FEATURING: The complete guide for all your safari photography and binocular needs.

SAFARI PHOTOGRAPHY TABLE OF CONTENTS

WHICH IS RIGHT FOR YOU? TECH SAVVY

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TIPS & TRICKS BINOCULARS PAGE 8 PAGE 16 CHOOSING THE RIGHT CAMERA Camera Technology photographs you take great appeal for many. Modern equipment on safari. If you are Many people prefer helps, fast , Camera Technology going to try and sell the idea of capturing excellent has become so them to a magazine or movement and sound metering and most advanced in recent book publisher, then and with video importantly, not years that it is easier you need high-quality camcorders being so running out of film than ever for optics and good compact and easy to every 36 pictures. amateurs to take quality transparency use, this is an obvious professional-quality Video and (color slide) film or a choice. camcorders in photographs. Digital professional digital 35mm SLR (single lens The huge advantage of themselves are great camera. If you are digital cameras is the fun, and many a reflex) cameras are going to make an more often used than tiny size of the happy memory can be electronic album to picture-storing captured on the video film cameras. email to friends, then Camcorders with apparatus ? this that would simply be a reasonably priced eliminates the need impossible to depict freeze-frame options digital zoom will be are easy to use and for bags and bags of with a ?still? camera. ideal. Print film is film. In addition, Another great are also very popular preferable to slides, if with safariers. unwanted frames can advantage is that they you plan to make an be deleted right away, operate very well in You need to ask album, but the making room for all low-light conditions. yourself what you are old-fashioned home the other great shots going to do with the slide show still has you need to take.

3 " IT IS SLIGHTLY MORE IMPORTANT TO HAVE A QUALITY LENS THAN IT IS TO HAVE A QUALITY CAMERA

One danger of having are great for pictures print photography. recommendation is a video is that often of your tents, the The very latest digital that you spend your one is tempted to try vehicles, people on cameras from Canon money first on a good and film too much safari, etc., but and are able to lens and second on a and a huge proportion because of their produce the same camera. It is slightly of your safari is seen limited zoom and quality photographs more important to through the light-gathering as traditional slides or have a quality lens ! If you properties, generally print cameras. The than it is to have a bring a camcorder or their use in wildlife advantage with these quality camera. If you video recorder, be photography is very new digital cameras is just want memories of sure to bring at least limited, and the that they use the your safari, nowadays, three extra batteries results can be same lenses as the many of the new and a charging unit somewhat normal Canon SLR "all-in-one" (ie, no and converter (Africa disappointing. In cameras, but you have removable lens) uses 220-240 volts). addition to your the advantage of digital cameras take Batteries can usually 35mm equipment, instant feedback and excellent shots, as be recharged at your consider bringing you can correct your animals are often lodge or permanent along a compact mistakes on the spot within close enough camp while the camera and a small while shooting in the range of the vehicle generator is running camera that takes field. When you get for these cameras to or from your vehicle panoramic shots. home you already capture good images. while you are being Digit al Camera know you have driven around. Digital photography perfect photos. Compact cameras and cameras have in If you want to take with a small, built-in fact overtaken high quality zoom lens and traditional slide and photographs, a

4 Lenses for photographing expensive and, of you purchase. The Don't assume that scenery, or activities course, have less downside is that they you'll be using and people in safari flexibility, but they lose the same telephoto lenses camps and lodges. have the advantage of proportion of light as exclusively. Bring When it comes to better light-gathering well (i.e. a 1.7 whatever lenses you lenses and focal qualities than zoom converter will lose you like to use, from wide length, around lenses can provide. 1.7 "stops" of light). angle to medium 300mm to 400mm are Lenses with built-in digital image telephoto. Consider a ideal for good wildlife www.bhphotovideo.com minimum of two photography. This is stabilizers are highly lenses, one for especially true in the recommended. scenery and one for private concession If you are a serious more distant areas in Kenya and photographer, you subjects. A good, Tanzania where probably have several balanced system of off-roaddriving is lenses and may be two lenses would be an permitted. This means camera 35 mm auto-focus zoom lens that it is often possible bodies. Two camera (come in a variety of to make very close bodies are very helpful ranges), a 28-70mm approaches to some of - they can save and a 100-300 or the wildlife. The precious time in 100-400mm. Zoom 80-400mm f4.5-5.6 is a changing lenses. Also lenses are an great lens. However if consider purchasing a excellent choice to weight is an issue then tele-converter that will cover over a wide the 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 increase the power of range of local is also recommended. your lens by a multiple lengths, and these Fixed-length lenses of 1.4, 1.7, 2.0 etc. - are especially useful are generally more depending on what

5 SNAP THE PERFECT PIC

Photography SHOOT LIKE CRAZY Techniques ""

Here are a couple of digital photography tips: 1. Take a lot of extra batteries and a battery charger. Digital photography can drain batteries fast. 2. Take large CompactFlash (CF) memory cards for the camera so that you do not run out of storage space for your photographs (at least an 8GB card is recommended) 3. You may wish to carry an iPod, or even a laptop, onto which you may copy your files and these instruments also allow you to better preview and edit photographs or video clips on the spot, 4. Try to shoot your photos with the camera settings that offer the greatest quality (i.e. shoot in a large/fine quality format), and 5. Shoot like crazy in all sorts of different settings and then delete the photos you don?t like. 6. Pack the memory cards in your hand luggage. 7. Never leave your camera in the sun. 8. Use filters, the UV or clear filter as protection for your lenses. A scratch on the filter is relatively inexpensive compared to a scratch on your lens! 9. You'll encounter a lot of dust on safari. Carry a supply of plastic in which to keep your camera, lenses and film.

6 Photographic Guidance from Specialist Guide. Nic Polenakis I personally have a preference for Nikon gear and have done so for many years. I find them tough and reliable and can with stand the rigors of the African outdoors. In saying this I feel that Canon is also on a par so either would suffice. My camera of choice is the however although amazing can be an over kill. I used to own the Nikon D300s which is also an amazing camera and great value for money'. I use the Nikon 80-400mm f4.5-5.6 lens. This lens is extremely versatile though a little heavy. However if weight is an issue then the 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 is also great, although it does not give you as much reach as one would like'. I personally love to capture action shots and in the wild this can happen in a split second. It may be an idea to learn to shoot on continuous high mode at all times so that when the action unfolds you do not miss ''the shot''. The one thing that photographing animals in the wild does not afford one is time. Generally things happen fast and one has to work at the same speed to have any chance of capturing that special image. I want my photographs to show the animals in their environment, I want to know from the look of the habitat where the image was taken Whether you are using an SLR or a basic it would be a good idea to bring along either big zip lock bags or water proof bags so as to keep the dust off your camera and lens whilst on game drives. Your camera will still be easily accessible however it will be protected from the fine dust which at times can cause some difficulties for the cameras and lenses. (Nic Polenakis was selected by National Geographic Traveler as one of the ?10 Great Tour Guides? for 2011)

Pat ience is the key to good wildlife photography. Many of the animals in game parks and reserves are used to vehicles and people, allowing close approach at times. However, even the most tolerant usually react nervously at the first approach of a vehicle. By switching off the engine and sitting off a while, most animals relax and return to normal activity, allowing better photographic opportunities.

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From a compositional point of view, the most interesting photographs are very often those that depict the animal in its natural habitat and for this reason it is important to pay attention to some fundamentals of picture composition: - Avoid ?placing? the subject in the dead center of the picture frame (a common mistake) because this can result in a lifeless picture. A subject set on one side of the frame suggests movement ? the viewer?s eye automatically drifts from the point of interest to the space and back again. - Try to pick your best angle for lighting when you're approaching an animal, then stop at the most favorable spot. - Maneuver yourself or the vehicle that you are in, in such a way that the background does not clash with the subject. For instance, if there is a beautifully shaped acacia tree directly behind a group of zebra, move forward until the animals are to one side of the tree; this will also create a sense of distance. Checking your background is very important because a photo is often spoiled by a pole, a sign, animal or vehicle being where it should not be. - One of the most wonderful things about Africa is the huge skies ? often deep blue and cloudless or piled with dramatic cloud formations. By getting back from your subject or using a wide-angle lens, you can make these skies part of the picture in such a way that they add atmosphere without competing with the main subject. - Look for and photograph the small or less obvious things as well: butterflies, flowers, clouds or even tree bark textures. Incorporate them deliberately into your compositions. - Take note of your horizon at all times; a photo is often ruined by a sloping horizon. - In low light, your should be at least as high as your focal length (1/250 of a second at 250mm); if not, use your monopod or beanbag. - When you photograph a sunset, and to create a silhouette, meter off the sky or sun and focus on the subject you want silhouetted. - When photographing a living creature that is close, try to get the eye in focus ? the rest does not matter as much. - When taking a picture of scenery or a subject with interesting light - try to bracket (take a few pictures at different exposures), as this will help assure that one will be great.

8 The photography of African governments are highly sensitive traditionally dressed about certain structures being people is a sensitive issue photographed or filmed, so do not take and you should talk to your pictures of airports, bridges, military or guide about any intentions police installations and" personnel or you have. While it may be telecommunications installations. tempting to take candid, In terms of technique, you need to ?natural? photographs of develop as quick a response as possible. tribal people going about Much of the animal action you will want to their lives, this is regarded try and capture will happen suddenly, so as rude and unacceptable you need to be ready at all times. " by the majority of rural Familiarization with your equipment is communities. Many people critical to this end, so make sure you test expect to receive a small out a new camera or video well before you fee for having their get to Africa. photograph taken, but this often results in a frozen, ?staged? expression. A good approach is to settle on a reasonable fee for multiple photographs at a whole village, and then spend a fair amount of time waiting for relaxed expressions. Some people who have their picture taken may request a print be sent to them and this is a good way of developing and maintaining trust in the long term.

9 lights, camera, action

LIGHT AND seen species (your shooting at an angle of always ensure that EXPOSURE guide will tell which 90 degrees to the your guide or driver Light is what makes or these are in a azimuth of the sun; switches off when breaks a photograph particular place) only the effect is minimal you are taking and light is always when the light is at its when shooting toward pictures. This is also best when the sun is best, whereas you?ll or 180 degrees away true for video work lower in the sky. photograph the rare from the sun. Be sure where you want to Softer, warmer light species whenever the to remove polarizing capture the natural and less intense opportunity presents filters when shooting sounds of the bush, shadows exist itself. Photographs wildlife. The polarizer not a diesel engine! between 6:00 a.m. and taken in the middle of will have almost no Repeated starting of 9:00 a.m. and again the day are invariably effect on most engines and after 4:00 p.m. Early disappointing, but you subjects and more movement of morning and late never know what may importantly, such vehicles to jockey for afternoon provide the turn up unexpectedly. filters soak up almost better position best lighting for most A polarizer helps cut 1 1/2f ? stops of light. causes even the most subjects glare and is especially You may need extra tolerant animals to effective when you amount of light eventually leave. If, for example, you have a lot of sky and gathering, especially Many cameras have a want to try and water in the photo. when using fast built-in flash system, photograph all of the shutter speed to but you?ll need a mammal species you A polarizing filter is capture moving more powerful, see, then it is very useful for animals. A primary add-on unit for advisable to scenery, darkening cause of blurred serious nighttime photograph the and intensifying the photographs is photography of common/frequently color of the sky. The maximum effect is vibration from a nocturnal animals. achieved when running car motor, so

10 ISO SUGGESTIONS Digital photography has the advantage of being able to give you all sorts of light settings and a range of ISO settings, so you can even shoot indoors and in very low light situations. - You should try to shoot in the 100 to 200 ISO range. - ISO 200-ISO 400 is often needed in early mornings and late afternoons, especially when using telephoto or zoom lenses. - With very low light, use a flash or ISO 1000 or higher film. - ISO 1600 may be necessary when photographing gorillas in the dark forests. 1. Use lower rather than higher ISO settings whenever possible (ie, such that you are able to get sharp images based on the light and lens combination). 2. ISO 400 is actually quite close to 200 in quality; so don?t be afraid to use it. ISO 400 gives extra shutter speed (to get tack-sharp images). 3. Use ISO 800 and above only when you really need the increased shutter speed, but expect a slight loss of color saturation and increased noise in large color blocks, such as skies. A properly exposed ISO 800 image is far better than an underexposed image at ISO 400. Underexposure at this ISO level will definitely introduce substantial noise in the shadows that you would not find at lower ISO?s. If possible, opt for longer shutter speeds rather than increasing the ISO. 4. Expose to the right. Here?s the reason: Digital camera sensors capture light in a linear fashion. Our eyes do not. A scene with twice the number of photons reaching the camera's sensor appears twice as bright; with our human eyes, this scene appears brighter, but not nearly twice as bright. If it did, we?d experience overload when we move from shade to bright sunlight. Thus, our eyes see light in a non-linear way... and this is what a gamma curve is intended to do... model human vision. There are several digital SLR cameras (Canon EOS-1DS, EOS-1DS Mark III, Canon EOS 5D, Nikon D3 and , and others) which offer a ?full frame? digital sensor. These cameras have 24x36mm image sensors. Simply put, a 16-35 mm lens on a ?full-frame? digital SLR?s will provide the exact same field of view as it would on a ?traditional? SLR with film. Note that these are top-of-the-line cameras ? not inexpensive.

11 Cheetah - , Nikon 200-400mm. ISO 800. Waves across the Desert - , Nikon 1/ 2000sec. @f4 28-300mm. ISO 400. 1/ 500sec. @f4.8

On these two pages is a fine collection of photos taken by © Dana Allen

Each image has the camera, lens and metadata for each image; Shutter Speed (1/ 30th of second), ISO (exposure) and Aperture (f-stop). www.photosafari-africa.net founded in 1991 his company PhotoSafari has produced hundreds of thousands of images of Africa published worldwide. PhotoSafari is dedicated to producing the finest images of Africa available online to purchase.

Survival - , Nikon 200-400mm. ISO 800. Tree of Life - Nikon D3s. Nikon 14-24 f2.8. ISO 400 1/ 500sec. @f4 f4 @ 30 sec.

12 Chacma baboon in deep thought- Nikon D4s, Nikon 200-400mm. ISO 800. 1/ 2000sec. @f5.6

Number 30,001- Nikon D4s, Nikon 200-400mm. Jao floodplain - Nikon D4, Nikon 28-300mm. ISO ISO 800. 1/ 180sec. @f4 800. 1/ 1200sec. @f6.7

Stand tall - Nikon D4s, Nikon 20mm. ISO 800. Wildebeest One in a Million - Nikon D4s, Nikon 1/ 1250sec. @f11 200-400mm. ISO 800. 1/ 16000sec. @f4.8

13 SUNRISE AND SUNSET PHOTOS: Africa has the most spectacular sunrises and sunsets of nearly any place on earth. To capture the grandeur of these events, here are a few tips. 1. Use a telephoto or zoom your zoom lens to its longest focal length. This makes the sun larger in size for a more dramatic shot. 2. Take advantage of any landscape elements for dramatic silhouettes. A graceful acacia tree or any possible wildlife will enhance the composition of you picture. 3. Don't set your exposure for the sun itself. The resultant picture will probably be far too dark. Instead, aim the camera away from the sun, to the right or left and meter off the sky. Then lock the exposure setting and recompose the picture with the sun where you want it in the frame. 4. You may also want to bracket a few exposures; that is, make shots slightly underexposed and slightly overexposed.

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CAMERA SUPPORT: beanbag can be the best front of you. Monopods When using telephoto camera/lens support. It (one-legged support) are lenses, it's vital to have should be made of heavy useful, especially in open good support because enough cloth to withstand vehicles and on walking these long lenses magnify being tossed around, safaris. A nice ball mount every slight movement, stepped on, snagged on head attached to a good creating possible blurring of door edges and so on. Be monopod works best in an the image. sure that it's large enough; open vehicle placed on the useful dimensions: about floor. Try a monopod with The rule of thumb when 12 inches long, about 9 clamp which can be fixed hand-holding a camera is to inches wide and about 4 to onto the seat back or use a shutter speed that is 5 inches thick when filled. vehicle door. at least as fast as one over Simply pack an empty bag, A small tripod placed on the focal length of the lens. and upon arrival find beans, For example, if you are the roof can help steady rice or corn (sand in a your camera when filming trying to handhold a pinch) and fill into a zipper camera with a 200mm lens, on safari in a roof-hatch plastic bag and then into vehicle. you will need to have the the bean bag. shutter speed set for 1/200 In an open vehicle, a larger or faster in order to Unless you know your safari t ripod with moving ball maintain sharp focus. vehicles well it is best to head that can be set up choose support systems Typically, the use of some around your seat (2 legs on that are simple and offer floor and the 3rd leg into solid form of support options. (tripod, beanbag, etc) is the seat). This gives more essential to hold the Beanbags work in freedom than a fixed camera completely still open-roof vehicles / tripod. while you take your shot pop-top vehicles (the (especially with photographer is standing in larger/heavier lenses). this type) found in Kenya Space and weight and Tanzania to put over restrictions may limit you the window or on the roof. carrying a tripod. In open game drive vehicles a beanbag can be placed on In a safari vehicle a simple the seat back or bar rail in www.Reallyrightstuff.com 15 " POSSIBLY THE BEST ADVICE WE CAN GIVE IS TO HAVE FUN TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS! " Storing images to a Laptop Computer Consider storing your images to a laptop. The advantages are that you can edit your images on the laptop's screen and upload images onto the laptop's hard drive. The disadvantage is that a laptop adds significantly to the amount of gear you are bringing along. You will also need to purchase a CF Card Reader device to upload your images. The card reader is plugged into your laptop and the CF card is inserted into the card reader. This allows you to copy images from the CF card to your laptop's hard drive.

BINOCULARS Each person should bring their own binoculars in order to get the most out of every safari. Sharing binoculars, even with children, means that there will be times when a person/ child will not be able to see clearly. Binoculars are something that is often overlooked but we feel that every traveler should have a great pair when going on safari. Binoculars range in price from $180.00 to $1425.00, a small price to pay for seeing the Africa ?up close and personal?. Each binocular has two numbers; the first number is the magnification and the second number is the diameter of the objective lens in millimeters. For example; 10 x 40 = 10 x magnification with a 40mm objective lens. If you choose a higher magnification then you will sacrifice a little brightness in the image and the viewing area will slightly narrower. This is less discernible in the higher end binoculars. If you choose a larger objective lens you will notice a brighter and sometimes clearer image. Therefore, it becomes a personal and subjective decision on which is the correct combination for you. Some other important terms: Field of View: is the width of the area that you can see from left to right. Eye Relief: is the distance that your eye can be from the eyepiece while still allowing you to see the full field of view. (If you wear glasses, you want at least 15mm.)

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