Sabi Sands Safari Report - Day 2

Up at 5:30 this morning and in the vehicle around 6. We decided to take a simple breakfast with us, as my small group of 3 of us didn’t want to eat so early nor come back to camp later on in the morning. We poured our coffees and got settled into our vehicles for the morning’s game drive.  The temperature this morning was in the mid 40’sF, so the wildlife early on wasn’t exactly very active at first light. We headed towards the northern part of Mala Mala, where there are some open areas where cheetah like to spend time. Near Clarendon Dam we didn’t locate any cheetah, however we did have a nice sighting of a rhino who was intent on sniffing out another of his own kind. I find rhinos difficult to photograph, as there aren’t many angles that are good to photograph from. Trying to line up the vehicle for a head-on view was our preferred approach, but we mostly ended up with side shots of his head and horn.

Rhino Profile

Nikon D800, 300mm f/2.8, 1/1250 @ f/4, ISO 400

After our rhino sighting we went towards an area that had a confirmed sighting of one of the adult male lions who had taken down a nyala the evening before, and when we arrived we actually saw a leopard in the vicinity. The young-ish male leopard was curious yet calm, so we sat and watched him for the next couple of hours. He sat behind a log and didn’t give us a good angle for quite some time, but I enjoyed working with blurred grass in the foreground to try and create a dreamy look to the scene. Eventually he sat up and looked at a flying bird overhead, and that probably yielded the best view of him. At one point he looked into the bushes and noticed the male lion sitting there, which was only about 40 meters away. The leopard inched forward over the next 10 minutes to see what the lion would do, and you can suspect what happened next. The lion burst out of the bush and chased the young male leopard away. I couldn’t help but laugh at how young cats tend to take bigger risks than when they are older.

Male Leopard

Nikon D800, 300mm f/2.8, 1/2500 @ f/2.8, ISO 500

This afternoon we decided to drive back to the wild dog den, and when we arrived we had 4 adults lying in front of the entrance. The view wasn’t the greatest, so after a short while we moved out for somebody else to come and take a look. As we were leaving we drove a road towards the Sand River and intercepted the same dogs as they were heading out for their evening hunt. The light was superb, and watching the now 6 dogs trot towards the river was an invigorating exercise. The dogs made it to the water and crossed over as the sun was fading. What a huge honor to be in the presence of one of the most endangered predators in Africa. The last research I have read has indicated there are around 4,000 wild dogs left in the wild.

Wild Dogs (Lycaon Pictus) Heading Out For A Evening Hunt

Nikon D4, 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII, 1/1600 @ f/5, ISO 1600

African Wild Dog (Lycaon Pictus) In The Late Afternoon Light

Nikon D800, 300mm f/2.8 VRII, 1/1000 @ f/3.2, ISO 800

Camera bags on this safari are sponsored by Gura Gear, which I started in 2008. Check us out. We make the best camera bags on the planet.

Some of the gear on this safari has been provided by Borrowlenses.com. I rely on borrowlenses.com for both my own needs as well as my safari travelers’ needs. When we need big lenses, cameras or anything else photographic, we turn to borrowlenses.com to help out. They are the best resource in the industry for traveling photographers.

Extreme Predators of the Sabi Sands Safari - 2 Final Spaces Available

 I have two back-to-back safaris in the supremely amazing Sabi Sands of South Africa this June, and I only have a couple of spaces available as of this writing. If you have ever wanted to photograph in one of the highest densities of leopards and lions, this is the safari for you. We have three safari leaders on this trip, with Marc Muench, Andy Williams and myself. Each of us will be in a Land Rover, which means there will be plenty of field instruction as well as discussion back at camp. This safari is limited to only 9 people, and the last 2 spots on the trip are here if you are looking for a superb safari in a place that I know well.

The Sabi Sands is world famous for its leopards as well as for its lions, and June is a great time to visit when the weather is cool and the predators are more active during daylight hours. This safari also delivers on all of the other animals that make the area special, from rhinos to elephants, to giraffes to zebras to impalas. I always come home with winning images from the Sabi Sands!

Singita Sabi Sands Photographic Safari

June 10-19, 2012

Leopard and her dinner

 

Rhino in the Sabi Sands

 

 Interior of Singita Castleton

Outdoor dining on clear nights

Photo of the Day - Lion in the Sabi Sands

Lion Stare

Sabi Sands, South Africa

Nikon D3x, 70-200mm f/2.8 VR1, 1/200 @ f/4.5, ISO 800

This is one of the members of the famed Mapogo group of male lions. The Mapogo can adequately be described as one of the most badass group of male lions, and have enjoyed photographing them when I am in the Sabi Sands. With this image we sat next to him off to the side of our Land Rover, as he was relaxed but alert. You can tell he has been in many altercations, due to the amount of scars on his face. I used a 70-200mm lens on a D3x to capture this image, which indicates just how close we were to each other. His stare just went right through me, which is an envigorating feeling. Do a Google search on the Mapogo Lions or Mapogo Males if you get a chance. Some fascinating reading, to say the least.

I will be running two back-to-back safaris to Singita Sabi Sands in June, which is part of the historical territory of the Mapogo males. For more information on these South Africa Photo Safaris, here are two links:

Singita Sabi Sands Photo Safari, June 2-11, 2012 (only 2 spaces available)

Singita Sabi Sands Photo Safari, June 10-19, 2012 with Marc Muench and Andy Williams (only 4 spaces available)

Photo of the Day - Leopard and her kill, Mala Mala

 

The Tomboti Female leopard and her Meal

Mala Mala Game Reserve, South Africa. August 2010.

Nikon D700, 200-400mm f/4, 1/320 @ f/5.6, ISO 3200

I visited Mala Mala last year twice, and at the time I photographed this female leopard she had no name. She is now known as the Tomboti Female Leopard, and she was likely my best subject in all of last year. I photographed something like 22 different leopards in the Sabi Sands alone, and I often got extremely close to these gorgeous cats. The morning we saw her we were also photographing 2 other leopards, and we rotated between the different sightings over many hours. It was absolutely awesome to have to decide which awesome cat to take photos of, and I am glad and honored that the Tomboti Female gave us her all. She moved her impala kill towards the bottom of the tree, which meant she was very very very close to us. She was around 5 meters from my lens, and when I took shots she would temporarily look up and wonder what the sounds were. Gulp.

If you have never been to the Sabi Sands of South Africa, you are missing out on one of the most dense areas for leopards in all of Africa. I now have a recurring safari each year that I call the ‘Majestic Leopards’ safari, and time is split between 2 different camps in the Sabi Sands over an 8-day period. Accommodations are super nice, wildlife is super close and we have more than ample allowance for your photographic gear in the plane flights and in the vehicles. There are still some spaces available for the safari in July!

Majestic Leopards Safari, July 25 - August 3, 2011

Predator Safari Wrap-up and Truth in Numbers

I have been back from South Africa for a few weeks now, and I have had some time to reflect on my past safari. First off, the goal of the safari was to lead a small and intimate group of photographers (7 in total) to photograph the predators of the Sabi Sands, South Africa. The Sabi Sands is a very unique location for wildlife photography, as the density of leopards and lions are some of the highest in all of Africa. I think I have a very soft spot for leopards, for sure, and I can always use more photographs in my portfolio.

We spent 8 nights in the Sabi Sands, split between Exeter River Lodge and Mala Mala Main Camp (4 nights each). We had 16 separate leopard sightings in 8 days, which is a remarkable number. Of those 16 sightings, we saw 12 unique individuals, some nice interaction between some of them as well as a thrilling almost-kill of a warthog (see earlier Photo of the Day posting).

The weather was in transition from the spring into the summer temperatures, and we had some needed rain near the end of the safari. The western sector of the Sabi Sands has had ‘controlled burns’ already over the past few months, and Mala Mala always chooses to do their own controlled burns after the first 50mm of rain. This meant that as the rains started to happen on our 6th day, the wildlife moved in a way that made for challenging photography: where did they all go? Most of our sightings happened in the first 5 or 6 days, and the last few days were exercises in opportunistic photography. When I plan my safaris, I always choose to split my time between multiple locations, just in case of migratory or weather changes that can snub even the most opportunistic photographer. You just have to play the odds.

Ok, so here are some things that worked and what did not. I took 3 cameras: a Nikon D3, a Nikon D3x and a Sony NEX-5. The NEX-5 was only intended to be a grab shot camera, plus perhaps some video. After looking at my 5181 images in Lightroom (after culling some out of focus images), here is a breakdown of some interesting statistics:

• D3 = 2160 frames
• D3x = 3021 frames

I bought a D3x back in December of 2008, and sold it about 9 months later. I sold it because I thought I needed to rely heavily on ISO 1600 and above ISO speeds most of the time. This is sort of true, but I felt guilty for owning an $8,000 camera that I used 20 percent of the time. Well, after looking at my past safari images that were taken with the D3x at ISO 800, 1600 and perhaps up to 2500, I realized that I had a knee jerk reaction to sell the camera. At 20x30” print sizes, the 24mp resolution of the D3x balances out all of the excess noise. The Nikon D3 at ISO 2500 has less resolution and less noise, but more dynamic range than the D3x. In actual prints, I have to say that the D3x looks better to my eyes on these somewhat higher ISO speeds. So, a few days before I left for Africa I decided to stop using my D700 and D300 cameras and got back into the D3 and D3x bodies. I very very happy that I did this, because I missed the pro-level build quality of these cameras. And the D3x files are oh-so gorgeous, with the dynamic range and extra resolution at ISO speeds up to about 800, perhaps 1600. Yes, the D3x isn’t the best at ISO 800, but it is still preferable to my eyes when compared to the D3.

Here are some numbers as to what ISO speeds I shot at:

As you can see, my ISO speeds were all over the board. ISO 800 and 1600 are the most popular ones, for sure. A truism: I tend to have more light and lower ISO values on my east Africa safaris, as they are more wide open savannah environments, and my Botswana and South Africa safaris tend to have less light and higher ISO values, due to the more dense trees and bushes.

Ok, so now what did my typical shutter speeds look like?

This is actually not that interesting. I always try to get as much shutter speed as I can get, however I am always aware of depth of field considerations. The balance between ISO, shutter speed and depth of field is always something that requires a trade-off, as one can never have all three be perfect for all situations. I do recommend that all photographers understand what their absolute minimum shutter speed is for a given focal length, as this is essential information when pushing the boundaries of ISO, shutter speed and depth of field. In my own experience, I do feel comfortable going down to about 1/60 or 1/125 at 400mm when working in a vehicle that is very still.

Ok, so which lenses were the most popular?

For you smart people out there, the 5200 shots represents all 3 of the cameras, including the NEX-5. I chose to ignore it for this graphic, as I think some of the metadata is messed up with the lenses on the Sony. Another post on another day, perhaps. Well, the 200-400mm was used for more than 50% of my shots, and the 70-200mm was used quite a bit. I think it is time for me to upgrade to the new Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR II lens, as it is a huge improvement in quality over the one that I own. What is interesting is that I rarely use the 70-200mm when I am in Tanzania or Kenya, primarily because the wildlife is so much farther away.

What worked and what did not

I was hoping to do a little video with my new Sony NEX-5, and I did do some. What didn’t work was I just couldn’t find the time to do much of it, because we were so darned successful with our still photographs on game drives. I was hoping to video some traveler testimonials, as well as to do some informational shooting regarding how the vehicles look, how we shoot from them and what our accommodations look like. I have learned that shooting video and stills on the same trip just doesn’t work, and I have to give up game drives in order to do quality video production. It’s just that simple. My assistant, Troy, came on the prior safari to Botswana and South Africa, and he recognized the same thing. In the future I am just going to outsource this video work to Troy, so I can focus on leading the safaris, as well as taking some still photographs.

I loved the reduced equipment list on this trip, as I didn’t take an all-purpose zoom lens for general shots. So I left the 24-70mm behind, as well as my JVC GY-HM100U video camera. I did have a new Gura Gear prototype bag with me, and I was quite happy with how it performed. No, I cannot mention anything about the bag, but I will say that we are actively working on new products right now.

I am thinking of picking up a 3rd SLR for other grab shots, as well as for video. The D7000 is what I have my eyes on right now, or perhaps upgrading from the D3 to the D3s. I really wish that Nikon would put some more weight behind video, as I would like a camera that can do 60 frames per second for slow motion of wildlife. Just my $.02.

OK, I did have an issue with my D3. Here is the situation: We were tracking a leopard, and I forgot to change my manual settings when she decided to stop to take a drink. My settings were still set to expose as if she were sitting up in a tree (overexposed). So my only shot of her drinking was grossly overexposed, and when I took a look in Lightroom at the file, I noticed some serious banding. I pushed the boundaries some more by tweaking the Exposure (minus 4 stops) and Blacks (+100) , and as you can see I had some seriously bad banding, as well as color shifts. Anybody have an ideas as to if this is normal or not?

Where to go from here?

Well, since this safari was such a huge success, I have decided to make this safari a yearly thing. Greg du Toit will be running this same itinerary next year, and we are working on the details right now. We are looking at the first few weeks of August. My safari customers are always looking for unique photographic opportunities, and just the mentioning of leopards and lions on a specialized safari whets their appetite.

Photo of the Day

Metsi the Leopard

Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa. November 2010

Nikon D3, 70-200mm f/2.8 VR, 1/250 @ f/3.2, ISO 3200

Another Safari Begins

I arrived last night into Johannesburg, South Africa, and I am taking the day off for a day of rest today. Tomorrow I head to the Sabi Sands for another safari, my last of 2010, and we will be spending our time with leopards and lions as our primary subjects. We are, of course, opportunistic photographers, and will photograph whatever presents itself in front of our lenses. This safari is a unique one for me, in that this is the first time in quite a few years that I have lead a small group of photographers: 7. I will operate the safari out of only 2 Land Rovers, and every person on the trip will have his or her own row.

My gear for this safari is fairly spartan:

• Nikon D3
• Nikon D3x
• Nikon 200-400mm f/4 VR
• Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR
• Nikon 1.4x teleconverter
• Sony NEX-5 for grab shots and video
• Gura Gear Kiboko bag

After 8 nights in the Sabi Sands (Exeter River Lodge and Mala Mala Main Camp), I will be spending a few more nights at Tswalu in the Kalahari Desert (hello, can you say freaking HOT at this time of the year?). If you are familiar with Meerkat Manor on Animal Planet, you know the place. This is a scouting trip, and I am sure it is going to be a worthwhile extension.

I may have the time to post some of my daily photographs from bush, provided I have the time to do so. Stay tuned!

Day 16 –Mashatu Main Camp / Rattray’s on Mala Mala, South Africa

This morning’s game drive was a short one, because we needed to get back to camp, pack, eat breakfast, drive to the airstrip and head for Mala Mala. I primarily photographed adult baboons with their young, and I have to be honest that it was a challenging task. I wanted to take advantage of a unique lighting situation, where the baboons were in the bright daylight and just behind them there was complete shadow. This was a great lighting situation, as it made it easier to highlight what the actual subject of the scene was. It was a near miss for me, as I could never seem to get all of the 3 adults and 3 young to look towards the camera, or at least near the camera.

We made our 12pm plane flights to Mala Mala, via Polokwane for immigration, and the flights and immigration took about 2.5 hours. When we arrived at Mala Mala, my friend and ranger Matt Meyer was waiting for us on the airstrip. Mala Mala has a wonderful airstrip that is paved, so light jets to bush planes can all service the camps here.

We drove the short drive to Rattray’s on Mala Mala, our camp for the next 4 nights, and quickly checked in. We were assigned our rooms, dropped off our bags and met back in the common area. Food was ready for us, but we had to respectfully pass and get into the Land Rovers for some wildlife. Mala Mala is one of my favorite locations in all of Africa for predators, specifically leopards and lions. Mala Mala is a well-run game reserve, and offroading is a necessary part of the experience here. The rangers are extremely professional, and many of them are avid photographers themselves. We are working with Matt, Donald, Gordon and Dean for the next 4 days, and all of them are great guys and photographers.

Upon leaving camp, we heard of an adult female leopard near Mala Mala Main Camp, so we knew exactly where to go. We met up with her and only had 10 minutes of shooting before we snapped something underneath our vehicle. It was our tie rod, which wasn’t a big deal at all, but we were disabled nonetheless.   We had driven over a really nasty iron wood stump, and we had to have another vehicle brought out to us. John loaned us his Rover for the afternoon, and by the time we moved our belongings the leopard had pretty much moved on into the dense brush. It wasn’t a big deal, because I knew that we would have more opportunities over the next 4 days.

On our way back to camp, we stopped for sparring giraffes and a pair of white rhino. Not bad for a 2 hour game drive, eh? J

Dinner was in the outdoor boma, and the fire tonight was absolutely stellar. Tonights’ dinner was made up of kudu, roasted veggies, roasted tomato & basil soup with ice cream for desert. Not exactly diet material, but I think I can cope.

Note: All images in these daily blog postings are very very rough edits of the things we have seen, and I often omit the photographs that take too much time to process. I don’t take much time off during the day, as I am working with people with their photographic needs. All of my images in these posts will have to be re-processed when I get back home, and they are only included in these blog entries for illustration purposes.

Overlook with the Sand River

Our first leopard at Mala Mala

Sparring Giraffes

..and our first rhino