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African safari talk...recommendations?

robert_in_ca
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p.3 #1 · p.3 #1 · African safari talk...recommendations?

evertdoorn wrote:
yeah, I've been to the Mara in november in '18 and normally you'd expect some rains already.

It was almost as dusty as India in april and that says a lot... extremely hot as well. Last november ('20); dry and hot, but there had been some rains in october already so a bit greener. Still; loads of dust too. Good thing: the R5 did just fine! That included changing lenses which, in my opinion, can be done fine on a mirrorless, in particular if the sensor's covered when camera is off.

I visited the Serengeti for 2 weeks this pass July, and although it didn't bother me the dust was overwhelming at times and everywhere--but my R5 and my X-Pro 3 performed perfectly. I am heading back in 6 weeks for round two for the birthing season in Ndutu.

Oh and the picture of my bag shows how much dust you can expect on any given day during the dry season.

Edited on Dec 29, 2021 at 10:43 PM · View previous versions

Dec 29, 2021 at 09:02 PM

artsupreme
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p.3 #2 · p.3 #2 · African safari talk...recommendations?

robert_in_ca wrote:
I visited the Serengeti for 2 weeks this pass July, and although it didn't bother me the dust was overwhelming at times and everywhere--but my R5 and my X-Pro 3 performed perfectly. I am heading back in 6 weeks for round two for the birthing season in Ndutu.

Oh and the picture of my bag shows how much dust you can expect on any given day during the dry season. .

Nice, do you have any photos you could share? I'm used to dust, I ride motocross and enduro in Baja and there's some moon dust down there like no other.

Dec 29, 2021 at 09:24 PM

robert_in_ca
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p.3 #3 · p.3 #3 · African safari talk...recommendations?

artsupreme wrote:
Nice, do you have any photos you could share? I'm used to dust, I ride motocross and enduro in Baja and there's some moon dust down there like no other.

Then you'll be fine. I am not sure when you're heading over but if it's between now and May - in Eastern Africa - you'll be hitting the green season which won't be dusty at all.

Here's some photos taken with my R5 (expect the elephant photo was taken with my X-Pro 3)-- in the caption I put the location the photo was taken.

Serangeti National Park, Tanzania - near the border of Kenya.

Tanzania - Kenya border

Tarangire National Park, Tanzania

Mara River, Tanzania

Along the Mara River

Tarangire National Park, Tanzania

Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

Edited on Dec 30, 2021 at 02:47 AM · View previous versions

Dec 29, 2021 at 10:38 PM

artsupreme
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p.3 #4 · p.3 #4 · African safari talk...recommendations?

robert_in_ca wrote:
Then you'll be fine. I am not sure when you're heading over but if it's between now and May - in Eastern Africa - you'll be hitting the green season which won't be dusty at all.

Here's some photos taken with my R5 (expect the elephant photo was taken with my X-Pro 3)-- in the caption I put the location the photo was taken.

Awesome. Thanks so much this really helps…I could see where a 600 could come in handy but it sounds like it’s too heavy to fly with? How about the Rf 600 or 600III?

Dec 30, 2021 at 12:35 AM

Imagemaster
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p.3 #5 · p.3 #5 · African safari talk...recommendations?

artsupreme wrote:
I'm cross posting this to the Canon and Sony forum and will also post this in the Nikon forum.

You missed the forum specifically made for this subject:

https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/board/51

Dec 30, 2021 at 12:43 AM

MattAxel
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p.3 #6 · p.3 #6 · African safari talk...recommendations?

So I live in South Africa, and go on a safari trip about 4 or 5 times a year.
My main piece of advice would be to book somewhere they are allowed to drive off road. So stay away from the commercial and busy National Parks. Being able to drive off road is crucial so that your guide can get you into the best photographic positions.
A private guide or a specific photo tour is a must, but my preference is a private guide.

Now where to go.
For privacy and a real wild experience my favourite is the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Checkout Wilderness Safari's camp's in the Okavango. My favourite camp is probably Vumbura Plains, but all of them are exceptional. You can request a private guide and they drive off road. For me the Okavango is the best wild experience as you can drive around without seeing another vehicle the whole day.
If you like the browner colors then Namibia should be on your to-do-list. This is one of the best countries for photography in the world in my opinion. The wildlife isn't as prolific as some of the other countries, but the sceneries and the colors are amazing. There are some nice lodges in Etosha, and Wilderness Safaris also has some good camps in Namibia.
South Africa also has some great options, and has probably the best infrastructure. In South Africa you want to do one of the private reserves that are part of the Greater Kruger National Park. Ones where you can drive off road include Sabi Sands, Thornybush, Kapama and the Timbavati. All of them have great lodges, but Sabi Sands allows too many vehicles per sighting in my opinion. Timbavati is great, and I would check out a lodge called Tanda Tula. Their one guide is one of the top wildlife photographers in SA (Chad Cocking) and if you request him as your guide you'll have a great photographic experience. I was there earlier this month and had him as a guide and it was a brilliant trip.

The gear you're planning on taking sounds perfect. You definitely want fast lenses, as most of the best sightings when predators active are in the early mornings or evenings when light isn't great. For wildlife you'll mostly be in the 200-500mm type range. The guides get you pretty close to the animals.
All the lodges should have electricity and WiFi.

Hope this helps, and I'm sure you'll have an amazing time wherever you go.

Edited on Dec 30, 2021 at 03:07 AM · View previous versions

Dec 30, 2021 at 01:59 AM

robert_in_ca
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p.3 #7 · p.3 #7 · African safari talk...recommendations?

I agree that being able to drive off road is great - hence why Ndutu and other spots (excluding the crater) in Ngorongoro Conservation Area are idea.

Also on my past trip it was just me and my driver so we could go where and when we wanted to--which is what I am doing again on my upcoming trip. In my opinion, having a private driver is essential. I would say that right now is the perfect time to hit the national parks in Eastern-Africa as they are not crowded at all due to lack of tourism form the pandemic. In fact there was many, many times that it was me and my driver sitting and watching numerous big cats in Seronera and other game without anyone around us for hours at a time--let alone along the Mara River during a couple of crossing there was less than 5 Land Cruisers for a better part of 20 kilometers.

The Delta is truly something special. Loved spending time there when I was living in Botswana but I will say that for me I personally love the Serengeti more.

MattAxel wrote:
So I live in South Africa, and go on a safari trip about 4 or 5 times a year.
My main piece of advice would be to book somewhere they are allowed to drive off road. So stay away from the commercial and busy National Parks. Being able to drive off road is crucial so that your guide can get you into the best photographic positions.
A private guide or a specific photo tour is a must, but my preference is a private guide.

Now where to go.
For privacy and a real wild experience my favourite is the Okavango Delta in...Show more →

Dec 30, 2021 at 02:58 AM

evertdoorn
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p.3 #8 · p.3 #8 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Off road is certainly great but definitely not always necessary to get good shots, in particular if you have a long lens anyway. Amboseli’s quite busy and strict no off road policy, yet some of the best shots I got last trip was from that place. And a bit of distance sometimes helps with the shot too, too close could get you weird angles looking down if you can’t get on the floor of your vehicle anyway.

Not saying off roading doesn’t make a difference; just saying that neglecting places where you can’t go off road might also makes you miss out on places which could turn out to be wonderful photographic opportunities

Dec 30, 2021 at 04:15 AM

MattAxel
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p.3 #9 · p.3 #9 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Being able to go off road isn't only about about getting closer to the animals. It also helps getting the best compositions and light etc.

Some of my best shots have come from National Parks where you can't go off road, but it can also get frustrating when you can't get into the best position possible, and you're sitting there hoping the animal moves into a better position.

Dec 30, 2021 at 05:00 AM

evertdoorn
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p.3 #10 · p.3 #10 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Of course.

I'm just saying: it would a shame if you skip potentially great places, only because you can't go off road. Even if it means sometimes you *really* wish you could go off road at a specific sight; I've been in that situation too.
But take the Amboseli example: you can go in the national park, but also one of the conservancies where you can go off road. That's great, but what you don't have there is the famous marsh area which really is something special and that only can be seen in the NP.

Dec 30, 2021 at 06:48 AM

Uarctos
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p.3 #11 · p.3 #11 · African safari talk...recommendations?

One always must be inside of the vehicle, or there are places where you are allowed on foot? Of course, paying attention to the environment.

Dec 30, 2021 at 07:56 AM

butlerkid
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p.3 #12 · p.3 #12 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Two more great tour leaders:

Adam Jones, Canon pro and Steve Perry, all-round camera expert and wildlife photographer. I have been on tours with both of them, individually of course. They only lead "photography" tours and ensure that each person can shoot from either side of the vehicle, etc. Lodgings are selected based on proximity to wildlife, not just the "view" or accommodations......

Check out my website - by location - for photos of environment and wildlife. If you click on the "i" (information) icon, you can see what gear I used and the time of year the image was taken.

Pleasant Photos - Africa

Dec 30, 2021 at 08:36 AM

1bwana1
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p.3 #13 · p.3 #13 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Uarctos wrote:
One always must be inside of the vehicle, or there are places where you are allowed on foot? Of course, paying attention to the environment.

There are places where you can go on foot even in the National parks. I have done many walks and picnics that way even with my kids. Best with a guide unless you know Africa well

Dec 30, 2021 at 08:39 AM

Garbage palekid
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p.3 #14 · p.3 #14 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Uarctos wrote:
One always must be inside of the vehicle, or there are places where you are allowed on foot? Of course, paying attention to the environment.
I’ve done a few guided and unguided walking safaris but the overwhelming majority of places are going to want you to strictly stay in the car outside of camps or rest areas.

Dec 30, 2021 at 08:39 AM

evertdoorn
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p.3 #15 · p.3 #15 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Many places offer walking safari's; for example Mana Pools is supposed to be very good for that. An armed ranger/guide might join you. I think Zimanga also allows you to go out of the vehicle, allowing low angle shots of wild dogs and cheetah

Dec 30, 2021 at 09:21 AM

MattAxel
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p.3 #16 · p.3 #16 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Most places offer walking safaris, but you don't usually see predators on them, and the various antelope are quite skittish to people on foot.

As mentioned above, Zimanga is a great option. It's a reserve in South Africa that specifically caters to wildlife photographers, and they do allow you out the vehicles with less dangerous predators such as Wild Dogs and Cheetah. They also have great underground hides to get eye-level shots at waterholes and their vehicles are rigged for photographers.

Dec 30, 2021 at 09:48 AM

evertdoorn
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p.3 #17 · p.3 #17 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Zimanga's on the list here to vist somewhere in the next few years, probably in combination with a few days of private Kruger reserves. Thanks Matt for those tips you mentioned, will bookmark them

Dec 30, 2021 at 09:54 AM

robert_in_ca
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p.3 #18 · p.3 #18 · African safari talk...recommendations?

The longest focal length I have is the RF 100-500mm. Based on that focal length I would also recommend having a 1.4x TC to use with it.

Now if I wanted to use a telephoto lens like the RF 600mm I would see if I could rent it locally, but odds are that unless you’re in South Africa it wouldn’t be available.

artsupreme wrote:
Awesome. Thanks so much this really helps…I could see where a 600 could come in handy but it sounds like it’s too heavy to fly with? How about the Rf 600 or 600III?

Dec 30, 2021 at 01:52 PM

Vivek
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p.3 #19 · p.3 #19 · African safari talk...recommendations?

dentedcamera wrote:
Always happy to share a few images from Africa! Your first safari is a special experience, and my guess is it will impact you more than you anticipated.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49011248196_1c4caaa428_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49011248446_51dc7bddee_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49010714213_20a3af90f5_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50840329127_31bc53a781_c.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49010713703_8c3a1f5b84_c.jpg

Dec 31, 2021 at 10:56 AM

seaninsa
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p.3 #20 · p.3 #20 · African safari talk...recommendations?

Bobg657 wrote:
Another thought would be to look at Federico Veronisi, he is an award winning photog who leads photo tours.

I meet up with him a few times out on the Mara. He will use the camp that I stay Sentinel Mara. He lives in Nairobi. Lately he has been spending a lot of time at Amboseli photographing the elephants there. The tuskers at this park are known for their tusks.

Jan 02, 2022 at 01:59 PM

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