Photo of the Day

Elephants from the Air, Okavango Delta, Botswana. April 2008

Canon EOS 1DMkIII, 100-400mm, 1/1000 @ f/5.6, ISO 400 

Africa Video Safaris. Any interest?

I have been kicking around the idea of offering African safaris for those who shoot exclusively with video. There are a number of challenges in this area, mostly relating to equipment: proper stabilization for each person for their video gear. A proper tripod with a fluid head is essential for good quality video, and I have the vehicles, knowhow and staff to make it happen. In fact, trips can be co-led by myself and a person in the video production industry. I just don't have a good grasp on how large the market is. One thing is for sure: video is an increasing market, and I anticipate in the next 5 years that many still photographers will be shooting with video equipment for their still images. We will be able to extract 1 frame out of 30 frames in a second, at a resolution high enough to produce A3 or larger sized prints (12x18 or larger).

Drop me a line if you are interested in participating in an African video safari. 

My blog has moved!

While I was away in Africa, my blog was hacked. Oh joy. Upon my return home I have spent the better part of 20 hours completely setting up a new blog from scratch, only this time I am not hosting it myself. I am sure that I have some settings completely messed up on my old blog, and I just don't have the time or desire to look into the issue, correct it and make sure it doesn't happen again.

My new blog can now be found on its own domain name, www.theglobalphotographer.com. That's right. Completely separate from my main andybiggs.com web site. I have migrated all of the old content over to this new blog, so you will never need to refer to the old one again. I still have some small tweaks to the overall design, as well as some technical geekery that needs to happen in the background, but overall I couldn't be happier with the new setup. The blog is hosted, which means somebody else gets to worry about hacking, and I get to concentrate on my photography, my photographic safaris, my new camera bag company, and above all else, being a husband and father.

If you have subscribed to my old blog, make sure that you take note of my new RSS subscription link on the left hand side on this page. You can keep track of this blog, and other blogs, using my favorite web page RSS reader, Goolge Reader. I am able to read through dozens of web pages and blogs each day in a short amount of time. Highly recommended. 

2 spots available on May 19-27, 2009 Namibia photo safari

I just had 2 spots made available on my May 19-27, 2009 Namibia photo safari. If you are interested in joining, please contact me at info@andybiggs.com ASAP.

Highlights

• This private flying safari covers fascinating attractions in Namibia while enjoying much of the stunning landscape from the air.
• We will fly to three amazing destinations in central and southern Namibia: Sossusvlei, the Namib Rand and the deserted mining town of Kolmanskop.
• The Namib Desert may well be the world's oldest desert. The apricot-colored dunes at Sossusvlei are some of the most beautiful landscapes on earth. Herds of mountain zebra, gemsbok and springbok roam the area.
• In all the parks you will have the opportunity to spend quality photographic time.
• Finish on a high note in the magnificent sand dunes of Sossusvlei.

Photo of the Day

"Siblings", Mala Mala Game Reserve, South Africa, April 2008
Canon 1DsMkIII, 400mm f/4 DO + 1.4x, 1/160 sec @ f/8, ISO 500

Photo of the Day

Male leopard, Mala Mala, South Africa, April 2008

Canon 1DsMkIII, 400mm f/4 DO, 1/200 sec @ f/4, ISO 1000

After four game drives here in Mala Mala, we have had two *excellent* leopard sightings, as well as amazing lion experiences. When we arrived by airplane on Friday, we checked in, grabbed a quick lunch and headed out for our first game drive. Within 20 minutes we had located and tracked a 6 year old leopard, the "bicycle crossing male", and we spent two hours following him, going ahead of him and watching him from a distance. I definitely captured more than 200 images in this short amount of time, and this is the only image that I have processed so far. The challenge was to have enough depth of field for his face, enough shutter speed to not have a blurry image, and a low enough ISO to keep the noise in check. I was able to find just the right angle where his face had enough DOF on both of his eyes at f/4, otherwise if he had a bit more angle on his face I would have needed f/5.6 for the image to work.

Additionally, today we located a pride of three adult females and their 9 cubs. Hopefully I was able to capture an image worth sharing. The challenge is finding the time to download, process and upload images!

Back from my Botswana safari

I have returned to Johannesburg from seven days of camping in Bostwana. There were 8 of us in total, and we divided our time between two distinct areas in northern Botswana: Moremi game reserve and the Khwai River region just north of Moremi and west of Chobe.

Running Giraffes, Okavango Delta, Botswana, April 2008

Canon 1DMk3, 24-105mm @ 80mm, 1/1600 sec @ f/5.0, ISO 800

I haven't had a chance to process any images yet, but I think I have a few keepers for the archives. I spent an afternoon and the next morning photographing the Okvanago delta from a helicopter, and I have to say that this was one of the most fulfilling photographic experiences I have ever encountered. When we positioned the aircraft properly, and if we had good light, we were able to capture the long shadows of our subjects. We spent time with multiple herds of elephant, giraffe, lechwe, zebra, cape buffalo and pods of hippo. Helicopter flights will be a great experience for my safari travelers when I return to Botswana in September with Michael Reichmann.

I heading back out for another 4 nights at Mala Mala, just outside of Kruger National Park, South Africa. I am back in a hotel room for just enough time to get a good shower, get some laundry cleaned, respond to a few emails and get a blog posting in. I look forward to sharing a few images when I return back home next Wedesnday.

Off for Botswana

I am heading out to the Okavango Delta in Botswana for some wonderful bush camping and photography. I have a small group of folks on this exciting trip, and we will only have 8 of us in total. We will divide our time between two different camps in the time that we will be out on safari. During our safari we will be photographing from a helicopter, and this will certainly be an exciting few hours! We will have 3 hours one afternoon and then another 3 hours the following morning. Split between 8 photographers, some have arranged for additional time than the included 1 hour of time for each person. The helicopter can accommodate up to 3 photographers at a time, all with access to removed doors on the aircraft.

After my time in Botswana, I will be heading over to the famed Mala Mala Game Reserve in South Africa for four nights. Mala Mala, and other areas surrounding Kruger National Park and the Sabi Sands region, is well known for excellent leopard sightings. I have an affinity for leopards, and hopefully I will be lucky enough to have some great sightings and photographs.

I will be spending more time in Botswana in the coming years, so expect to see more safaris on my calendar in addition to my traditional Tanzania and Namibia trips. As I noted in an earlier posting, Bruce Dorn will be leading some safaris as well. There will be two more safari leaders that will be running safaris as well, so look for a huge increase in my capacity in Africa in 2009 and beyond. I an an African photo safari specialist, and I have found that my six safaris each year keeps me very busy. In an effort to make my customers happy, I am expanding my business through the services of other photographers, guides and outfitters. I anticipate offering twelve (12) safaris each year, doubling my current capacity. It is a challenge in the personal service industry to expand one's business  without diluting quality or reputation, and I know that I am surrounding myself with the best possible individuals and companies that one can have.

On the equipment side of things, I will be bringing the following: Canon 1DsMkIII, Canon 1DMkIII, 40D, 500mm, 100-400mm, 24-105mm, 15mm fisheye, 580EXII flash, Sony HC3 video camera and my camera bag that will be released for sale in early June. wink wink nudge nudge. For all those that have been asking me about when the bag will start shipping, *you won't have to wait much longer*. They are being manufactured overseas at the moment, and I am just finishing up the final web pieces before going live. I truly believe that the best camera bag for traveling photographers will be out on the market. I am already working on a second bag, and let's hope that I can bring it to market in a short period of time. I will be taking preorders in late April or early May. Please email me at andybiggs@gmail.com if you are interested in learning more.

When I return home I will be announcing a very exciting relationship that I have inked with the one of the largest apparel brands on the planet. Exciting times!