this small green creature. They all wonder how on earth did you see this green reptile in the green tree at night. Well there is a big secret: it is actually quite easy to spot with the light. There almost florescent green bodies reflects from the spotlight almost like a reflector. It does however take some practice before you can spot one at night.

They are very interesting animals. They have small scales and lack bony plates. Their tales are prehensile and they can not regenerate it like most other lizards. They have quite good vision and their eyes can operate independently. They are slow moving so the telescopic tongue makes up for that. They can shoot it further than the body length to capture prey. They are mainly arboreal creatures and the males are very territorial and will normally have one tree to themselves.

Colour varies to match the surroundings. They darken quite a bit when stressed and the colour gets intense when aroused. It is greatly feared by many tribes and some believe that they would become sterile or die if they see one, but they are harmless not poisonous at all.

They are mainly preyed on by snakes like the Boomslang orTwig Snake. They are great to use when you have children on the vehicle. They get totally captured in the moment with this gentle reptile.

Next time when you see a chameleon look at it from a different angle.

Hope you enjoyed this colourfull story. Till next time!

Grant

Running late... Coming soon...

Adele and I are finally back in the bush!

We arrived at Morukuru, which is the far eastern part of Madikwe, yesterday. The Morukuru concession borders Madikwe which means we do not only have their private property to traverse on, but also the whole of Madikwe. This means that next week, while their are no guests at the lodge, I can go out and spend as much time as I want with whatever we find! There are two beautiful male lions, the Kgala males, which I hope to find as they are about 7 years old, in perfect condition and very photogenic! Hopefully lots of great images coming up soon!

With travelling to Madikwe, fetching guests and settling in here I have not had time to upload the Weekly High Five yet. I have pulled 4 images off so far and need to add one more and will probably upload this by Sunday.

If you have any suggestions let me know, otherwise visit again soon to see this week's featured images!

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

Photo-Africa Stock Library - Discount Voucher

The Photo-Africa Stock Library has been growing rapidly during the last few months. With more then 15 photographers adding authentic African Widlife & Nature Images on a daily basis, this is like having an African safari on your pc!

You can download one image or Subscribe and download 10 images in that month!

Until the end of June you can save 35% on all your images purchased form the Photo-Africa Stock Library. This voucher, which will expire on 1 July, can be used as you checkout to deduct 35% off your total cart. You can use this voucher once or even check back later in the month to purchase some of the newer images that have been uploaded!

The voucher number is: 25640035

Why not visit the Photo-Africa Stock Library now and find yourself a new desktop image or an image that you can frame for that person who has everything! All credit card transactions are 100% secure and processed by MyGate.

If you have any questions please contact me and make sure to check the Stock Library on a regular basis as new images are added on a daily basis! If you are looking for a specific image and cannot find exactly what you are looking for you can also email us a request and we will see if we can photograph the animal or wildlife scene of your choice. Challenge us to find your own safari moment!

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

Great Times!

For almost two years now we have been threatening to meet in the city. A week ago we finally caught up for a great few days.

Dinamosi was my tracker when I worked at Royal Madikwe. Not only an amazingly talented tracker but a great person as well. Awesome sense of humor and always smiling! We learnt a lot together and have many great memories together out in the bush!

From the moment we started working together we hit it off and have been promising to meet in Johannesburg to go to a movie, something Dinamosi has never done before, and go to a restaurant together.

Dinamosi was on his way back from leave and Adele and I were able to arrange to meet for two days. We had a nice big braai (BBQ), went and walked around shopping malls, watched a movie (we watched Iron Man and I reckon this was Dinamosi's highlight) and ended off with dinner at a great restaurant.

It was great to have our good friend with us at our home and as he also prepares for the next phase of his career we wish him all the best! I am sure you will make a success in everything you do. I look forward to hearing about all your stories as time goes on!

Take care my friend and stay as special as you are! Untill we meet again!

Gerry

Weekly High Five #3

Here we go again with the Weekly High Five.

Actually, this week it should be called the 'Weekly High Eight' as I had quite a bit of trouble choosing only five images and so I thought I would just add the lot! Nature, and African wildlife specifically, offers us so much visual beauty and having to choose one image over the other when the content is so divers is a very difficult thing.

When I go through the images I try and not only look at it from a photography point of view, but also from a wildlife point of view. Anybody can take a snapshot of a lion but if an image can capture that little bit of magic, even if technical quality is not 100%, then I believe you have a winner! It's about showing the animal in their natural environment, doing what they do. To be able to capture these moments and still maintain a high level of technical quality while showing off your own artistic interpretation of that moment is what drives a wildlife photographer. Well I think so anyway...

So with that in mind, here are my choices for this week.

Image 1 - Boomslang by Matt Jones

This one snuck in as I was busy going through my choices when Matt uploaded this image - a young Boomslang (Tree Snake - direct translation from Afrikaans). This image has an abstract feeling to it but shows the character of the snake very well. Quite a shy species but always on the lookout. The brown color of the tree contrasts very nicely with the large eye of the snake (which is one of the diagnostic features). Nice image!

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Image 2 - Lion Snarl by Grant Marcus

If you see lions on a regular basis you will get to see many of their different facial expressions. This image captures on of these moments perfectly. I love photographing lions because of the different facial expressions they give and this image is a great example of that. If the flash did not catch the eye and make it stand out so much (draws quite a bit of attention) it would have been an even better image but this is something Photoshop can fix very easily and not a great worry. Great shot of Africa's largest cat.

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Image 3 - Squirrel Sentry by Gerry van der Walt

I think what makes this image is the two contrasting colours (of the sky and tree) and the side-lighting on the fur. It was a cold winters morning and he was just busy getting active from warming up in the sun. The image could have been a bit sharper but not the worst I have seen. Initially was not sure about this one but ended up liking it after all.

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Image 4 - Curious Seagull by Gerry van der Walt

I uploaded this image this week even thought it was taken two years ago in Cape Town. This whole shoot consisted of around 250 images but this one still stands out. The head tilted sideways gives the seagull a very curios look and the darker color on the wings forms two very nice leading lines into the focus area of the image. One of my own favourites.

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Image 5 - Lions on Patrol by Grant Marcus

Another great capture of lions doing what they do. It's not just the lions walking perfectly in line but also the way the image has been framed with the edges of the road on three sides leaving the front open for them to walk into. The colors feel a bit flat but regardless of that, this is a classic lion image!

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Image 6 - Winter Squirrels by Edmund Fourie

Another image that starts off with the 'cute-factor'. The color on the image captures perfectly the early morning winter light. The behaviour is also shown perfectly as squirrels huddle together in the sun during early mornings to heat up. A nice touch, excuse the pun, is the one squirrel putting his paw on the other one. You can almost see this being a Valentine's Day card. Great capture.

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Image 7 - Impala Jumping by Grant Marcus

A great action capture. The fact that you can see three impala in the image, all in a different stage of jumping and that not one of them is 'touching' the other one makes this a very good image. I also like the clever cropping in the image which leaves the right hand side open for the impala to move into. Love this shot!

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Image 8 - Caracal by Matt Jones

I think the best compliment any photographer can get is when another photographer says "I wish I took that shot!" I have no idea where Matt got this image but I wish I took this shot! An amazing capture of a very rarely seen animal - the Caracal. The colour and texture has been captured perfectly. (Caracal is also called a 'Rooi Kat' in Afrikaans meaning Red Cat.) The background is perfectly out of focus and the detail is perfect as you can even see the tufts of hair on the end of the cat's ears. Beautiful capture and my favourite of the week!

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So there you go, some of the highlights of the week. You can see how it is difficult to choose one image over the other. All great images and really makes you want to get out into nature and see these things for yourself! To view the latest images that has been added to the Photo-Africa Stock Library click here!

The Photo-Africa Stock Library has been growing very fast and now showcases the work of 15 Wildlife Photographers with ever growing galleries of African Wildlife & Nature images. We have also just finalized our Payment Gateway and the site is now full functional with regards to online, secure purchases of digital images.

If you email me and mention this Blog you will receive a voucher for 50% of your fist purchase with Photo-Africa!

Let me know which image you prefer and, if possible, which is your favourite!!

Until next time,

Gerry

Something rare ,something sad and something out of this world in Madikwe!!!

On Tuesday the 11th of June the lodge was closed for maintenance. We got a guy in from Zeerust to sand the decks. He came in at Abjaterskop gate around 14:30. After he arrived we all chatted away in the office...........and so by the way he said " Do you have cheetah ( Acinonyx jubatus ) in the park ? " We all said, yeah we think there is 2 left. He replied " I just saw one of them taking down an impala not far from the lodge". I was stunned, grabbed my camera and of we went myself and Gavin, because this was a chance in a lifetime. We got the exact location from him and stayed in radio contact. There he was a few metres of the road still exhausted after the chase.

We positioned the vehicle and clicked away. He immediately started on the rump and every now and then made sure it was save to carry on eating. Unfortunately we didn't have any guests with us to share in this special moment but nevertheless it was still very special for us as rangers to see nature unfold in front of us................

The last time I saw this cheetah was in Feb 2008, so WOW................!!

Cheetahs are very special animals and unfortunately they are still being shot by farmers especially in the northern parts of S.A where there still is free roaming cheetahs, but fences and livestock farming are the biggest problems. Here are some interesting history on the cheetah. The first contact with humans was in India and on the plains of Southern Africa.

Captive cheetahs have been used by man for food hunting because of their speed. The oldest record of a captive cheetah is depicted on a decorated silver vase from a scythian burial site at Maikop in the Caucasus Range. This vase dates back to 700-300BC. Early man also scavenged from cheetah because of their daytime hunting habits. The Moghul emperor is also said to have kept up to 3000 cheetahs to hunt antelopes

Cheetah is derived from the hindi word in India known as chita which means the spotted one.

That is just a bit of history on these magnificent animals. They have been around longer than we thought!!!

Till next time, hope you enjoyed that!

Grant Marcus

Weekly High Five #2

So here goes with the second of the Weekly High Five. This week was very difficult as there have been some great new images added to the Photo-Africa Stock Library.

The following images all caught my attention for some reason. Let me know what you think and whether there were any other images added in the last week that caught your eye!

Image 1 - Elegant Grasshopper Close Up by Gery van der Walt

There were a lot of these Elegant Grasshoppers in Madikwe this year and I am sure quite a few images captured of these colorful creatures. What makes this specific image for me is the eyes which looks as if they are staring right at the camera. Perhaps the two feet (where they come together) could have been in the shot but not a major worry. Overall a nice macro image.

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Image 2 - Elephant Drinking by Gavin Tonkinson

Out of many images of Elephants drinking, this one has something special. The eyes looking straight at you. The ears folded back and out of sight makes him look quite cute. The bottom lip with the water dripping off it also creates a nice 'dynamic' feel to the image. Nice ellie image.

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Image 3 - Brown Veined Whites by Bradley Leighton

This image works. Whether as an abstract or as an insect behavior study it has something special. One of the first things any photography teacher always teaches you is to look for C-curves, diagonal lines and triangles when composing your images. The first thing I noticed in this image is the way in which the group of butterflies all 'work together' to create a triangle from bottom to center top. The only things that kind of distracted from this great image was the one butterfly creeping into the image from the right and the body of the first butterfly is slightly chopped. Not enough to worry about and the abstract feeling combined with the lines on the wings make for an all over great image.

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Image 4 - Sepia Springbok Landscape by Gavin Tonkinson

Simple but very striking. When seen full screen this image pops! The diagonal line created by the herd of Springbok in Madikwe leads the viewers eye perfectly to the leading animal who seems to know where he is going. The one slightly distracting thing was the horizon that seems to be slightly skew to the left. Took me a while to decide whether it is in fact skew or whether it is not just the diagonal line of the Springok that leads you to think it is. Not a major worry though. I also quite like the hill in the top right corner as it creates distance in the image and makes you feel like they have been walking for a while. I would buy and frame this one.

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Image 5 - Lake Sunset by Kevin Linforth

I might be biased towards sunsets but this image works for me. The flower sitting in the middle almost pointing to where the sun was a few minutes ago is the obvious feature of this image even though it could maybe have done with a little more lighting from a soft flash. Moody and beautiful I am going to go with this as my favorite image of the week.

I look forward to hear your thoughts and comments on the above images!

As you know all of these and other images can be viewed and purchased at the Photo-Africa Stock Library so make sure to check back there on a regular basis as they guys are uploading great images almost every day!

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

Africa is a Dark Place. A Beautiful Place.

Africa is a dark place. A beautiful place.

Therein lies the paradox of what attracts us to this land of violence and natural splendor. Each day as the sun rises over the African savannah, nature continues to unfold the same way it has for a thousand of years. Without planning or preconceived ideas life in Africa carries on whether we are their to bear witness to it or not.

Is it not strange how our emotions and perceptions change as nature’s tale unfolds in front of us?

Each year as the seasons pass, rains brings new life to the plains. Young wildebeest, zebra, impala. To whatever end these animals are heading, they form a part of the story that is Africa. We watch with awe and a feeling of humility as herds of these animals paint the landscape and add a richness to the environment that we sometimes take for granted.

Africa however has a way of balancing itself out. Whether from old age or a more brutal end, life will end for each of these animals. That is the circle of life. By looking at nature with an emotional eye, we tend to hope that these animals complete their journey in a natural and humane way. Nature does not follow our script, and emotions does not form a part of this tale.

Lions kill. That is what they were designed to do and this act of merciless violence forms an integral part of the African story. They kill to survive and when we get to witness this brutal force of nature we cannot deny the urge to look away.

Our emotions and thoughts color these scenes with feelings of sorrow, pity and even disgust. The inevitability of the way nature’s play unfolds is sometimes not only difficult to witness, but difficult to understand.

Why is it then that we keep on watching? Keep on going back?

Is it perhaps because we feel that we are a part of Africa? Perhaps it is knowledge that the uncertainty of life is balanced only by the inevitability of death.

All of nature is a spectacle to behold and anyone who has experienced Africa will know that it touches your soul. It becomes a part of you and something deep inside will always keep on wanting to return to the beauty and the darkness.

We are privileged to be able to experience the magic that is Africa. The beginnings of new life and the ultimate conclusions that complete just another chapter in the ongoing battle for survival.

As humans we are busy creating our own story of inevitability and uncertainty. Will future generations also have the chance to experience and become a part of the African story?

Only time will tell…

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry

There is a snake in the grass.......or in the house.....

Coming back from the morning drive , and was it cold that morning. Still warming up with a nice cup of Nescafe coffee I heard frantic screaming coming from the managers house........... It sounded like someone are being attacked by a lion. I ran over there and what did I find...................a brown house snake harmless as can be. But for the lady cleaning the house it was like dooms day. I had to stop her fairly quickly other wise the poor snake almost got a broom up the nostril. This is were eduction comes in. People tend to think that the only good snake is a dead snake and that is such a wrong approach. I must say the staff at our lodge never thought twice before killing a snake if they saw one. One afternoon I caught a Mozambican spitting cobra in the fire place at the lodge. All the staff watched how I caught it. They actually realised that snakes are not demons. I had a talk with them about snakes, the friendly ones and all the nastys. So now they always call someone if there is a snake. They all realise now that snakes form a crucial part of the ecosystem and that they play a major role in keeping rodent numbers down.

We must just come to the conclusion that we share their environment and that we are going to bump into them sooner or later. But just leave them a lone and they will ignore you as well. I am asking everybody that reads this blog protect our snakes and if you encounter one in your house or any where that it is a threat to you do not just kill it get some one to remove it safely. It is like Gerry said who's decision is it to make if the creature lives or die, does he have a say in the matter.....................................?

The brown house snake is probably this most common constrictor we will encounter around buildings. They mostly feed on rodents and small vertebrates including bats at night. Their pupils are vertical because they are nocturnal hunters. They have got no venom they are constrictors.

They lay up to 16 eggs in summer and the hatchlings measures from 190-250mm.Their range are through out southern Africa and most of the continent.

More on these guys and other snakes later.

Grant

Going through the Archives

As you might have noticed, the Photo-Africa Stock Library was out of action for a few days due to a fire at the company in the US which hosts the site. Everything is now back up and running so make sure to visit regularly as the photographers upload new images of African Wildlife & Nature!

I am still at a lodge in Madikwe where the Internet access is not that good so uploading all my new images have proven to be a bit of a challenge. I have been working through

a lot of my older images to upload with all the new material when I get back to Johannesburg this weekend.

Here are a few of the images I found while working through my archives.

This Buffalo bull was photographed in the Kruger National Park. He did not trust us at all and gave us a very long stare.

A juvenile Fish Eagle taking off. This has got to be one of my favourite birds and we spent quite a bit of time watching this guy around one of the dams in the Pilansberg Game Reserve.

Getting creative with sunrise at Mankwe Dam in the Pilansberg Game Reserve. I still pity the photographer who I met on North Island who said that sunrises and sunsets are overrated. I believe there is magic in every single one!!

I will be uploading these and many other images to the Photo-Africa Stock Library later this week so check in again soon!

Almost time for Game Drive so hopefully many new images in the making.

As always I look forward to hearing from you!

Gerry