Timbavati Photo Safari.
It will be a little different from the normal day by day diaries you see, as seeing the results of the guests efforts is what drives me to share and live the awesome experience with them.
This year saw us venture a little more into the central Timbavati to the incredible Umlani Bush camp. A truly incredible lodge with an awesome team of staff and rangers. My guests were also old friends and some new aspiring photographers, the “ Otters” from Cape Town. Equipment used also varied from the top of the range DSLR body’s all the way to bridge and point-and-shoot type camera’s. A fact that you do not need to have thousands of rands worth of equipment to learn and enjoy a photographic experience.
Our first set of images from the trip are from Terry and Evanne ( aka The Otters ):
[pix_slideshow data_slideshow=’otters’]
As with all game drives and lodges, the understanding of needs of a photographer by the trackers and rangers is vitally important.
Our team of rangers Elvis (actually a stand up comic) and Ginger were true professionals in this regard. They were assisted by Ephraim who was outstanding in tracking the elusive cats. They answered the many questions and shared personal experiences of their bush life in the Timbavati to occupy the times we were tracking and enjoying some great sightings.
Here I must also mention Dave and his team of gastronomical magicians in the kitchen, incredible boma experiences around the “Umlani Big Screen” with continuous streams of treats and Umlani coffees.
Next up, Brendon ( aka Moose):
[pix_slideshow data_slideshow=’moose’]
The weather this year was a little strange with a cold snap a few days before our arrival.
This forced even the hardy rangers of the Timbavati to wear long pants. We had a few extremely cold nights and mornings but the days were phenomenal with in-camp activities and bird photography being the order of the day.
For the less active, there were a number of great constructive discussions on composition and types of goals that should be set by the group to maximize the sharing and enjoy the bush experience.
Next, Andre (aka Poker face):
[pix_slideshow data_slideshow=’marais’]
From a photography point of view, we covered the following subjects with great interaction from all the guests regarding personal experiences and techniques that had us all learning from each other:
- Panning – capturing moving subjects at slow shutter speeds
- Use of spot, flash and natural light
- Animal portraits
- Landscape basics at sunrise, sunset and even a few star shots
- Spotlight backlighting, side lighting and also using it to fill in the natural light
- Animal interaction
In closing, I would also like to thank Ronel and Allen who joined us on a drive and shared the creative atmosphere and intoxicating fun!
I hope that you have enjoyed the visual feast of all the images shared here and I hope you will look out for the 2014 edition which features some new and exciting activities for those who wish to experience the Badger Mayhem in the wild.
Peace and Light
PS : he did make and appearance.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks