tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74193320182582817282024-03-13T09:31:38.443+02:00SAFFAscapesVividly capturing the wildlife, landscapes and birds of Southern Africa through photographyMorkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.comBlogger268125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-85592882076040655392018-09-14T01:03:00.000+02:002018-09-14T01:03:04.000+02:00A mother's devotion<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here we go: my first photographic story after my return to blogging!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In January of 2018, we headed to one of our favourite safari destinations: The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. This is where a great deal of our time in the bush is spent, and we have been making a tradition of returning every summer for the past few years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This specific sighting unfolded in the perennial Auob riverbed, not too far south of the Mata-Mata campsite. After spending the better part of the morning with a large pride of lions who had occupied the Craig Lockhart waterhole, we came across this sight:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A springbok ewe had given birth, one of the first fawns dropping in this year's summer! Still frail and weak, the fawn was not able to get up yet. The mother was grazing close by, and eventually moved in closer to give some encouragement to get up. My little daughter of nearly 7 years old, who was in the vehicle with us, was very excited by seeing this for the very first time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The little fawn did not even seem to want to try to get up. There were a couple of black-backed jackals milling about, and they are very opportunistic, eager to grab any easy meal. The next few minutes would determine whether this little springbok had a chance to live.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mom would meander away and graze to divert attention away from the fawn when she saw the jackals watching from a distance. Every so often she would return to try and nudge it into action.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It did not take long for the jackals to notice that the little fawn was not making much effort to get up and start walking...and so the game of cat and mouse began...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first jackal approached from behind the mother, and she turned to face him!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She was not going to let these scoundrels take her baby without a valiant fight...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The jackals were very sneaky, though, and it was apparent that they had a strategy to "outfox" (excuse the pun) the mother of the little one. While she was fending off once jackal, another would come from behind and grab the fawn.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">But mom was doing her best to fight for her little fawn. She charged in again, and forced this jackal to also drop his bounty and scoot away...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">The drama kept unfolding. With mom's attention now on the newest attacker, another subversive scavenger could sneak in from a different angle and try its luck...</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2Qyrr-CNoGQ/W5ro0giaSjI/AAAAAAACjD0/6369oGqi6Mg0FEz6F5njrEMVWlhK4r4gwCLcBGAs/s1600/springbok_birth_7_KTP_2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="565" data-original-width="1000" height="360" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2Qyrr-CNoGQ/W5ro0giaSjI/AAAAAAACjD0/6369oGqi6Mg0FEz6F5njrEMVWlhK4r4gwCLcBGAs/s640/springbok_birth_7_KTP_2018.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Mom noticed, and gave a valiant chase...but alas, this was the end of the line. Just as she was catching up on the newest thief, the jackal dove into a thorny shrub to start consuming his prize. We surmised the fawn had succumbed at the bite of the first jackal already.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Needless to say the vehicle was silent for a while, and then my daughter burst into tears. She is not a fan of black-backed jackals to this day!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me know what you think. Not the nicest story, but part of the drama of being on safari for sure.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com5Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, R360, Upington, 8800, South Africa-26.4724121 20.611703600000055-54.6444811 -20.696890399999944 1.6996569000000008 61.920297600000055tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-3237092859861751502018-09-09T23:54:00.004+02:002018-09-09T23:57:40.593+02:00I am back on my blog<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, hello friends.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's been a while.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And by that, I mean it's been almost 18 months since my last post on here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am sorry, I truly am.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Due to personal changes in my life I had just been unable to process any photos, write any blogs or engage meaningfully with my photography for the past 2 years. The main reason has been me studying towards an MBA and focusing on my career (which is not full-time photography, surprisingly). The level of effort required to do well in an MBA while carrying on your normal work and raising a family, combined with the amount of screen-time I was having, resulted in me using the free/spare time I did have for relaxation, family-time or sleeping!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am on the back-end now. A few more months and this season will be behind me. How do they say? The only constant in life, is change.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My photography has not totally stagnated, though. I have been able to sneak away to a couple of short trips to the Kruger National Park and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, as I am accustomed to doing for my normal family vacation safaris. I had to put on hold any hospitality services and photographic guiding, and hope to be able to rekindle that in the near future.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For now - rest assured that I will be rekindling my love of telling wildlife stories, sharing photographic knowledge and engaging in meaningful conservation conversations both here on my blog and on my various social media channels. You would have noticed a spike in my activity on Instagram and Facebook over the last week or two as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here's to more photography, and getting back to doing the things we love!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b style="font-family: Times;"><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">- Morkel -</span></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-56018866302335041882017-03-07T18:27:00.003+02:002017-03-07T18:27:32.473+02:00Wildlife Storytelling 1 - The Essence of the Beast<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We are, by nature, story-tellers. I don't care what your chosen medium of expression is - a good chunk of people alive today want to tell their story in their own way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is also true of wildlife photographers...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But what makes for better wildlife story-telling?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I often conduct workshops to inspire other wildlife photographers to tell better wildlife stories.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is the first of a series of posts here on my blog where I will delve into some of the principles I discuss during these presentations. My hope is that it will inspire you to look at your own photographic voice and style, and try to steer away from just taking the same photos you've always taken, and the same photos that everyone else is taking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let's get started...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i>1. The Essence of the Beast</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We've all got our photographic muse when it comes to wildlife photography. Not everyone is lucky enough to live on the continent of Africa, but some who don't live here are able to travel here on safari frequently. Nevertheless, for some it will be the polar bear, for others the tiger, for some it might even be the carmine bee-eater or the orca. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It doesn't really matter...what matters is - are you able to convey something about that favourite species of yours through your photography? Are you able to show people not just what they would physically see in the frame of your photo, but also show them <i>what else</i> there might be?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I like to be able to show my viewers something about these fascinating subjects I get to photograph. Something deeper than the merely obvious. I like to show them something about the essence of the subject. The essence of the beast, as it were...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Case in point:</span> <b><span style="font-size: large;">the leopard</span></b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Who doesn't love leopards?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While they are certainly my favourite big cat to be able to photograph, they are definitely not the one I most often see. Why? Because of their nature. Because of what leopards are.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Elusive.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Secretive.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Mysterious.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Powerful.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Seductive.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Stealth.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Silence.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Vigilance.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You get the point?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But do most photos of leopards in the wild show this?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sure, it's great getting a chance to photograph a leopard in sweet light, lying prone on an open tree branch or termite mound, fully cooperating with the photographer. You can get plenty of those shots if you go to the right reserve/national park at the right time, and you have some luck on your side.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yet, after seeing hundreds (if not thousands) of those photos in the photographic communities/forums that I am involved in - it has become rather "meh" to me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What I am now looking for constantly is that image that shows off the qualities of this predator that I have listed. Or any other quality that's not obvious when doing a simple Google search for leopard photos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In order to get those shots, you might need to forego your desire to have that golden light, with the cat on an unobstructed perch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Consider this image. Does it not say infinitely more about the enigmatic leopard than the one I posted higher up in the post?</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p6NDi7AOtAo/WL59cxvfynI/AAAAAAACDwk/Nm-CMk6X2Dsf2jweKrrstzJUwLLvrfkoQCLcB/s1600/leopard_hidden_1_SSGR_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="460" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p6NDi7AOtAo/WL59cxvfynI/AAAAAAACDwk/Nm-CMk6X2Dsf2jweKrrstzJUwLLvrfkoQCLcB/s640/leopard_hidden_1_SSGR_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f4.0 | 1/250 SS | ISO-4000</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I will now "<i>drop the mic</i>", and leave you be until the next post...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-85669328338060188812017-02-22T05:00:00.000+02:002017-02-28T23:51:39.176+02:00South Africa: Rich in National Parks<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">During my (relatively short, I might add) lifetime I have had the privilege of visiting the majority of South Africa’s national parks and game reserves. What a wealth of natural heritage we possess! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When people from abroad look at some of the work in my photographic portfolio, they are amazed at the diversity of wildlife and landscapes that we have '<i>on our doorstep</i>', so to speak. <b>We need to appreciate it, conserve it and foster a love for this natural heritage among all South Africans from all walks of life.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If we don’t, we might just lose it before our children have the chance to see what we see now. Many iconic species of fauna are already at risk (think rhinos and wild dogs), and the constant threat of mining and industrial development in areas of pristine natural beauty is something that won’t go away soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here are some scenes from a couple of well-known and lesser-known parks and reserves that are both accessible for people who self-drive and self-cater, and reasonably affordable.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/" target="_blank">Kruger National Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A herd of buffalo on the Mphongolo River near Punda Maria in the Kruger National Park.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Everybody’s favourite reserve, this park spans a massive 2-million hectares (approximately) and contains beautiful scenery and fauna. The southern region is very popular and therefore can get very crowded. I prefer to visit the quieter and more scenic northern regions - and if you </span><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/search?q=kruger" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">search my blog</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> you will find numerous posts about my forays in to this iconic national park.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BPnKxjcYvWs/WKTL85AXZZI/AAAAAAACDMc/kG0og35qIwI7D6DvHleDllRxWr2N26G9gCLcB/s1600/spotted_hyena_rain_1_BW_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="414" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BPnKxjcYvWs/WKTL85AXZZI/AAAAAAACDMc/kG0og35qIwI7D6DvHleDllRxWr2N26G9gCLcB/s640/spotted_hyena_rain_1_BW_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A young spotted hyena in the rain in the Kruger National Park.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/kgalagadi/" target="_blank">Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you are a keen wildlife photographer there is no better place, in my opinion, than the Kgalagadi. Remote, arid and teeming with life, this is a place where silence and serenity seep into your soul. This park is situated in the Kalahari desert, with wide open spaces and red soil. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My <a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/search?q=kgalagadi" target="_blank">blog archives</a> have extensive posts and images from this place, as it's a favourite of mine.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--PCXDSp4qT8/WKTJnDTtuHI/AAAAAAACDMM/o41ua1BQxuwVhSr-j7-69Mkntsn5kaf3gCLcB/s1600/lion_male_KijKij_1_KTP_2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="436" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--PCXDSp4qT8/WKTJnDTtuHI/AAAAAAACDMM/o41ua1BQxuwVhSr-j7-69Mkntsn5kaf3gCLcB/s640/lion_male_KijKij_1_KTP_2012.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A black-maned Kalahari lion strides across the vast expanse of the Kgalagadi.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A cheetah family playing on the red dunes of the Kgalagadi</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/golden_gate/" target="_blank">Golden Gate Highlands National Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Typ5vp21Rw/WKTMwVQLR4I/AAAAAAACDMo/y_64w1bRluMf-1g9kR0fE2V5QzANPnFVgCLcB/s1600/golden_gate_viewpoint_1_2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Typ5vp21Rw/WKTMwVQLR4I/AAAAAAACDMo/y_64w1bRluMf-1g9kR0fE2V5QzANPnFVgCLcB/s640/golden_gate_viewpoint_1_2011.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A grand view over the sandstone formations of the Maluti mountains in the Golden Gate Highlands.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The jewel of the Eastern Free State, this park encompasses iconic sandstone formations, the Maluti Mountains, and a wide array of life forms like zebras, black wildebeest, many birds and small mammals, reptiles and insects.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-skowxN9biAA/WKTNITq_AlI/AAAAAAACDMw/eOsgy7qbfNIzDZOIOpZwpO6OsiI-5NimQCLcB/s1600/secretary_bird_flight_1_GGHNP_2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="442" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-skowxN9biAA/WKTNITq_AlI/AAAAAAACDMw/eOsgy7qbfNIzDZOIOpZwpO6OsiI-5NimQCLcB/s640/secretary_bird_flight_1_GGHNP_2011.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ungainly secretary bird - this one took off on the slopes of the Maluti mountains in the Golden Gate Highlands.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/mountain_zebra/" target="_blank">Mountain Zebra National Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f8_8GNseGug/WKTNaDgq50I/AAAAAAACDM4/daIV5Ad4ER8peDw8PKf2wi6I5XEMV3CzwCLcB/s1600/mountain_zebras_1_MZNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="440" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f8_8GNseGug/WKTNaDgq50I/AAAAAAACDM4/daIV5Ad4ER8peDw8PKf2wi6I5XEMV3CzwCLcB/s640/mountain_zebras_1_MZNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cape mountain zebras - endangered but recovering well thanks to the MZNP.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This relatively unknown gem is a wonderful place to experience the Karoo as it once was - recent re-introduction of cheetahs and lions has made for an even bigger drawing card. It's got amazing backdrops and vistas, and the sense of space and solitude that is so typical of the Karoo.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two blesbuck males duel at dawn on the escarpment of the MZNP.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/addo/" target="_blank">Addo Elephant National Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two young elephant bulls test their strength at a waterhole in Addo.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sporting the Big 5 (Big 7 if you count the great white shark and the Southern right wale in the ocean section), in a malaria free zone and close to the Port Elizabeth airport, this is a popular destination for people visiting the Cape area and wanting to add a wildlife experience.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><i><a href="http://www.pilanesbergnationalpark.org/" target="_blank">Pilanesberg National Park</a></i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A pied kingfisher landing on a branch next to the Mankwe dam in Pilanesberg.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Though this park doesn’t fall under the mantle of the South African National Parks, it’s sometimes called a national park and is a very popular destination for nature lovers close to Gauteng. Besides hosting the Big 5, the Mankwe Dam, with its large bird hide, is popular among birders and bird photographers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope that this quick overview has inspired you to visit more of the well-known and lesser-known wilderness areas left in our country. Get out, explore, photograph, conserve, and communicate!</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-71276032215832486582017-02-15T23:11:00.001+02:002017-02-15T23:11:46.319+02:00An ode to the Impala<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Impala</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stately and graceful…and <b><i>plentiful</i></b>…this third quality I listed probably contributes to its undervaluation as a wildlife sighting or photographic opportunity. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In areas like the Greater Kruger Park I will give you a surety of 100 to 1 in odds that your first sighting upon entering the park will be impala. They just seem to be there in limitless numbers. Yet these populous antelopes can also provide some interesting moments, if one dares to sit with them a while and observe instead of the customary drive-by. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I get that many overseas visitors to Africa want to move on to “<i>bigger things</i>” given their often limited time in the reserves…but those that have a passion for watching natural history unfold will do well to spend some time with them next time you are in the field.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some images I have captured of these antelopes over the years...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dJSqzo0TK7I/WKS-049f4VI/AAAAAAACDK8/71UQMUS8FvEyldL4bjOHTsN0_fS4ZmifgCLcB/s1600/impala_3_KNP_2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dJSqzo0TK7I/WKS-049f4VI/AAAAAAACDK8/71UQMUS8FvEyldL4bjOHTsN0_fS4ZmifgCLcB/s1600/impala_3_KNP_2011.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The last rays of daylight kiss and envelope this stately buck’s profile. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QRfYx5DD_Lc/WKS-gvNSwdI/AAAAAAACDK4/gr6Bk1f8B38QsE0MCacfVwkiq_tGGB4NgCLcB/s1600/impala_rams_1_2010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="407" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QRfYx5DD_Lc/WKS-gvNSwdI/AAAAAAACDK4/gr6Bk1f8B38QsE0MCacfVwkiq_tGGB4NgCLcB/s640/impala_rams_1_2010.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These two young males show separate stages of horn development. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7y3_EJS-Lk0/WKS_E2BmU0I/AAAAAAACDLA/YdaWr8nxh68leu2nfiaXLhdVLHA48LHAgCLcB/s1600/impala_nursing_1_KNP_2009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="492" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7y3_EJS-Lk0/WKS_E2BmU0I/AAAAAAACDLA/YdaWr8nxh68leu2nfiaXLhdVLHA48LHAgCLcB/s640/impala_nursing_1_KNP_2009.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A young fawn receives much-needed nourishment from its vigilant mother.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-StAF8lOqeMg/WKTAAsaakZI/AAAAAAACDLM/Ty_JnZATMGsHGLrMZkM5ObkhnN15HrWMACLcB/s1600/impala_clash_5_KNP_2009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="384" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-StAF8lOqeMg/WKTAAsaakZI/AAAAAAACDLM/Ty_JnZATMGsHGLrMZkM5ObkhnN15HrWMACLcB/s640/impala_clash_5_KNP_2009.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those who have seen impalas in rut will know that the males can really have at it. The intensity is visible in the eyes here!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P_0ABJHEvzY/WKTAkazzW7I/AAAAAAACDLU/dAi-k-JQZCQuaaFFLtoInEKmUea9tN3YQCLcB/s1600/impala_pose_1_Mara_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="436" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P_0ABJHEvzY/WKTAkazzW7I/AAAAAAACDLU/dAi-k-JQZCQuaaFFLtoInEKmUea9tN3YQCLcB/s640/impala_pose_1_Mara_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An impressive ram in the Mara Triangle (Kenya) against an oncoming storm.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FVAn-3E9jQ0/WKTC5VT35UI/AAAAAAACDLk/USZ2p4gTLp4x1YrWrFBkVgSZXju1PtDMQCLcB/s1600/impala_forest_1_ManaPools_2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="368" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FVAn-3E9jQ0/WKTC5VT35UI/AAAAAAACDLk/USZ2p4gTLp4x1YrWrFBkVgSZXju1PtDMQCLcB/s640/impala_forest_1_ManaPools_2013.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dwarfed by the immense woodlands of Mana Pools, Zimbabwe.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zwAJuTjjQ2Q/WKTDn3xIYGI/AAAAAAACDLo/_Emm0uTdKOQ9pCtxvsvZWwPSoB3849FCACLcB/s1600/impala_abstract_1_KNP_2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zwAJuTjjQ2Q/WKTDn3xIYGI/AAAAAAACDLo/_Emm0uTdKOQ9pCtxvsvZWwPSoB3849FCACLcB/s1600/impala_abstract_1_KNP_2011.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up study of this graceful antelope in the best kind of light. </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So that is my humble tribute to the Impala in the form of a photo essay.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which image did you like the most?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Drop me a comment below.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God bless you</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-76962781210183783662017-01-09T14:00:00.000+02:002017-01-09T18:40:32.072+02:00The Animalscape<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is a kind of wildlife image that has always spoken to me deeply.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you have been following my photography for more than a month you would have noticed that I often share these kinds of images.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I like to call it "<b>The Animalscape</b>".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The animal in the landscape.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The landscape with the animal(s) in it.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YNKuomYffls/WGa5qfZ8UtI/AAAAAAAB-v4/M74kzwzp9rYrElYNkIQVo94ZQFjLLj_mACLcB/s1600/giraffe_sunrise_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="402" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YNKuomYffls/WGa5qfZ8UtI/AAAAAAAB-v4/M74kzwzp9rYrElYNkIQVo94ZQFjLLj_mACLcB/s640/giraffe_sunrise_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"Giraffe Sunrise" - Etosha, Namibia</b><br />
<b>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm | f5.6 | 1/320 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I guess I like it so much on the one hand because it brings together my two preferred photographic genres: wildlife photography and landscape photography.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the other hand, and I think this is the main reason I like it: I think this kind of image paints a better context and story about the wilderness areas of Africa that are so quickly dwindling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We cannot preserve the wildlife if we don't preserve the habitat.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And yet it is futile to preserve the habitat while killing off the wildlife.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The two are interconnected, intertwined, inseparable...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kfWzBqTDOBk/WGa55MEmURI/AAAAAAAB-wA/_tmAN0NUNw41k7IQ44lfAGA8fM5aXCbDACLcB/s1600/elephant_treeshake_1_Mara_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="442" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kfWzBqTDOBk/WGa55MEmURI/AAAAAAAB-wA/_tmAN0NUNw41k7IQ44lfAGA8fM5aXCbDACLcB/s640/elephant_treeshake_1_Mara_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"Shake it!" - Mara Triangle, Kenya</b><br />
<b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm | f5.6 | 1/1600 SS | ISO-1000</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This kind of image is all about telling the bigger story of the the species you are photographing. Where do they roam? Where do they eke out their survival? What other species live around them? What's the weather like?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The biggest mistake you can make is to think the only way you can create an <i>animalscape</i> is to use a wide angle lens. Sure, wider angles work well to show as much of the environment as possible, but you either need a very big subject (think elephant or giraffe) or you need to be super close to the subject. I often use the <b><a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/camera-lenses/af-s-nikkor-24-70mm-f%252f2.8e-ed-vr.html" target="_blank">Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8</a></b> lens for these shots. You can't go too wide in most cases for fear of losing the subject in the frame.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>An example of a wide angle animalscape:</i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jDr7l5bL_Cg/WGfzjo-SfBI/AAAAAAAB_Uc/KVBaalfbECkMiEpc1ML8kj_NvfI7AFfMQCLcB/s1600/elephant_scape_1_Chobe_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="462" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jDr7l5bL_Cg/WGfzjo-SfBI/AAAAAAAB_Uc/KVBaalfbECkMiEpc1ML8kj_NvfI7AFfMQCLcB/s640/elephant_scape_1_Chobe_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"Cotton Candy Clouds" - Chobe National Park, Botswana</b><br />
<b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 31mm | f5.6 | 1/400 SS | ISO-180</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The wide angle emphasizes the extreme depth of the scene, the immense sky, and the elements of the landscape. The elephant is just big enough to be a key element in the composition.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The mid-range zoom lens can often be used for effective <i>animalscapes</i>. For this purpose my go-to lens is the <b><a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/camera-lenses/af-s-nikkor-70-200mm-f%252f2.8e-fl-ed-vr.html" target="_blank">Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II</a></b>, as it's tack sharp through the focal range, and super quick to focus.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oQl-OZNDnrg/WGgT2RGiy2I/AAAAAAAB_d0/8BT9UA4-NB88vSINOBbwANwlR_lb6p-5ACLcB/s1600/_DSC0580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oQl-OZNDnrg/WGgT2RGiy2I/AAAAAAAB_d0/8BT9UA4-NB88vSINOBbwANwlR_lb6p-5ACLcB/s640/_DSC0580.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">"Long Line of Leavers" - Mara Triangle, Kenya</b><br />
<b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 135mm | f9.0 | 1/640 SS | ISO-220</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It doesn't have to stop there, though. I find it amusing that so many wildlife photographers only feel they are using their super telephoto lenses properly if they can use it to fill the frame with a portrait of the animal's face or full body. If a subject is deemed "too far" the possibility of a workable shot being taken is not even considered. The telephoto compression effect can bring a different element to the animalscape. My previous telephoto was the <b><a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/camera-lenses/af-s-nikkor-500mm-f%252f4e-fl-ed-vr.html" target="_blank">Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II</a></b>, which I traded last year for the <b><a href="http://www.nikonusa.com/en/nikon-products/product/camera-lenses/af-s-nikkor-400mm-f%252f2.8e-fl-ed-vr.html" target="_blank">Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR-II</a></b>. You obviously won't include as much of the landscape, but that's not the point.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y9JdBV8_T7I/WGgXh7g_l0I/AAAAAAAB_fE/ps4dj1Ql8aA0-i8W5x5vAaYqECd7lhcyQCLcB/s1600/cheetah_scape_1_BW_Mara_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="404" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y9JdBV8_T7I/WGgXh7g_l0I/AAAAAAAB_fE/ps4dj1Ql8aA0-i8W5x5vAaYqECd7lhcyQCLcB/s640/cheetah_scape_1_BW_Mara_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">"Cheetah on the Plains" - Mara Triangle, Kenya<br />Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f8.0 | 1/800 SS | ISO-900</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When it comes to producing compelling photos of this nature, I cannot stress enough how important a sense for good composition is to the photographer. You need to be able to include enough AND exclude enough of the surrounding scene to tell the story and "paint" the tapestry as simplistic yet engaging as possible. Study other photographers' work. Study the works of famous painters. Know what the language of composition entails - it's a language that's often not put into words, but comes across as a philosophical aesthetic.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope this post encourages you to try your hand at more of these kinds of photos.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I wish more wildlife photographers would venture for the contextual shot, the animalscape, to show people not just the wonderful wildlife they encounter, but also the amazing landscape in which those animals carve out an existence.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Keep clicking!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></b></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-47891142725139901222017-01-01T09:00:00.000+02:002017-01-01T09:00:08.565+02:00 Sixteen Scenes from 2016<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hello my friends! </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Firstly - I want to wish you a very happy and blessed 2017!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It's that time of year, eh? If you follow a plethora of photographers you will no doubt see many of them put out some sort of "</span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">best of 2016</i><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">" image collection. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've outlined in previous posts why I think it's a good idea, why I find value in glancing back over the year's work and journey. So this year I am doing it again...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As with previous years - this is by no means an exhaustive list of my absolute top keeper photos of the year. It's rather a collection of moments captured that captures the year in a kind-of-chronological order.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Remember that all these photos are best viewed by clicking on them (which opens them up at the native posting resolution).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>1. "Spot the Cat"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The year of 2016 started off on a hot note - both in terms of photographic opportunity and in terms of real-world temperature. Braving the Kalahari during an immense heat-wave, we were able to experience a couple of key moments. First off was no doubt the leopard that took me <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/01/7-year-leopard.html" target="_blank">7 years</a></b> to photograph. This is not a unique photograph, but special to me because of the process and journey to get there. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ma7RB8HG8UY/VqkxXpBvudI/AAAAAAAAzWU/BEuiRQcZN7oQhTMMVnxMMA2P2kbOMIGGwCPcB/s1600/leopard_pose_1_KTP_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ma7RB8HG8UY/VqkxXpBvudI/AAAAAAAAzWU/BEuiRQcZN7oQhTMMVnxMMA2P2kbOMIGGwCPcB/s640/leopard_pose_1_KTP_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D4s | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | f4.5 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-640</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>2. "The Nutcracker Badger"</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">...and then of course the rascal that put up such a good show on the same safari...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Honey badgers are just awesome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We found one taking a small leopard tortoise to task in the Kalahari - (full story <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/08/the-nutcracker-badger.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>)...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cRgwlYa1hDs/WF5Dvetg_GI/AAAAAAAB9_4/1G9IbzBEQVwpOYgdGk0mMQ1_cLc6b_fbgCLcB/s1600/badger_tortoise_2_1000px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cRgwlYa1hDs/WF5Dvetg_GI/AAAAAAAB9_4/1G9IbzBEQVwpOYgdGk0mMQ1_cLc6b_fbgCLcB/s640/badger_tortoise_2_1000px.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D4s | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | 1.4x teleconverter | f8.0 | 1/400 SS | ISO-2500</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>3. "Horned"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This image was captured while on a memorable father-and-son photographic safari to Leopard Hills in the Sabi Sand area of South Africa. I could have posted a leopard photo, but I quite liked the abstract nature and the textures of this photo.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2B1FahiwK3s/WFxlQGTnQAI/AAAAAAAB9-c/vR_VvokWItk_utrzjsaPzEe7QBSHZ853ACLcB/s1600/buffalo_horn_1_BW_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="494" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2B1FahiwK3s/WFxlQGTnQAI/AAAAAAAB9-c/vR_VvokWItk_utrzjsaPzEe7QBSHZ853ACLcB/s640/buffalo_horn_1_BW_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | 1.4x teleconverter | f8.0 | 1/400 SS | ISO-2500</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>4. "Down in the Dust"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elephants have always formed part of my photography. I am just drawn to them - plus they tend to give me better opportunities than for example big cats! We went on a family camping trip to the far north of the Kruger National Park in the South African winter - and shared some special moments, one of them being this herd of elephants moving down into a dry riverbed, dusting as they go, as the sun set behind them.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GaV6RU-fLNI/V2vk3J8ZekI/AAAAAAABYGs/Y3bZkk6IUwY235evWH2C45VaK4mtwCmLACPcB/s1600/elephant_dust_1_KNP_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GaV6RU-fLNI/V2vk3J8ZekI/AAAAAAABYGs/Y3bZkk6IUwY235evWH2C45VaK4mtwCmLACPcB/s640/elephant_dust_1_KNP_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | f5.6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-450</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br />5. "Crocodile Crowd"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another trademark of our winter foray to the Kruger was the number of Nile Crocodiles we saw basking on the banks of the Levhuvhu river in the Pafuri region every day. On this stretch we counted nearly 60 individual crocodiles just on the opposite (visible) bank! It didn't make for an amazing photo, but it was an amazing sight and one that my kids duly remember.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qAwNZhYwjbg/WGL6e9iw3LI/AAAAAAAB-DY/EJlOz_5-cxsFV8rCOyGzYDd5_MZGVtx-ACLcB/s1600/crocodile_crowd_1_KNP_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qAwNZhYwjbg/WGL6e9iw3LI/AAAAAAAB-DY/EJlOz_5-cxsFV8rCOyGzYDd5_MZGVtx-ACLcB/s640/crocodile_crowd_1_KNP_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 55mm | Circular Polariser | f8.0 | 1/200 SS | ISO-140</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>6. "Feeding along the Zambezi"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another elephant! This bull was feeding on the winterthorn trees along the Zambezi riverbank. I was hosting a <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/" target="_blank">Wild Eye</a></b> photographic safari to the wonderful location of <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/photographic-safari/mana-pools-photo-safari/" target="_blank">Mana Pools</a></b>, and we were able to really work the scene here on a slightly cloudy morning. If you know my work - you know that I am always on the lookout for a chance to include the landscape in the wildlife photo - this is a prime example.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uRodyx0OGjY/WF5CAwYsE8I/AAAAAAAB9_s/QWoPyajUopwhsYlOCighEEfeM8iiyARrgCLcB/s1600/elephant_scape_1_BW_ManaPools_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uRodyx0OGjY/WF5CAwYsE8I/AAAAAAAB9_s/QWoPyajUopwhsYlOCighEEfeM8iiyARrgCLcB/s640/elephant_scape_1_BW_ManaPools_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 36mm | Circular Polariser | f8.0 | 1/500 SS | ISO-640</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>7. "Impala Serenity"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sticking with Mana Pools - we really spent a lot of time working the light and trying to capture the magic of the forests along the Zambezi floodplains. I am a firm believer that any subject will do if the right mood and light is there...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vyH5ztOPhXI/WFxxMENZOkI/AAAAAAAB9-4/C6gdJHhVpxgtFKVz81DekSwcrLoCZuRSgCLcB/s1600/impala_forest_1_ManaPools_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="440" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vyH5ztOPhXI/WFxxMENZOkI/AAAAAAAB9-4/C6gdJHhVpxgtFKVz81DekSwcrLoCZuRSgCLcB/s640/impala_forest_1_ManaPools_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 300mm f2.8 VR-II | f22 | 1/500 SS | ISO-2500</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>8. "Bloodsport"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Seeing a big cat kill is high on many a photographer's wishlist. This one was quite unexpected! While watching some mating lions on our <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/photographic-safari/great-migration-safari-2017/" target="_blank">Wild Eye Great Migration Safari</a></b> - the male got up and walked towards a herd of wildebeest in the distance. The herd saw him - except for one individual who was wallowing in the mud. He wallowed a bit too long and the lion was upon him with power before he could escape his quagmire!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QVFtZ8sNvL8/WF5FifV-uGI/AAAAAAAB-AI/oKfNKEZL09wO3H2BWZXfcsp_eZ9XZOPUACLcB/s1600/_DSC1028.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QVFtZ8sNvL8/WF5FifV-uGI/AAAAAAAB-AI/oKfNKEZL09wO3H2BWZXfcsp_eZ9XZOPUACLcB/s640/_DSC1028.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | f5.6 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-2200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>9. "Chaos at the River"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We saw quite a number of dramatic wildebeest crossings during this year's safari to the <b><a href="http://maratriangle.org/" target="_blank">Mara Triangle</a></b>. This is but one moment that I liked in terms of framing, light and mood. This is also the first image I processed with the <b><a href="https://macphun.com/" target="_blank">MacPhun</a></b> <b><a href="https://macphun.com/tonality" target="_blank">Tonality</a></b> software suite, and I am thoroughly enjoying working with their apps.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ue3Vn6bftWo/WF5JZK8Fo_I/AAAAAAAB-AU/kEjLqiwBosAHHo3vwXI4QhbGsDzo88ziACLcB/s1600/wildebeest_chaos_1_BW_Mara_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ue3Vn6bftWo/WF5JZK8Fo_I/AAAAAAAB-AU/kEjLqiwBosAHHo3vwXI4QhbGsDzo88ziACLcB/s640/wildebeest_chaos_1_BW_Mara_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 185mm | f7.1 | 1/800 SS | ISO-160</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>10. "Giraffe Echo"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These iconic animals have recently been downgraded to "Vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species once it became clear how devastating the drop in their overall numbers really are. I was fortunate to capture a couple of nice image of giraffes on our family safari to Etosha late in 2016.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Szcj2kd9wIw/WGDEHWLu9pI/AAAAAAAB-BA/3zZfX1__S7glI267LH8Nk50MzHtVrVgywCLcB/s1600/giraffe_mirror_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="458" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Szcj2kd9wIw/WGDEHWLu9pI/AAAAAAAB-BA/3zZfX1__S7glI267LH8Nk50MzHtVrVgywCLcB/s640/giraffe_mirror_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | f7.1 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-400</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>11. "Lord of the Land"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There were a couple of photos I'd not had the chance to capture on previous visits to Etosha. The one was a chance to get close to the famous "white" elephant bulls, which I was able to (read the blog post <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/11/take-me-to-place-where-white-boys-dance.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>). The second was of a male lion against the backdrop of the desolate Etosha pan. Here is one such photo that I was happy with!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ulGShLeCkKE/WGIhgu8Hn3I/AAAAAAAB-Bc/_K56Y9geti40BX-j49hyK1YlcgRTzI8ZQCLcB/s1600/lion_scape_2_Etosha_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="418" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ulGShLeCkKE/WGIhgu8Hn3I/AAAAAAAB-Bc/_K56Y9geti40BX-j49hyK1YlcgRTzI8ZQCLcB/s640/lion_scape_2_Etosha_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm | f5.6 | 1/400 SS | ISO-720</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>12. "Fallen Quiver"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our trip through Namibia took us to many of the iconic destinations I have desperately wanted to photograph since taking up this art. The quiver tree forests near Keetmanshoop provided some interesting compositions to explore. This fallen quiver tree grabbed my attention.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dvh8jPH-MoI/WGLk5bxsmxI/AAAAAAAB-CU/Gp_9PulOMJ0kWEMXBZuP7854h0ZKTUJawCLcB/s1600/quiver_trees_sunset_2_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dvh8jPH-MoI/WGLk5bxsmxI/AAAAAAAB-CU/Gp_9PulOMJ0kWEMXBZuP7854h0ZKTUJawCLcB/s640/quiver_trees_sunset_2_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 14mm | f22 | 1/15 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>13. "Namib Rand Nightscape"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The place that grabbed my soul the most during the trip through Namibia was the isolated, beautiful Namib Rand Reserve. Over 200,000 hectares of wilderness in an arid land, with more stars than you could ever imagine to fathom. The glory of God was on full display, and the silence seeped into your being. This photo was taken when a storm had passed through one night, with some moonlight still bathing the landscape.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iACv-FeCdBg/WGLmkt8NEoI/AAAAAAAB-Cg/hmhZZEOpW-g8Ans8xqal_TtWyrRe_ki-QCLcB/s1600/namibrand_nightscape_1_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iACv-FeCdBg/WGLmkt8NEoI/AAAAAAAB-Cg/hmhZZEOpW-g8Ans8xqal_TtWyrRe_ki-QCLcB/s640/namibrand_nightscape_1_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 14mm | f2.8 | 25 seconds | ISO-3200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>14. "Towering Tentacles"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/12/those-popular-dead-trees.html" target="_blank">recently wrote</a></b> here on my blog about the personal challenge I found it to photograph the infamous Dead Vlei for the first time. I tried to express some compositions that I had not really seen before, but I am as yet unconvinced that I succeeded entirely (which means I will need to go back someday). I did like this one - and felt it could be included in this selection. What do you think?</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJJXXlfvhrI/WGLu_taoOTI/AAAAAAAB-Cw/E11XtmglAtctrOcDHQWDzudQVAqyjkDRwCLcB/s1600/deadvlei_vertical_1_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJJXXlfvhrI/WGLu_taoOTI/AAAAAAAB-Cw/E11XtmglAtctrOcDHQWDzudQVAqyjkDRwCLcB/s1600/deadvlei_vertical_1_2016.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 10.4px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 15mm | f16 | 1/15 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>15. "Camp Craze"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have stayed in some luxurious lodging in various part of Africa, but nothing beats camping on your own. Having to fend for yourself, exposed to the elements, hearing every sound of the night, and being alone with family and friends in a special piece of wilderness, is a feeling that no luxury lodging can compare to or attain. This is our camp at the famous Spitzkoppe in Namibia.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GJik_bcGuPU/WGL0V7evHxI/AAAAAAAB-DA/PG7iUjaMQ3AQKXR9PaVAjYaZL3dSWm7UQCLcB/s1600/spitzkoppe_camp1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GJik_bcGuPU/WGL0V7evHxI/AAAAAAAB-DA/PG7iUjaMQ3AQKXR9PaVAjYaZL3dSWm7UQCLcB/s640/spitzkoppe_camp1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>16. "Sharing the Experience"</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel very privileged to have been able to take my wife and our children to the wilderness as often as I have. My kids have grown up with an immense love for nature, wildlife and the outdoors as a result of this (they have been to the Kalahari more than they've been to the seaside). This is a family portrait we took in Dead Vlei - and yes my kids hiked it out there and loved every second of it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SYCvyAhEb0Y/WGL2aaO7AGI/AAAAAAAB-DM/-mqIS-je5Tk9spE9YUrbjAoR38rFzvvRwCLcB/s1600/family_deadvlei_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="438" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SYCvyAhEb0Y/WGL2aaO7AGI/AAAAAAAB-DM/-mqIS-je5Tk9spE9YUrbjAoR38rFzvvRwCLcB/s640/family_deadvlei_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There you have it, folks. Like I say upfront on every post of this nature - it's a timeline, memoir if you will, through my year. Yes there may be "better" photos in the archives where I extracted these from, but these caught my eye or have specific significance in terms of memories and moments.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The year 2017 will see me travel a lot less for photography, for reasons I will divulge soon. That does not mean I will put the camera down or not use any opportunity I can to capture more images, though!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I trust you have enjoyed these musings and images.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also trust that you look forward to your own journey in 2017, and where it may take you.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks so much for following along on mine!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God bless you...</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-25755789354133777302016-12-14T00:52:00.000+02:002016-12-14T00:52:05.037+02:00Those popular dead trees<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you've been following trends in landscape photography, then you would know what "Dead Vlei" means. If you're unfamiliar with the place, it's basically a very photogenic dried up lake near Sossusvlei in the Namib-Naukluft National Park in Namibia. In the midst of this dried up lake stand a bunch of dead camelthorn trees.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite having been to Sossusvlei in 1995, we didn't actually knew about Dead Vlei back then. So, upon our recent road-trip through Namibia, we just had to make a plan to visit this iconic spot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The problem with visiting a place of which you can see legions of photos over the course of a year is that it has the risk of not feeling new when you step into it for the first time. That's what happened to me. The place is haunting and special, make no mistake. I just think I'd seen so many photos of it that it didn't take my breath away in real life. I guess that is one of the problems of the modern photographic explosion.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also found it ironic that you need to travel around 300km of gravel road from any direction to get to the entrance gate, but then you have a lovely 57km stretch of asphalt to take you to within 5km of Dead Vlei and Sossusvlei...the impact of modern tourism demands I guess.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be that as it may - the other challenge is that it's pretty hard to capture unique and "fresh" photos of this place by now. But then again, I think often us photographers get so caught up in wanting to capture a location in our own unique way that just being in the moment and enjoying the privilege of being in a splendid spot of nature can pass us by.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So here are a couple of photos I was able to grab on the one morning we spent there.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you enjoy them...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bQgToxsH4VE/WFBurPZuH2I/AAAAAAAB95I/W-XPsdJ8mKk8Rlh7kMDM8RPWDi_0oT4ygCLcB/s1600/deadvlei_3_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bQgToxsH4VE/WFBurPZuH2I/AAAAAAAB95I/W-XPsdJ8mKk8Rlh7kMDM8RPWDi_0oT4ygCLcB/s640/deadvlei_3_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 14mm | f16 | 1/25 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qB_wK80DAw4/WFByrLc-jwI/AAAAAAAB95U/nhJqp_VuiDQvwAYQmPHtZZCWma_KioM5wCLcB/s1600/deadvlei_4_BW_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qB_wK80DAw4/WFByrLc-jwI/AAAAAAAB95U/nhJqp_VuiDQvwAYQmPHtZZCWma_KioM5wCLcB/s640/deadvlei_4_BW_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 145mm | f11 | 1/400 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jf2qintanU/WFB6vfQz15I/AAAAAAAB95k/oBb-yqJg08UXHaD-BdwEbaI4As1QmTVFwCLcB/s1600/deadvlei_5_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jf2qintanU/WFB6vfQz15I/AAAAAAAB95k/oBb-yqJg08UXHaD-BdwEbaI4As1QmTVFwCLcB/s640/deadvlei_5_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 14mm | f16 | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me know what you think of these in the comments below.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Keep clicking!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com9Deadvlei Hiking Trail, Namibia-24.7476376 15.290908800000011-52.9197046 -26.017685199999988 3.4244293999999975 56.59950280000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-31207895412634409482016-11-22T17:27:00.000+02:002016-11-22T17:33:07.158+02:00Take me to the place where the white boys dance...<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To kick off this post, I have to apologise to the band "The Killers", whose song title made a perfect title for this photo and its resulting blog post.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/10/returning-to-namibia.html" target="_blank">As you may know</a>, we recently returned from an amazing family safari-camping-roadtrip through some of the most iconic places in Namibia. One of the destinations was the famous Etosha National Park. Though it was not my first visit to Etosha, this was definitely my longest to date. We stayed a total of 12 days in the park, to ensure we made the most of each of the main camps and its surrounding regions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the photographic opportunities that has eluded me on my trips to Etosha prior to this one, has been to see and photograph the iconic elephant bulls caked in the white calcium-rich mud of this particular arid ecosystem. In my presentations and workshops, I always make mention of the fact that understanding animal behaviour is key to obtaining good wildlife photos. This particular photo is also the result of such understanding, and a bit of luck...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hP2Ry1xA5AA/WDRdNGSS8iI/AAAAAAAB9DY/kcYMGGeWENEWVDOwQT0m7WQigOgekH9MQCLcB/s1600/elephants_white_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="414" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hP2Ry1xA5AA/WDRdNGSS8iI/AAAAAAAB9DY/kcYMGGeWENEWVDOwQT0m7WQigOgekH9MQCLcB/s640/elephants_white_1_Etosha_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm | f11 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-560</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We first saw these elephant bulls when we transferred from Namutoni camp to Halali camp. They were moving across the pan towards the mudholes at the Springbokfontein waterhole. Because we were busy moving camp and had our big trailers hitched, we could not maximise the sighting for us photographically. It was also in the heat of midday, which meant the heat haze affected the quality of our photos.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7CAqun28A0E/WDRgNW_ESSI/AAAAAAAB9Dk/YUedIuLhDwEes8lFqYr5NDotbYGQbcIOQCLcB/s1600/_DSC4199.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7CAqun28A0E/WDRgNW_ESSI/AAAAAAAB9Dk/YUedIuLhDwEes8lFqYr5NDotbYGQbcIOQCLcB/s640/_DSC4199.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">During our stay at Halali, I was tempted to see if these bulls perhaps frequent this particular waterhole. I made a late morning run to this waterhole (a 32km trip one way) - and lo and behold, they were there, albeit further from the road than what is ideal. I knew now that these boys were the locals, this was their pub, and they would probably be found here most days until the rains come.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We decided to return in that direction the next morning - and although they weren't there when we first arrived, they had made their way to the same spot far from the road by the time we got back from our brunch stop (we made delicious jaffels on the edge of the Etosha Pan, yum)...this time there were a total of 9 elephant bulls in the immediate area! The 4 we'd seen previously, and another 5. Photos were, again, hampered by the heart haze (it was upwards of 45 degrees Celcius by this time).</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TkqJEcZklHE/WDRiSj84uAI/AAAAAAAB9Dw/qYUcO02Bg-ca33Lk3PpEteDWZfz0fy-RwCLcB/s1600/_D3S4028.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TkqJEcZklHE/WDRiSj84uAI/AAAAAAAB9Dw/qYUcO02Bg-ca33Lk3PpEteDWZfz0fy-RwCLcB/s640/_D3S4028.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That hatched a plan for me. The next day we would be moving from Halali to Okaukuejo, and although the potential is there for the "white ghosts of Etosha" to be photographed around that area as well, I really wanted another crack at getting bankable photos of these boys. So we decided to scoot out to Springbokfontein one last time that afternoon, in hope that they would still be around the waterhole and possibly even close enough for decent photos. Man, were we right!! Some of them had moved off way into the bush, but 2 of the bulls were feeding right next to the road, and they were super relaxed...meaning we could work some really nice closeups and even wide angle shots of them. The golden afternoon light and some puffy clouds made for a very enjoyable afternoon of photography.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-coXHzVaAOFA/WDRjh6JAMPI/AAAAAAAB9D8/-fCbphwScTkoU_RQeHL3qfPSUgivqm8FQCLcB/s1600/_DSC5081.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-coXHzVaAOFA/WDRjh6JAMPI/AAAAAAAB9D8/-fCbphwScTkoU_RQeHL3qfPSUgivqm8FQCLcB/s640/_DSC5081.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Are these photos unique - will they win me awards?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Nope.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Does it matter?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Nope.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Did my friend and I enjoy the culmination of my quest to photograph these white boys?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Immensely.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Go out there, and enjoy your photography!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com4Oshikoto Region, Namibia-19.110321218220989 16.107478047656286-19.17033721822099 16.026797047656288 -19.050305218220988 16.188159047656285tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-68317090451271711352016-10-19T22:56:00.001+02:002016-10-19T22:56:54.020+02:00Returning to Namibia<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For someone who feasibly lives merely a day's hard drive from the glorious expanse that is Namibia, I visit very seldom. I suppose that's the way it is - life gets in the way, other destinations beckon...but that will change soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We will be embarking on a 24-day camping adventure, with families in tow, across a vast portion of Namibia. That's something we South Africans love to do - overland camping, lugging everything along from a freezer to a portable shower to a mini-kitchen, "<i>spending a fortune to live like a hobo</i>", as the meme goes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were originally only going to go to Etosha for 2 weeks, but then we got thinking - we will be there already, why not add another week? So here is a quick rundown of our trip:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Etosha National Park</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Spitzkoppe</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sossusvlei</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Namib Rand Reserve</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Quiver Tree Forest</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fish River Canyon</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you can see, it's a veritable bucket list of destinations.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oLeAtN_lfI4/WAfdma1s01I/AAAAAAAB8Gg/vHnEF4n8qsIyQiKfiXCOZofv_c3SbMI_wCLcB/s1600/black_rhino_pose_4_2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oLeAtN_lfI4/WAfdma1s01I/AAAAAAAB8Gg/vHnEF4n8qsIyQiKfiXCOZofv_c3SbMI_wCLcB/s640/black_rhino_pose_4_2013.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We hiked the Fish River Canyon in 2009, and visited Etosha last in 2013, but I haven't been to the Namib desert regions since 1995!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To say we are excited is an understatement...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Camping with those you love under the immense stars in the wide spaces of Namibia for 3 weeks, cut off from social media and the political turmoil and all the drama in the world...eating good food, drinking good wine, taking some photos, reflecting on how God has blessed us...what more could you want?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">See you all on the flipside...</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PDtNXk118aY/UZ7kJ6ObgZI/AAAAAAAAQow/hqEGUpXopfwGzIBbPLIvqduMi7H1o0a9wCPcB/s1600/namib%2Bkopje2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PDtNXk118aY/UZ7kJ6ObgZI/AAAAAAAAQow/hqEGUpXopfwGzIBbPLIvqduMi7H1o0a9wCPcB/s640/namib%2Bkopje2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span></div>
Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-20757945706853611812016-09-16T15:30:00.000+02:002016-09-16T15:30:22.424+02:00Nikon Unveiled: Understanding Metering Modes<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I bring you some more behind-the-scenes stuff from my time filming a series of short tutorial YouTube videos with Nikon Asia in Hong Kong back in 2015.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can't visit Hong Kong and not go and brave the crowds (woah!) to see sunset and the city catch alight with nightlife from Victoria Peak gardens. Here is a photo I captured on this evening (I was even able to capture some photos to be used in the video as stills too):</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 27mm | f16 | 15 seconds | ISO-200</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Certainly not my preferred way of shooting a landscape (I prefer little to no hand-of-man elements), but it did come out nicely with the moving clouds in my opinion.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's a photo of me and my lovely wife on top of the viewing tower:</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Pj_ImYeV-ro/V9XSLoPkNmI/AAAAAAAB2z0/NW46La225xMsgjt5H12gc0i7ulLKFTYaQCLcB/s1600/_DSC5680.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Pj_ImYeV-ro/V9XSLoPkNmI/AAAAAAAB2z0/NW46La225xMsgjt5H12gc0i7ulLKFTYaQCLcB/s640/_DSC5680.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The video I am linking to this post covers the various metering modes used in Nikon's DSLR camera line-up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you enjoy these behind-the-scenes posts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com1Victoria Peak, The Peak, Hong Kong22.2758835 114.14553222.2720925 114.1404895 22.2796745 114.1505745tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-34698772503480160392016-09-11T21:56:00.001+02:002016-09-11T21:56:27.951+02:00Wildlife Photography with the Nikon D810 and 400mm f2.8<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When <b><a href="http://www.nikon.co.za/" target="_blank">Nikon in South Africa</a></b> approached me in September 2015 to test out the <a href="http://www.nikon.co.za/en_ZA/product/digital-slr-cameras/d810" target="_blank">Nikon D810</a> and the new lightweight <a href="http://www.nikon.co.za/en_ZA/product/nikkor-lenses/fx-format/single-focal-length/telephoto/af-s-nikkor-400mm-f2-8e-fl-ed-vr" target="_blank">Nikkor 400mm f2.8E FL VR</a> lens I was relishing the opportunity - you see, I was heading to the Mara Triangle in Kenya (part of the Maasai Mara ecosystem) to host a photographic safari in the Maasai Mara for the Great Migration for <a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/" target="_blank">Wild Eye</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was looking forward to putting this camera–and–lens combo through its paces in an environment where anything can happen at any distance from the vehicle. The in-camera crop factor (Image Area option) of the Nikon professional FX series provides a great option to extend the effective focal length of the lens. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yovFtPoerMg/V9Wz2kz-5XI/AAAAAAAB2zM/h9M1CYifOvc3bJdBdOK-l0xGxJRloWegQCLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="361" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yovFtPoerMg/V9Wz2kz-5XI/AAAAAAAB2zM/h9M1CYifOvc3bJdBdOK-l0xGxJRloWegQCLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f8.0 | 1/2000 SS | ISO-280 | EV -1</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First off - the D810 is an amazing camera. I was blown away by its dynamic range and amazing image resolving capabilities. The D810 was improved. Dynamic range and low light image quality (high ISO in other words), while offering a higher frame-rate for on demand shooting with an increased buffer capacity. The quiet shutter, intuitive feels and excellent build quality of the D810 makes it a joy to use.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8fnBvN10P8k/V9WzzPVXomI/AAAAAAAB2zI/GOPhFwsIGTMX_7QchenL_1ttveWUToTsACLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_3_cropmode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8fnBvN10P8k/V9WzzPVXomI/AAAAAAAB2zI/GOPhFwsIGTMX_7QchenL_1ttveWUToTsACLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_3_cropmode.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f4.0 | 1/500 SS | ISO-2000 | EV +0.3</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">N</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ow for the lens! I have just traded in my Nikkor 500mm f/4 for the previous version of the 400mm 2.8 - so knowing what that beast weighs, the first time I picked up the new 400mm f/2.8 from its case which also looks quite different than previous Nikkor super telephoto lens cases, I was flabbergasted by just how light it really is. At first touch, it feels only slightly heavier than a 300mm f/4 would feel. It is as sharp as you can imagine and the focus acquisition is snappy and responsive, making the lens a real pleasure to work with in the field.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N45GvW730ls/V9Wzx0bEbhI/AAAAAAAB2zE/bXWwVRcxwyEkXmqnPWdgNq2JZH5cliWgQCLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-N45GvW730ls/V9Wzx0bEbhI/AAAAAAAB2zE/bXWwVRcxwyEkXmqnPWdgNq2JZH5cliWgQCLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f18 | 1/10 SS | ISO-500 | EV 0</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coupling them and knowing how and when to use the aforementioned in-camera crop modes ("Image Area") you can really utilise this combo for a great range of scenarios. If you leave the 400mm f/2.8 on the camera without adding a physical teleconverter, you can achieve the effective focal length of 480mm f/2.8 at 25 megapixels on the 1.2x crop setting. If you go to the DX crop setting you can get an effective 600mm f/12.8 at roughly +- 15.4 megapixels. Some folks will say they'd rather crop in processing and you can - but what makes it a tempting option is that your continuous frame rate for action sequences increases from 5fps to 6fps in these crop modes. If you use the MB-D12 battery grip (also compatible with the D800/D800E), you gain another boost to 7fps in the crop modes.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pl2rtV2dz9A/V9W0DVMC3II/AAAAAAAB2zY/_Ol6sQhHXKAg2sUX7gVuzjEULSckkwApQCLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_4_cropmode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pl2rtV2dz9A/V9W0DVMC3II/AAAAAAAB2zY/_Ol6sQhHXKAg2sUX7gVuzjEULSckkwApQCLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_4_cropmode.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f4.0 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-1250 | EV 0</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I always shoot my Nikon cameras in manual mode with auto ISO enabled. This allows me to select the shutter speed and aperture that I feel would contribute to the kind of image I am looking to create, while allowing the camera to select the ISO automatically (hinged to my selected exposure bias). I know I can implicitly trust my cameras to perform up to very high ISO and the D810 was no exception. Of course, having the option to go to an aperture of 2.8 when using varying shutter speeds helps! Read more on my preferred setup using auto ISO in <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/shoot-iso-priority-mode/" target="_blank">THIS</a></b> blog post.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NJUVNbFu5t8/V9W0BZu2tMI/AAAAAAAB2zQ/5us1disna9kuLoJO7pRHKSy43HTsGivUQCLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NJUVNbFu5t8/V9W0BZu2tMI/AAAAAAAB2zQ/5us1disna9kuLoJO7pRHKSy43HTsGivUQCLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_5.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f4.0 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-360 | EV -0.7</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I would highly recommend this combination to wildlife and sports photographers. Given the fact that the D810 is the perfect landscape and portrait camera already, the added benefits of using it like I did for wildlife, pretty much makes it one of the best all-round combinations I have ever had the pleasure to use. The lens is a dream. If the older 400mm f/2.8 always felt a tad heavy to you and that was the only thing holding you back – you need to get this lens in your hand and feel the weight difference. It is a strong selling point!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9M90VsHArKg/V9W0C1CncjI/AAAAAAAB2zU/Ocq5QkOjcwMsDtNWNnfMfAHDyuuyhPhGgCLcB/s1600/Morkel_Migration_6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9M90VsHArKg/V9W0C1CncjI/AAAAAAAB2zU/Ocq5QkOjcwMsDtNWNnfMfAHDyuuyhPhGgCLcB/s640/Morkel_Migration_6.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>f22 | 1/30 SS | ISO-64 | EV -1</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time, keep clicking!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span><br />
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Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com2Narok County, Kenya-1.4267019064882447 34.847259521484375-1.5536939064882447 34.685898021484377 -1.2997099064882447 35.008621021484373tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-86277290979195106812016-08-29T19:00:00.000+02:002016-09-01T09:16:29.129+02:00Trust your Histogram<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you've been around decent caliber wildlife photographers for any length of time, you will no doubt have heard one of them admonish someone else to always watch their histogram. It's the final litmus test for ensuring our images come out as we intend in-the-field, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The important thing to remember is that you need to look at the HISTOGRAM specifically.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The actual graph plotted for the data contained in your actual image.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">DON'T trust the version of the image you see on the LCD screen, though.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The back-of-camera LCD is far from a calibrated monitor on which to decide whether the colour or even apparent exposure of the image looks correct.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's easy to fall back on pure image review and forget to rely on data interpretation. Yes, of course the content of the image is important if you are reviewing or double-checking your composition - what I am referring to is exposure checking, especially in tricky and challenging lighting conditions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Consider this image - RAW, straight conversion, no processing applied.</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nATrq7SAFZ8/V8NS5b_881I/AAAAAAAB2Ro/3vpe4lun47EYxNQLsndrjX2SYVjA69XhQCLcB/s1600/manaproof1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nATrq7SAFZ8/V8NS5b_881I/AAAAAAAB2Ro/3vpe4lun47EYxNQLsndrjX2SYVjA69XhQCLcB/s1600/manaproof1.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If, at first glance, you thought that I had way underexposed this photo, you were correct.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yet, I had done it on purpose!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The setting was a glorious misty sunrise on the last morning of the <a class="g-profile" href="https://plus.google.com/105268722709694360553" target="_blank">+Wild Eye</a> Mana Pools photo safari I hosted in July (read the <b><a href="http://bit.ly/morkelmana2016" target="_blank">TRIP REPORT</a></b>). When the sun rose behind the trees as a muted fiery ball, I knew that I wanted a photo with everything decently exposed (even the sun). So I purposely underexposed enough to protect the highlights and shadows from excessive clipping, knowing from experience what I would be able to pull back and rescue in processing. I shoot Nikon, and the specific settings might not correlate with how you would need to expose with other cameras, but I used these settings:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nikon D800 with Nikkor 300mm f2.8 VR-II</span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Aperture: f5.6</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shutter Speed: 1/1000</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ISO: 250</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Exposure bias: -2/3</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In this case, I specifically remember that I couldn't really see jack squat on my LCD in terms of composition or image content, the photo was simply too dark. I needed to trust my framing in the viewfinder and also my exposure based on histogram.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The resultant histogram:</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z4z-ZcEad6w/V8NZ19lk9vI/AAAAAAAB2R4/XlM7DoI63LM3hShvGbTUSKynuxsf9YNHgCLcB/s1600/manaproof1_histo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z4z-ZcEad6w/V8NZ19lk9vI/AAAAAAAB2R4/XlM7DoI63LM3hShvGbTUSKynuxsf9YNHgCLcB/s1600/manaproof1_histo.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Again you might think this is creeping up too much on the shadows and highlights ends of the histogram - and yet I posit to you that this is where knowing your gear comes in and knowing how much you can recover from certain tonal areas that may seem blown out at first.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A couple of delicate processing steps later:</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gdEXfwYyYxk/V8NfnSnckRI/AAAAAAAB2SI/jJn8G66pFWcwBdjLExTcM7kI8jNEYQYoQCLcB/s1600/manaproof2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gdEXfwYyYxk/V8NfnSnckRI/AAAAAAAB2SI/jJn8G66pFWcwBdjLExTcM7kI8jNEYQYoQCLcB/s1600/manaproof2.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In processing these photos I always try and go for a look & feel that would seem natural - if you were standing there looking into a hazy sunrise you would see detail, soft light and the scene would be oozing with mood. The original frame doesn't have that at face value, and we need to tease that out of the photo in processing. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Remember that the human eye can process an equivalent of about 32 f-stops in one view, so a camera can never just capture the precise way in which we perceive a moody, high dynamic range scene like this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's easy to overcook this as well and make it look garishly unrealistic! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The histogram now:</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VkTnZfGgXiY/V8NgKJQZa6I/AAAAAAAB2SM/gTDqNy-RccEcUb1qQ4lzAQjq_W0GIkzbQCLcB/s1600/manaproof2_histo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VkTnZfGgXiY/V8NgKJQZa6I/AAAAAAAB2SM/gTDqNy-RccEcUb1qQ4lzAQjq_W0GIkzbQCLcB/s1600/manaproof2_histo.jpg" style="cursor: move;" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The brightest spots of the sun can be blown out - it's the sun after all.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The darkest shadows are not preventing me from enjoying the image for what is ought to be - a moody dawn in the forest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The lesson?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Know your gear well enough to shoot on instinct. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Know well enough what you want to capture to shoot on instinct.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If necessary, read the histogram and interpret what you need to change to bring you as close as possible to a USABLE image.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope this post has been of help to you.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com9Hurungwe, Zimbabwe-15.81868096287959 29.454345703125-16.307722462879589 28.808898703125 -15.329639462879589 30.099792703125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-35859469822419269262016-08-02T20:47:00.002+02:002016-08-02T22:57:02.318+02:00The Nutcracker Badger<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's 6 January 2016...early in the morning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The sun has just risen, and we spent its rising with a lioness close to the Rooiputs waterhole in the </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kalahari desert, more specifically, the </span><a href="https://www.sanparks.org/parks/kgalagadi/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> that straddles the borders of South Africa and Botswana.</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JKTuF79qlsI/V6DmCug7cbI/AAAAAAABx4E/g7yCKDq5XFIjMDlGJr16bF9VLtIfcIT_wCLcB/s1600/DSC_8307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="631" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JKTuF79qlsI/V6DmCug7cbI/AAAAAAABx4E/g7yCKDq5XFIjMDlGJr16bF9VLtIfcIT_wCLcB/s640/DSC_8307.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">South Africa is experiencing a heat wave of sweaty proportions - normal summer temperatures here average around 45C, and this week it's been up to 54C most days...in the shade. As we drove out of camp it was already 26C, pre-dawn.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suddenly I spot a dark shape moving purposefully along the dry Nossob riverbed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Honey Badger!! </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If you don't know what honey badgers are, they are pretty much the roughest, toughest buggers in the African bush.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb6bWsa_LdQ" target="_blank">video</a> might enlighten you...</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ULw3N5aS8_8/V5-BcludkyI/AAAAAAABx2Y/o8BoTNkZY-I-cxv_aXnSYf7vEDw90_9hQCLcB/s1600/DSC_8324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ULw3N5aS8_8/V5-BcludkyI/AAAAAAABx2Y/o8BoTNkZY-I-cxv_aXnSYf7vEDw90_9hQCLcB/s640/DSC_8324.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anyhow, finding a honey badger on a trip to the Kalahari is a special treat, and this early in the morning! We follow him as he scrounges around, digging for grub in the loose Kalahari sand.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"Nothing here..."</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"How about here? I smell something!"</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Promptly the badger dug up a small leopard tortoise! Right next to our vehicle (and we were the only people there).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The prey in itself brought its own set of challenges - how to break through the shell?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A tough nut to crack...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What followed is a lengthy process of the dexterous badger working his prey until he was able to pierce the shell of the tortoise, and get to the good stuff inside. Yes, it's sad for the tortoise, but it's the circle of life and it was fascinating to get to watch this "nutcracker" at work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suffice to say that the badger eventually got through the carapace of the tortoise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That wasn't the end of the morning's activity, though!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As we are watching the badger feeding, my wife notices that there are two lionesses and two lion cubs walking by behind the badger...talk about a Kalahari double whammy!</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aEYzyOlixD8/V6DqCAYYwCI/AAAAAAABx4Q/kAV9qiEgl7Uv_6ZcGuDGP9n8Y_zcjRc5wCLcB/s1600/DSC_9171.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aEYzyOlixD8/V6DqCAYYwCI/AAAAAAABx4Q/kAV9qiEgl7Uv_6ZcGuDGP9n8Y_zcjRc5wCLcB/s640/DSC_9171.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let's leave the lions for another day - as they kept us busy for the rest of the morning.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope you enjoyed seeing these photos!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have some video too - might edit and release it soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Keep well...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span><br />
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Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com3Kgalagadi South, Botswana-26.399955010098843 20.62638985000001-27.315305510098842 19.33549635000001 -25.484604510098844 21.917283350000009tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-57033479770922935292016-05-28T09:30:00.000+02:002016-05-28T11:55:07.184+02:00Delight at the Dog Den<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last year, my wife and I had an incredible privilege: we witnessed the moment a massive litter of 17 highly endangered African Wild Dog (Painted Dog) puppies came out of their den for the very first time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We were in the Lowveld on a family holiday, and got the chance to head out with Grant Beverley for the day. Grant heads up the <b><a href="https://www.ewt.org.za/" target="_blank">EWT</a></b> <i>(Endangered Wildlife Trust)</i> Wild Dog research and monitoring for the Greater Kruger area of South Africa. We visited two separate packs of the enigmatic "painted wolf". The first one was situated in the Zandspruit Aero Estate, in the town of Hoedspruit. To see these animals adapting and denning with puppies in a residential eco-estate where people were developing holiday homes was quite something!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We only caught fleeting glimpses of the alpha female of this pack, and decided to head out to the <b><a href="http://www.andbeyond.com/ngala-tented-camp/" target="_blank">Ngala Private Game Reserve</a></b> bordering the Orpen gate of the Kruger National Park.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last year, the alpha female of this pack gave birth to a whopping 17 puppies! They had, at that point, never ventured out of the den. Grant was hoping that the pack would possibly call them out for the first time (he visited this den nearly every day, was in contact with the Ngala guides, and had camera traps installed at all his monitored den sites).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><i>(note: all images shot in this post were captured with a Nikon D3s and Nikkor 500mm f4 VR lens)</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When we arrived, the pack adults were lazing about, and I was able to capture some portraits of them. It was evident that they had recently made a kill, as their faces were covered in fresh blood.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It looked like we were in for a long wait that would possibly not result in any visual of the pups. Suddenly, one of the adults moved towards the den (seemingly an abandoned warthog burrow).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">More of the adults moved towards the den entrance, with some starting to vocalise with yelps and chirps...and then two little faces appeared from the abyss!</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ODQ38LvbI-Y/V0h_gFZAPdI/AAAAAAABXuo/gmY7f5FKYTUOvpvzaKSan8DjPU83WC5GwCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_3_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ODQ38LvbI-Y/V0h_gFZAPdI/AAAAAAABXuo/gmY7f5FKYTUOvpvzaKSan8DjPU83WC5GwCLcB/s640/wilddog_puppies_3_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Followed by a couple more!</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f2owJXjtkbI/V0h_gCKi_gI/AAAAAAABXus/pkuLGtgxk44trZqIRhoJdmFymSpRs6LkQCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_4_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f2owJXjtkbI/V0h_gCKi_gI/AAAAAAABXus/pkuLGtgxk44trZqIRhoJdmFymSpRs6LkQCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_4_KNP_2015.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What followed was just one of the most special moments I've ever witnessed in the bush - the pack proceeded to regurgitate some of their meat of the day's kill for the youngsters. It might seem gross to some people, but this is a piece of behaviour few people have had the privilege to witness as intimately as we were doing at that moment...</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwbrxVzk5sc/V0h_gZFixfI/AAAAAAABXuw/s8jWFvbpb3UHA4-byGf7H-tgvybnQpoDwCLcB/s1600/wilddog_pups_meal_1_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="412" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwbrxVzk5sc/V0h_gZFixfI/AAAAAAABXuw/s8jWFvbpb3UHA4-byGf7H-tgvybnQpoDwCLcB/s640/wilddog_pups_meal_1_2015.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qDTzC3iUAbg/V0i2Mgwp9mI/AAAAAAABXvQ/Iv9IYQz34z44WkxyhYAmY0Rrs-YTPLahwCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_feeding_1_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qDTzC3iUAbg/V0i2Mgwp9mI/AAAAAAABXvQ/Iv9IYQz34z44WkxyhYAmY0Rrs-YTPLahwCLcB/s640/wilddog_puppies_feeding_1_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here's a short video clip of what we saw!</span><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X4GKylAsdYY/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/X4GKylAsdYY?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We also sat and watched as the pups explored around their den for the first time, how some of the adults haphazardly handled the roughed up the runts of the litter, and how they all eventually were signaled by the alpha female that it was time to get back to the safety of the den.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CjgM2xr3cl0/V0i70nOoRWI/AAAAAAABXvg/sl2GLr3grV4BNFaePQ3QKphFN46qEeV5wCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppy_intro_1_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="432" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CjgM2xr3cl0/V0i70nOoRWI/AAAAAAABXvg/sl2GLr3grV4BNFaePQ3QKphFN46qEeV5wCLcB/s640/wilddog_puppy_intro_1_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope that you are not bored by now with these images!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before it was all over, I did get a chance to capture the pups all lined up at the den entrance for one last glance at the weird people in the Land Rover with the pointy thing that keeps clicking...</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-er2ScBprCwA/V0jJDGymLfI/AAAAAAABXwA/YzhX_W0D0NELSbIEAw3_2SWOuAZksXn5gCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_2_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-er2ScBprCwA/V0jJDGymLfI/AAAAAAABXwA/YzhX_W0D0NELSbIEAw3_2SWOuAZksXn5gCLcB/s640/wilddog_puppies_2_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KzvsydiKXsA/V0jJDDdz-jI/AAAAAAABXwE/dW49ZkwISK4ILe52mVQ87JcG8h7_TVh4QCLcB/s1600/wilddog_puppies_6_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KzvsydiKXsA/V0jJDDdz-jI/AAAAAAABXwE/dW49ZkwISK4ILe52mVQ87JcG8h7_TVh4QCLcB/s640/wilddog_puppies_6_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is very rare for a single female to have this many puppies. They survived much longer than anyone could have dreamed, as the pack cared well for them and protected them. In the meantime, the pack has split and regrouped with other dogs many times, so it's hard to determine exactly how many of the 17 pups have seen their first "birthday".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The work that Grant and the EWT are doing is immensely important in ensuring the viability and genetic diversity of the South African population of this rare predator. Their territories are vast, and as human encroachment keeps fragmenting the amount of land under dedicated conservation, the pressure on them will mount. Your donations can keep this team focused on monitoring and managing the greater Kruger meta-population with long-term survival and sustainability in mind. Please consider making a <b><a href="https://www.ewt.org.za/donate.html" target="_blank">donation</a></b>!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thank you for viewing and reading!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span></div>
Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com4Kruger Park, South Africa-24.24571240363559 31.419525146484375-24.361537403635591 31.258163646484373 -24.129887403635589 31.580886646484377tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-56136698551243655162016-05-13T18:21:00.000+02:002016-05-13T18:21:16.610+02:00Nikon Unveiled: Benefits of Prime and Zoom Lenses<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2016/03/nikon-unveiled-getting-started-with-dslr.html" target="_blank">previous post</a></b> of this series, I shared some behind-the-scenes photos and info on the video shoot I did with Nikon Asia in Hong Kong last year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The weather in Hong Kong was quite gloomy most days - and the smog was evident. It was a new environment for me to be shooting in, I do quite prefer being out in nature!</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oyOMkyFYa_Q/VzXnj521htI/AAAAAAABXI0/mGL2PgvzCGs93vJ8pEcamG7gqpt56QxwgCLcB/s1600/IMG_3575.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oyOMkyFYa_Q/VzXnj521htI/AAAAAAABXI0/mGL2PgvzCGs93vJ8pEcamG7gqpt56QxwgCLcB/s640/IMG_3575.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week's video is about the distinction between prime and zoom lenses, I hope you find it insightful!</span><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/NAhAQJJNkRk/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NAhAQJJNkRk?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had an amazing crew to work with on these shoots. Working in the extreme humidity of Hong Kong all day was quite a challenge, but it worked out well!</span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EReOyxyk8y8/VzX99tO8YwI/AAAAAAABXJE/tlowomCN9WQqTin134lGiPQWXXRe9MCRACLcB/s1600/IMG_3774.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EReOyxyk8y8/VzX99tO8YwI/AAAAAAABXJE/tlowomCN9WQqTin134lGiPQWXXRe9MCRACLcB/s640/IMG_3774.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stay tuned for more videos and behind-the-scenes photos and stories!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com0Hong Kong22.396428 114.1094970000000321.9265115 113.46405000000003 22.8663445 114.75494400000004tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-17573928692491063242016-04-29T00:26:00.001+02:002016-04-29T00:26:21.276+02:00The 5 billion star hotel<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'd rather sleep under this 5 billion star sky than in any 5 star establishment in the world...</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many folks who see these images want to know how they are captured.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here is a quick run-down of the process used to capture this photo.</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Get to a place where there is minimal light pollution. Nearby towns and settlements exude enough light to feasibly affect your shot and the amount of stars visible.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Scout around for decent compositions during daylight, bearing in mind your main compass directions and suitable compositional elements.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Use a sturdy tripod.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Use a wide-angle lens with a large maximum aperture (think 1.4 or 2.8).</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Make sure what time the moon rises and sets, and what phase it is in - this will also affect star visibility.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you want more stars - wait for there to be no moon or new moon.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you want more landscape illumination, shoot with a subtle moon at a low position in the sky.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Use your torch and camera "live view" to pre-focus on a clear object at least 10 meters in front of you, or manually set your lens to the hyperfocal distance.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Set your ISO to something between 1600 and 6400, depending on your camera's low light capability and your expected ambient light.</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Set your exposure time to somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds (anything more will start to induce "star trails" as the earth rotates around its axis.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Use a strong torch to "paint" the foreground during the exposure. I find it works best to bounce the light source off your hand and use your hand to direct the light (your hand also diffuses the light and adds some warmth to colder/blue light sources).</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Check the resulting shot and make adjustments to composition, focus point or settings as you deem necessary.</span></span></li>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The settings for this image?</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nikon D800</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">20 seconds shutter release</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i>Location?</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Mountain Zebra National Park in the Karoo desert, South Africa.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Have fun experimenting!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #141823; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 18px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span></span></div>
Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com2Mountain Zebra National Park, Cradock, 5880, South Africa-32.25 25.450000000000045-57.772034500000004 -15.858593999999954 -6.7279655 66.758594000000045tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-85485586909466466342016-03-29T11:31:00.002+02:002016-03-29T11:31:42.350+02:00Nikon Unveiled: Getting Started with DSLR<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of you might remember that my wife and I flew out to Hong Kong last year directly after I hosted a Wild Eye safari in the Mara Triangle. The purpose of the visit was not to be divulged at the time, but the cat is now firmly out of the bag...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was selected as the video host of the newest "<b><u>Nikon Unveiled</u></b>" series of short tutorial YouTube videos released by Nikon Asia. This series is aimed at enthusiasts who want to delve into the DSLR genre but are unsure of what to consider and how to make the most of their new camera gear.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In this series of posts I will be pairing the tutorials I presented with some behind-the-scenes photos from our trip.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Bq5f9sMJQVQ/VvpIuS5Bc3I/AAAAAAABWIM/im5jBBkwmNQArKqXh9rqw_8ARl_lKKc1Q/s1600/IMG_3756.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Bq5f9sMJQVQ/VvpIuS5Bc3I/AAAAAAABWIM/im5jBBkwmNQArKqXh9rqw_8ARl_lKKc1Q/s640/IMG_3756.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Behind the scenes shooting the video shown below, at Victoria Peak Gardens in Hong Kong</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd love for you to have a look and let me know what you think?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This first video is an introductory overview of the camera-and-lens combinations you can consider when switching from your smaller camera to the Nikon DSLR system.</span><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/92qZ4Wj_UgU/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/92qZ4Wj_UgU?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can see the entire range of videos in playlist format <b><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLr5KnmfikOdkjOdbu7HEobs-PBxrfeOSZ" target="_blank">HERE</a></b> (all shorter than 3 minutes per video).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was my fist visit to a proper "skyscraper-city" and the sights just about gave me vertigo! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IOMocCLwlSA/VvpLAf18LMI/AAAAAAABWIk/2w-Hxhz2xf0G3oRUC6EiKohJh37YsxaHg/s1600/HK1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IOMocCLwlSA/VvpLAf18LMI/AAAAAAABWIk/2w-Hxhz2xf0G3oRUC6EiKohJh37YsxaHg/s640/HK1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: #ededed; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 24mm | Kenko Pro Circular Polariser | f5.6 | 1/640 SS | ISO-220</b></span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers!</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com4Victoria Peak Garden, Mount Austin Rd, The Peak, Hong Kong22.273719 114.1439470000000322.2700455 114.13890450000002 22.2773925 114.14898950000003tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-41966218260787984612016-03-15T02:02:00.000+02:002016-03-15T02:02:58.484+02:00A day spent with a Lion Creche<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Every now and again, you find yourself having a day on safari that seems hard to top.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The 11th of December, 2014, was one such a day. My wife and I were on a quick safari to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park that straddles South Africa and Botswana. If you've been following my photography for a while, you'd know it's a destination that's on my travel list most years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After having a fairly quiet trip thus far when it came to big cat sightings (yet a trip to the Kalahari is always special and unique in its own right), we struck gold that day. It was all lions for us on this day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It started with us being roared from our sleep at 3am in the morning while staying in the Urikaruus Wilderness Camp, and seeing those same lions drink from the camp waterhole later as the sun rose (see the photo <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2015/02/joined-for-drink.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When it looked like this pride of 8 lions was going to flop down for the rest of the day like lions do, we headed north to the 13th Borehole waterhole to see what was going on there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There then found a gorgeous-looking male lion and a lioness, having just drunk their fill from the waterhole, mating right next to our vehicle! To see images of that sighting, and that particular male, check out <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2015/03/study-of-kalahari-king.html" target="_blank">THIS POST</a></b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This post, however, is about the other members of this particular pride. When the male and female had mated for another round, and their throws of passion died out, I looked across the Auob riverbed and saw this bunch approaching!</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7vlm5zzeUz4/VuXI15kLIXI/AAAAAAABV4g/niyD_cvIMos7cTtCGlcF9fjYi8x6PcMRg/s1600/_FAM2550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7vlm5zzeUz4/VuXI15kLIXI/AAAAAAABV4g/niyD_cvIMos7cTtCGlcF9fjYi8x6PcMRg/s640/_FAM2550.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This lioness was guarding a creche of 7 cubs of varying ages (we later saw that she was the mother of the eldest bunch of cubs), and she was marching them to the water at a pace!</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6kVKtmRluMo/VuXNVJ-AZII/AAAAAAABV4s/5RxbbcsU6GEl1Qmh7T-CaW28-7RKyh-VA/s1600/_FAM2561.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="394" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6kVKtmRluMo/VuXNVJ-AZII/AAAAAAABV4s/5RxbbcsU6GEl1Qmh7T-CaW28-7RKyh-VA/s640/_FAM2561.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The cubs spent quite some time drinking and playing around the waterhole...</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UX9nR_4rE1Y/VuXP6mwV1LI/AAAAAAABV5A/JtlyyCBTe9AbtbNkR9SqLKEZvtWKbUA5g/s1600/lioncubs_drinking_1_KTP_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="398" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UX9nR_4rE1Y/VuXP6mwV1LI/AAAAAAABV5A/JtlyyCBTe9AbtbNkR9SqLKEZvtWKbUA5g/s640/lioncubs_drinking_1_KTP_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Nikon D810 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR | f8.0 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-360</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After about 15 minutes the whole bunch moved across the road where we were parked and up into the dunes. We decided to proceed north to Mata Mata as we needed to refuel.</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vFazdoiiXlw/VuXUhZtE58I/AAAAAAABV5M/GBR2BdI0NwoskqrkdXda2fz5remalzWAg/s1600/_FAM2662.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vFazdoiiXlw/VuXUhZtE58I/AAAAAAABV5M/GBR2BdI0NwoskqrkdXda2fz5remalzWAg/s640/_FAM2662.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Seeing as we needed to return to Urikaruus anyway, we decided to check up on whether the lions had returned to the waterhole at 13th Borehole when we came back down at around 11am. Sure enough, the whole creche was lying up under a bush right by the waterhole again!</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvbH-j3bim4/VuXXBQzfjLI/AAAAAAABV5Y/tap0bjzmvB87GDY3bTmOCrL2FejmJUswA/s1600/_FAM2930-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvbH-j3bim4/VuXXBQzfjLI/AAAAAAABV5Y/tap0bjzmvB87GDY3bTmOCrL2FejmJUswA/s640/_FAM2930-Edit.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">They were going to be there for a while, given the heat and the proximity of water, so we headed back to our camp (about 10km from there) to have some lunch and a quick rest. The plan was to get back to this spot by around 14h00 and see what they would do for the afternoon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Upon our return they were still lazing about - but the incoming storm caused the temperatures to drop and the light to go nice and soft, which turned out great from a photographic point of view.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><b>Nikon D810 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR | f6.3 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-720</b></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>The lions had some shade - we didn't!</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At one point the smaller cubs began playing around in one of the camelthorn trees close to the waterhole...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xjpQRGfsUcU/VuXj-MguwWI/AAAAAAABV54/SxhT-w2Y4FYcHjqiw6f-JLopzWBvwPkzw/s1600/lion_cub_tree_1_KTP_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xjpQRGfsUcU/VuXj-MguwWI/AAAAAAABV54/SxhT-w2Y4FYcHjqiw6f-JLopzWBvwPkzw/s640/lion_cub_tree_1_KTP_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Nikon D810 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR | f4.0 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-1100</i></b></td></tr>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RxP0Lyy0o-4/Vuc9eKlC96I/AAAAAAABV6w/b8mh1sX7RyI-N-I3AD-SYL8ugJ87C_woA/s1600/_FAM3080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="442" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RxP0Lyy0o-4/Vuc9eKlC96I/AAAAAAABV6w/b8mh1sX7RyI-N-I3AD-SYL8ugJ87C_woA/s640/_FAM3080.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Afterwards, a couple of the cubs tucked into the female for a bit of milk - and she certainly wasn't having a great time between their sharp claws and fangs!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The weather was turning ominous pretty fast, and I had a feeling the lion creche would be on the move soon...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--75kuTtK1sI/VuXoGsgkhMI/AAAAAAABV6I/D-vXCAw5QVs6badd_hKt93187MqB5BRMw/s1600/_D3S2161.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="434" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/--75kuTtK1sI/VuXoGsgkhMI/AAAAAAABV6I/D-vXCAw5QVs6badd_hKt93187MqB5BRMw/s640/_D3S2161.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 | f5.6 | 1/400 SS | ISO-360</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sure enough, all of them got up and moved down to the waterhole again...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v1v-Di01e3Y/VudDBgJ99aI/AAAAAAABV7I/GpcN2hHSoPAU1Fsd46jXbztoIm_Xx66gw/s1600/lion_cubs_4_KTP_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="458" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v1v-Di01e3Y/VudDBgJ99aI/AAAAAAABV7I/GpcN2hHSoPAU1Fsd46jXbztoIm_Xx66gw/s640/lion_cubs_4_KTP_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D810 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR | f5.6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-640</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">...filling their bellies with life-giving water...</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0PCJ_6JsNVg/VudH2eUr5bI/AAAAAAABV7Y/miHAZP5oHN4ayQX_xqdMLUQp6AFDaNIrw/s1600/_FAM3168.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0PCJ_6JsNVg/VudH2eUr5bI/AAAAAAABV7Y/miHAZP5oHN4ayQX_xqdMLUQp6AFDaNIrw/s640/_FAM3168.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SipTR3tBOms/VP_YuaH__4I/AAAAAAAAlXk/O5Kd_OQsSUYRBngVA2VzrqlELCQDKbfOA/s1600/lion_cubs_2_KTP_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="436" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SipTR3tBOms/VP_YuaH__4I/AAAAAAAAlXk/O5Kd_OQsSUYRBngVA2VzrqlELCQDKbfOA/s640/lion_cubs_2_KTP_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The lioness then moved back across the Auob. Seeing that they seemed to have come down from the dunes on the Namibian side I concluded that they would head back there (their place of shelter) when the storm came in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The cubs played around for a few more moments, and then followed after her.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ou1Y_3rF6Q/VudMl8VSyqI/AAAAAAABV7k/K_OHrPzcNJ058TPrD1rnrWyI-uGhvfuxw/s1600/lion_cubs_5_BW_KTP_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="362" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ou1Y_3rF6Q/VudMl8VSyqI/AAAAAAABV7k/K_OHrPzcNJ058TPrD1rnrWyI-uGhvfuxw/s640/lion_cubs_5_BW_KTP_2014.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D810 | Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR | f5.6 | 1/800 SS | ISO-560</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We drove around to the main road leading over the Auob riverbank heading back north to intercept their approach as they made their way back up the dunes.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2njeKvz4AGw/VudP2VYg6HI/AAAAAAABV7w/rOqufbUKlhcffjqpJ56MTgr5V3yUh9DhQ/s1600/_DSC0770.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="414" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2njeKvz4AGw/VudP2VYg6HI/AAAAAAABV7w/rOqufbUKlhcffjqpJ56MTgr5V3yUh9DhQ/s640/_DSC0770.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 180mm | f5.6 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-1800</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As they moved away, we reflected on the special time we had with these 7 cubs and the lioness that took care of them. For the most part of the day, except for the morning session which was shared by about 10 vehicles, we had them all to ourselves because we stuck it out in the heat and spent time with them when everyone else was trying to relax in the uncomfortable hours of the afternoon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">It's worth putting the time in with wildlife photography! I always say - keep what you have.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Too often people see an animal, decide that it's too static for them, and move on in search of the next sighting...when much can be achieved by simply sitting, observing, waiting, and merely enjoying it for what it is - a privilege!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com8Mier, South Africa-26.017297563851734 20.2093505859375-26.473716563851735 19.5639035859375 -25.560878563851734 20.8547975859375tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-87257549663256216842016-02-16T01:04:00.002+02:002016-02-16T01:04:35.542+02:00Lion Man Love<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a crisp winter's morning.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Francolins were calling, announcing the unavoidable dawn that was breaking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Land Rover engine was chugging along as we slowly crawled out of the lodge grounds of Leopard Hills Private Game Reserve in the Sabi Sand (South Africa).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then the roaring of lions brought us on high alert.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We followed, and came across one of the legendary Majingilane coalition male lions, walking up the road ahead of us and roaring towards his brothers. His brothers answered!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmVmLklxR9Q/VsJTMTl46wI/AAAAAAAA3Ak/fgsFe5crhCE/s1600/_D3S5040.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="410" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmVmLklxR9Q/VsJTMTl46wI/AAAAAAAA3Ak/fgsFe5crhCE/s640/_D3S5040.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f4.0 | 1/200 SS | ISO-3200</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Soon we were witness to a reunion of these males - they had all been patrolling various corners of their territory, and this morning was their bonding moment. It was gloomy weather, but as I always do I just push up the ISO and let my trusty Nikon capture the action.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AQx5DaJXpFk/VsJT-TG13aI/AAAAAAAA3A8/067yLPADqik/s1600/_D3S5052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AQx5DaJXpFk/VsJT-TG13aI/AAAAAAAA3A8/067yLPADqik/s1600/_D3S5052.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f4.0 | 1/200 SS | ISO-6400</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A third male joined, and they started rolling over each other, rubbing their scent off on one another and just bonding like lion brothers often do.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_HnGKQMgGGU/VsJVGfScOHI/AAAAAAAA3BQ/566gI4pnM48/s1600/_D3S5112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_HnGKQMgGGU/VsJVGfScOHI/AAAAAAAA3BQ/566gI4pnM48/s640/_D3S5112.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f5.0 | 1/250 SS | ISO-5000</i></b></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jbqvuR1s5-Y/VsJWSxEuClI/AAAAAAAA3Bo/T9BBPko9R94/s1600/_D3S5140.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jbqvuR1s5-Y/VsJWSxEuClI/AAAAAAAA3Bo/T9BBPko9R94/s640/_D3S5140.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f5.0 | 1/250 SS | ISO-3200</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And then...things got awkward. <b><i>Very</i></b> awkward! :)</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XOgOdLECQ4/VsJWnykE_iI/AAAAAAAA3B0/MJlWrT1pekE/s1600/lion_males_1_dominance_SSGR_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="442" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XOgOdLECQ4/VsJWnykE_iI/AAAAAAAA3B0/MJlWrT1pekE/s640/lion_males_1_dominance_SSGR_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II | f5.0 | 1/250 SS | ISO-4000</i></b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And no, this is not proof that animals have same-sex tendencies (before anyone jumps on a bandwagon that this post is not intended to provide)...this is purely a display of dominance and is not all that uncommon in mammals. It's a gesture, no real action is taken by the instigator, and the purpose is to assert dominance in a setting such as this where there are multiple males in a coalition and some sort of hierarchy is ascribed to. It was over in a few seconds, and the males flopped down to do what kings of the African bush do during the day - doze off...</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eRSIRfXvzqE/VsJYAWYC7MI/AAAAAAAA3CQ/OkYB2tOq5ys/s1600/_D3S5183.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="378" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eRSIRfXvzqE/VsJYAWYC7MI/AAAAAAAA3CQ/OkYB2tOq5ys/s640/_D3S5183.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We moved on from there to look for a family of cheetah - but the sighting remains one that I'll remember for a long time...seeing these males and the affection they showed upfront, combined with that quick weird show of dominance from the superior ranking one, gave me a glimpse into the dynamics of these male lion coalitions that have so long been the staple of the Sabi Sands and Greater Kruger area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are you keen to experience the wonder of the South African bush?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then be sure to check out the <b><a href="http://bit.ly/WESeminar" target="_blank">Wild Eye Wildlife Photography Seminar</a></b> that I am co-hosting in April!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com5Sabie Park, Sabie Park, 1260, South Africa-24.928162807105849 31.510848999023438-24.985776307105848 31.430167999023439 -24.870549307105851 31.591529999023436tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-82738044322057941832016-01-27T23:21:00.000+02:002016-01-27T23:21:11.246+02:00The leopard photo that was 7 years in the making<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Leopards and I have a funny relationship.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've had to exert quite some patience to obtain photos of them - like on <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2011/09/when-it-all-comes-together.html" target="_blank">THIS</a></b> occasion in the Kruger National Park.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But this post is not about a Kruger leopard.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ever since visiting the Kalahari for the first time in 14 years back in 2009, I had a strong desire to see and photograph the elusive leopards living in this harsh environment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For some people, these leopard sightings in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park come like flies to dung...you see them posting trip reports on forums or sightings photos on social media and it's just leopards left, right and centre...but not for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It took me 8 trips in 6 years to even <b>SEE </b>my first leopard. And that was a very fleeting sighting of a male leopard drinking from the camp waterhole at Urikaruus under the floodlight in December 2014. We narrowly missed a good sighting of a mother and cub the following day (arriving at that specific waterhole literally 5 minutes too late).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So you can imagine that it became quite the photographic obsession for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On our recent safari to the Kalahari, the "streak" was firmly broken as we had 4 good leopard sightings. The photos were not spectacular, but being able to at least spend time with the felines that had eluded me successfully over 9 separate trips to this place (in 7 years), was very satisfying and fulfilling in the end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This was the first one - the one that broke the drought for me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had seen that a leopard sighting was pinned on the sightings board at Twee Rivieren rest camp, quite some distance up the Auob river. We decided to go scan that area for our afternoon drive. Seeing as the temperature was upwards of 50 degrees Celcius, leaving early on an afternoon drive to take advantage of the vehicle air-conditioning needed no motivation within my family...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Don't believe me on the temperature?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Check this out (note the time on the clock!):</i></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BhkBJo-exQo/VqkukMh5mUI/AAAAAAAAzWE/3SwW2vMTiTc/s1600/image1%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="584" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BhkBJo-exQo/VqkukMh5mUI/AAAAAAAAzWE/3SwW2vMTiTc/s640/image1%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Getting back to the story...</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We drove up towards the Montrose waterhole where the leopard had been spotted in the morning. We hadn't spoken to anyone who'd physically seen it so we just looked into every nook and cranny of the calcrete ridge on the left and in the trees and riverbed on the right.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suddenly, as we drove into a small loop road there she was! She scuttled out of a small shrub (where I would have never thought to look as it was so dense and thorny) as my vehicle came around the shrub.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ma7RB8HG8UY/VqkxXpBvudI/AAAAAAAAzWQ/hKZ9vXgWZ5Y/s1600/leopard_pose_1_KTP_2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ma7RB8HG8UY/VqkxXpBvudI/AAAAAAAAzWQ/hKZ9vXgWZ5Y/s640/leopard_pose_1_KTP_2016.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D4s | Nikkor 400mm f2.8G VR | f4.5 | 1/1250 SS | ISO-640</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was able to create a few frames as she lay down in the shade of the tree, before crossing the road and climbing up to the calcrete ridges.</span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Once she lay down among the calcrete, the camouflage was amazing. If you are ambling along on a game drive, even at a low speed of say 20km/h, would you spot her here??</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bW009PHQcSM/Vqky6f4DddI/AAAAAAAAzWk/8_tlrV5wpeM/s1600/DSC_8152.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bW009PHQcSM/Vqky6f4DddI/AAAAAAAAzWk/8_tlrV5wpeM/s640/DSC_8152.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even when she started walking along against the backdrop of this rocky ridge - she was pretty well camouflaged! How many people have driven right past leopards on these ridges so distinct to the Kalahari? Many, and I'm sure I have on my past trips as well. Even while we were sitting watching the leopard (with only her head visible), another vehicle came past us, gave a quick look, and drove off before we could tell them that there was a leopard!</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TyEOVqiOQeI/VqkzjnZfCWI/AAAAAAAAzWs/KXZ-w1bJMuQ/s1600/DSC_8170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TyEOVqiOQeI/VqkzjnZfCWI/AAAAAAAAzWs/KXZ-w1bJMuQ/s640/DSC_8170.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>What's the take-home message for all you avid nature photographers?</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Everyone's got that one elusive shot or species that haunts you - your Achilles' heel.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The only way to get the monkey off your back - is to go back time and time again to the place where you have the highest probability of getting the sighting and/or the shot, and have patience to sit it out when you're there, and the fortitude of mind to resolve yourself to the next time if it doesn't work out at that particular time. Don't give up!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This leopard photo was 7 years in the making!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com5Kgalagadi South, Botswana-26.281807620627248 20.31877266250001-28.115443120627248 17.736985662500011 -24.448172120627248 22.900559662500008tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-34973899752394461302016-01-01T05:30:00.000+02:002016-01-01T05:30:03.057+02:00My 2015 in imperfect hindsight<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As is customary for many photographers of all genres during this time of year, I started glancing over my portfolio of work captured during the year in hopes of posting a "best of" collection. I have done so since 2010, and you can see my post from 2014 <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2015/01/10-below-100-my-reflection-on-2014.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last year I took a very specific approach, only showing photos taken at a focal length of less than 100mm, to showcase my desire for including the greater environment in my photography (particularly when it comes to wildlife photography).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That being said, 2015 was a different year for me in terms of travel and photography. I had some great experiences out in the field, but not all great sightings resulted in great photography. I also took far fewer photos on the whole compared to the previous years. My total amount of photos "kept" up to this date compare more with the final result from years like 2009, 2010 and 2011 when I was more trigger-happy than I am now, but after extensive culling and weeding out of images I was not pleased with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think my collection below will be more reflective of specific memorable moments I enjoyed in nature, as opposed to groundbreaking new approaches to my photography and even a veritable "best of" selection. Nevertheless, I do hope you enjoy it. I want it to be an honest reflection of my year's photography, and an even more honest reflection of the memories built up. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Every year it just dawns on me more and more that these moments in unspoilt nature are getting rarer and rarer as wild places and natural habitat wanes and falters before the onslaught of the greed of man. I can only hope that my children will still be able to enjoy the places and species I am introducing them to now long after I am gone from this planet and they have to share it with their offspring...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Without further tear-jerking musings, here we go. Photos are posted in chronological order (date taken) and not according to personal favouritism.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As usual, clicking on the photos shows them at best resolution and against a dark background!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>1. Painted Dog Silhouette</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I seemed to spend a lot of time in the Kruger National Park and surrounding reserves (like the Sabi Sand) this year, indeed much more than in the previous couple of years. One thing that struck me about this moment, captured in January 2015 near Pretoriuskop in the Kruger, was that I've seen very few distinct silhouettes of the African Wild Dog (Painted Dog). The size and stature of the animal and their tendency to keep to the bush and grasslands probably add to this...it's hard to get to a vantage point lower than they are at the best of times. This image was the result of a long period of waiting - as with many of my predator images - for the subjects to become active towards the end of the day.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O9M7nWyxvmw/Vn8UnivbujI/AAAAAAAAy8w/FAS-j1a9UCE/s1600/wilddog_silhouette_1_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O9M7nWyxvmw/Vn8UnivbujI/AAAAAAAAy8w/FAS-j1a9UCE/s640/wilddog_silhouette_1_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f4.0 | 1/640 SS | ISO-200</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>2. Starstruck Windmill</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We spent a week over Easter with our family in East London (a city on the South African Wild Coast). We made a road trip of it, visiting the sheep farm of my friend <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiq9L2Z6vzJAhVH1RQKHfn2AngQFggbMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Frobsoutheyphotography.com%2F&usg=AFQjCNEWSQ8O_QNdAubbfXd2mxpbSWJQ_g&sig2=KSTlhCjaz2NTgdRMt2lwcw" target="_blank">Rob Southey</a> in the Karoo desert on the way down. The Karoo is famous for its extreme weather and starry skies, and it didn't disappoint! A hot flask of coffee and good company made getting these shots a real treat...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PoU1-Hc223M/VnAAq31VwqI/AAAAAAAAytU/g8aFxxou7zc/s1600/windmill1_2014_small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PoU1-Hc223M/VnAAq31VwqI/AAAAAAAAytU/g8aFxxou7zc/s640/windmill1_2014_small.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 | f2.8 | 30 seconds | ISO-6400</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>3. Nahoon on the Rocks</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our time in East London was primarily spent with family and having fun on the beach, but I did get the opportunity to link up with some old-time online friends for the first time in real life and enjoy a sunset shoot on the rocks at the beautiful Nahoon reef. The light did not peak as I expected it to, but I do have a distinct lack of seascapes in my portfolio and it was fun adding to them nonetheless.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LsNeOVptG1Y/VoBEnGgD6KI/AAAAAAAAy9I/H5FfiF3sydM/s1600/nahoon_rocks_1_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="386" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LsNeOVptG1Y/VoBEnGgD6KI/AAAAAAAAy9I/H5FfiF3sydM/s640/nahoon_rocks_1_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 | f16 | 2 seconds | ISO-50</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>4. Mare and Foal</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The aforementioned road trip ended with a 3-night stay at the Mountain Zebra National Park, a real little gem in the crown of the South African National Parks portfolio. I hadn't been there since 2011, so this was a good opportunity to spend some time soaking in the scenic views and getting re-acquainted with the interesting diversity of wildlife it offers. The park is named after the endangered Cape Mountain Zebra, and has been a huge factor in the recovery of this species from the brink of extinction. Here a mother tenderly nudges her young foal as the sun sets behind the Karoo dust.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nO0QYtrSNxA/VoBcE0LBhmI/AAAAAAAAy9Y/pbd817xT5k8/s1600/mountain_zebras_2_MZNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="402" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nO0QYtrSNxA/VoBcE0LBhmI/AAAAAAAAy9Y/pbd817xT5k8/s640/mountain_zebras_2_MZNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f5.6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-720</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>5. Gaze of Defeat</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I posted about this specific moment in detail on my blog earlier in the year (read <b><a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2015/05/all-in-eyes.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>). It just remained with me, a very poignant gaze and a privileged view on the end of a life well lived in the bush.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-owUOTjt0qxc/VoG2Nz3jmlI/AAAAAAAAzBQ/DohgL2z7eIM/s1600/leopard_oldmale_1_BW_SSGR_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="438" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-owUOTjt0qxc/VoG2Nz3jmlI/AAAAAAAAzBQ/DohgL2z7eIM/s640/leopard_oldmale_1_BW_SSGR_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f5.0 | 1/500 SS | ISO-1100</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>6. Stalker</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll let this one simply speak for itself. A moment between Africa's most adaptable and stealthy predator and me...with nothing separating us.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiT6EXSUeio/VoG1KNCLg5I/AAAAAAAAzBE/albSE8PIpZg/s1600/leopard_stalk_1_SSGR_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiT6EXSUeio/VoG1KNCLg5I/AAAAAAAAzBE/albSE8PIpZg/s640/leopard_stalk_1_SSGR_2015.jpg" width="444" /></a></td></tr>
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<b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f5.6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-720</b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><i>7. acroBATics</i></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In June, the Wild Eye team hosted the inaugural Wildlife Photography Seminar at Sabi Sabi in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve. Early one morning we came across an African Harrier Hawk (Gymnogene) acrobatically hunting for prey in the bark of a dead leadwood tree. It was a fascinating sighting, the bird really put on a display hanging upside down from its talons at times to break off pieces of bark. It was quite overcast but some soft light hit the clouds behind the bird for some colour in the sky. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eventually, when reviewing the images later, I realised the intended prey was a colony of bats nesting in the dead tree. In this frame there's one in its beak. Join us again <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/wildlife-photography-seminar/" target="_blank">next year</a></b> for this inspiring event!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HpHUz-zsznw/VoGhY5M_QpI/AAAAAAAAzAc/kVkWody9x0Q/s1600/gymnogene_2_SSGR_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="406" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HpHUz-zsznw/VoGhY5M_QpI/AAAAAAAAzAc/kVkWody9x0Q/s640/gymnogene_2_SSGR_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f5.6 | 1/1000 SS | ISO-3600</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">8. Painted Pups</span></b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the definite highlights of my year was being able to witness how the Ngala pack of Painted Dogs (African Wild Dogs) brought their 17 new puppies out of the den for the very first time. My wife and I were spending time with the EWT researcher Grant Beverly who monitors all the movements and dynamics of this species in the greater Kruger area, and perchance we happened to be at the den at the right time to witness the special moment when the pack called the pups out and regurgitated food for them and allowed them to explore and play around for about 45 minutes before nudging them back into the old termite mound they'd chosen as a den site.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9pGNSK7O40/VoGumM5DcmI/AAAAAAAAzAs/snKkUw9m7CE/s1600/wilddog_puppies_2_KNP_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="336" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9pGNSK7O40/VoGumM5DcmI/AAAAAAAAzAs/snKkUw9m7CE/s640/wilddog_puppies_2_KNP_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 500mm f4 VR | f6.3 | 1/640 SS | ISO-1600</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">9. Dust and Mayhem</span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A photo simply cannot convey the sensory overload and general madness that is a large dusty Mara river crossing. We had quite a couple of insane crossings during the <a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/" target="_blank">Wild Eye</a> Great Migration photo safari that I hosted in September with my friend <a href="http://www.andrewbeck.co.za/" target="_blank">Andrew Beck</a>. This particular one started after sunset at a crossing point close to our camp, so slow shutter speeds and high ISO settings were at the order of the day. After a couple of minutes the light was too bad for photography and we could put down the cameras and just soak it all in as the herd kept crossing, a leopard snuck past our vehicle to try and grab a youngster, and the smell of wildebeest adrenaline mixed with dust hung in the air. I will be hosting another trip in August 2016, so make sure you check out the details <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/safaris/kenya/masai-mara-great-migration-photographic-safari/" target="_blank">HERE</a></b> if you want to experience this bucket-list safari for yourself!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jkq74nXKQOQ/VoG0v4ywdaI/AAAAAAAAzA8/ZesdlJLlmqA/s1600/wildebeest_crossing_1_BW_Mara_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="388" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jkq74nXKQOQ/VoG0v4ywdaI/AAAAAAAAzA8/ZesdlJLlmqA/s640/wildebeest_crossing_1_BW_Mara_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 70-200mm f42.8 VR-II | f2.8 | 1/25 SS | ISO-4500</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">10. Graceful Grazing</span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This scene happened in my mind's eye at least 15 minutes before the shutter tripped. I saw the giraffe ambling along to our right, noticed the iconic scenery with Balanite trees on our left, and instructed our Wild Eye East Africa guide to cut the engine of our Land Cruiser and wait. I told my guests what I thought would happen and what kinds of images I was hoping they could achieve - and it played out exactly like I planned. This is the wide open space of the <a href="http://maratriangle.org/" target="_blank">Mara Triangle</a>, folks!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GufpXzobSvI/VoG5-I__q-I/AAAAAAAAzBc/pKR-w7TItLA/s1600/Morkel_Top100_17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="392" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GufpXzobSvI/VoG5-I__q-I/AAAAAAAAzBc/pKR-w7TItLA/s640/Morkel_Top100_17.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D3s | Nikkor 70-200mm f42.8 VR-II | f7.1 | 1/800 SS | ISO-1400</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There you have it, my friends.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks so much for reading along. I think I have had more "wow" images in previous years, certainly, but I like that I was really able to distill this selection down to key moments - in the end the moments and memories are what matter, not how creative you got and how much you pushed the photographic envelope. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps in 2016 I can do more of the latter. For now, I am getting ready to head back to the Kalahari, one of my favourite self-drive safari destinations. Look out for more images upon my return!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I wish you all the very best for the coming year! May God richly bless you in your coming and going, and in your life's journey with those you love most.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Morkel Erasmus</span></i></b></div>
Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-64806070475273912562015-12-28T01:36:00.001+02:002015-12-28T01:36:43.229+02:00My first dabble with a macro lens<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Again, I stand agasp at my ability to not post on my blog with proper regularity.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Or rather - I realise how much this year has ran away with my time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Earlier in the year I was able to convince the kind folks at <a href="http://www.nikon.co.za/" target="_blank">Nikon South Africa</a> to loan me a macro lens to play with for a week or two. I was handed the Nikkor 105mm f2.8 Micro lens, and proceeded to (try to) put it through its paces.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I must confess, I have always enjoyed good macro photography (especially of the smaller organisms that inhabit our planet, more so than flowers and fine detail on porcelain teacups)...yet I have never felt an innate desire to partake in it, to try my hand at it as it were. I knew once I started playing with this great piece of glass that there's more to it than merely sticking your lens very close to a bug's face. The bug also would have to sit still, but that is a totally different issue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Without relenting to too much text, here are a few sample images I was able to make during my time spent with this lens. I can definitely see myself investing in one of these "for the fun of it" in the future!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qw5o53D98r0/VoB0s0O1jKI/AAAAAAAAy94/Bmo_loEv3zY/s1600/droplets_leaves_1_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="438" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qw5o53D98r0/VoB0s0O1jKI/AAAAAAAAy94/Bmo_loEv3zY/s640/droplets_leaves_1_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 105mm f2.8 Micro VR | f5.6 | 1/100 SS | ISO-100</b></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_MLsS93JCLk/VoB0y96ivaI/AAAAAAAAy-A/ntghj9GAYfg/s1600/spider_aloe_1_2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_MLsS93JCLk/VoB0y96ivaI/AAAAAAAAy-A/ntghj9GAYfg/s640/spider_aloe_1_2015.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 105mm f2.8 Micro VR | f20 | 1/320 SS | ISO-1000</b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12.8px;">Nikon D800 | Nikkor 105mm f2.8 Micro VR | f11 | 1/160 SS | ISO-1000</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What do you think? Should I dabble some more?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-43573757419794624352015-11-12T23:45:00.000+02:002015-11-12T23:45:40.200+02:00Madikwe: May 2010 (Part 3)<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello everyone. It was with a shock that I realised that my last blog post was written in August! So much has happened...between hosting a Wild Eye <a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/trip-report-great-migration-photo-safari-12-to-18-september-2015/" target="_blank"><b>photo safari</b></a> in the Maasai Mara, jetting off to Hong Kong with my wife on assignment for <b><a href="http://www.nikon-asia.com/" target="_blank"><span id="goog_1567350003"></span>Nikon Asia</a><span id="goog_1567350004"></span></b>, and then attending the <b><a href="http://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/wpy/gallery/2015/index.html" target="_blank">Wildlife Photographer of the Year</a></b> awards in London, it's safe to say things have been hectic.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have not even had time to process many new photos - but I do know that I have also neglected to finish this trip report from way back in 2010, so here goes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you missed (or forgot) the previous part, you can catch up <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/trip-report-great-migration-photo-safari-12-to-18-september-2015/" target="_blank">HERE</a></b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Day 3</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our day started with an early rise and a drive out to Tlou dam to photograph the sunrise and whatever else may come across our path. I used the animal tracks in the mud as foreground interest for this image.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQBsNNqzgMM/VkT6Meq4ZGI/AAAAAAAAydo/x1Q-8wMLZ7Q/s1600/madikwe1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQBsNNqzgMM/VkT6Meq4ZGI/AAAAAAAAydo/x1Q-8wMLZ7Q/s640/madikwe1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There was no real activity around the dam, so we set off again, and soon we had an amazing encounter, on foot, with the unicorn of the African bush...</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JV-i2FoTm1M/VkT-EIB52iI/AAAAAAAAyd0/BP6Vag5xIm8/s1600/rhino1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="472" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JV-i2FoTm1M/VkT-EIB52iI/AAAAAAAAyd0/BP6Vag5xIm8/s640/rhino1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've spent time on foot with these amazing creatures many times since then - but you know you always remember your first time LOL.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Tm7sqd__-q8/VkT_TeaYnPI/AAAAAAAAyd8/XapdQSs8WbM/s1600/rhino2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="386" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Tm7sqd__-q8/VkT_TeaYnPI/AAAAAAAAyd8/XapdQSs8WbM/s640/rhino2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just as we were about to return to Nkurru Lodge to have brunch and pack up our rooms, we came across two gorgeous male lions in the south of the reserve. They were at the end of their morning patrol and just beginning to get lazy.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5rA3y5x4ZPI/VkUA2ChptfI/AAAAAAAAyeI/eU6gxLucFa8/s1600/lions1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="378" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5rA3y5x4ZPI/VkUA2ChptfI/AAAAAAAAyeI/eU6gxLucFa8/s640/lions1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After roaring loudly right next to our vehicle, and sharpening their claws against a tree - the brothers disappeared into the thickets.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7QrXo_UztFo/VkUCprO28bI/AAAAAAAAyeU/EbObmjzH8n8/s1600/lions2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7QrXo_UztFo/VkUCprO28bI/AAAAAAAAyeU/EbObmjzH8n8/s640/lions2.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And so our short safari to Madikwe came to and end.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Little did I know that this first proper meeting with <a href="http://www.instagram.com/gerryvanderwalt" target="_blank">Gerry van der Walt</a> would result in a great collaboration years later in Wild Eye - thanks a lot, my friend!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I haven't been able to go back yet, and maybe soon I will. The Wild Eye crew regularly host photo safaris in Madikwe, so be sure to <b><a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/workshops/madikwe-wildlife-photography-workshop/" target="_blank">check it out</a></b> if you are interested in visiting this underestimated piece of wilderness!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Soon to come - a 2 week trip to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, from June 2010. I am sooo far behind on these trip reports, but it's great fun reliving the memories as I write them up here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></b></span>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com0Madikwe Game Reserve, R49, 2874, South Africa-24.7604347 26.277707299999975-50.2824692 -15.030886700000025 0.761599799999999 67.586301299999974tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7419332018258281728.post-45856319237435687982015-08-19T06:17:00.000+02:002015-08-19T06:17:27.604+02:00Under the Winterthorns<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have been following my work for a while you would know at least two things.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. I love Mana Pools in Zimbabwe.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. I love showing the bigger picture in my wildlife photos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, I want to show you a photo taken IN Mana Pools showing the BIG picture.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's an elephant photo, b</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ut it's not really in principle just about an elephant - got it?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, have a look, and then I will discuss it...</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RMa9ENV7OTM/VdLNVwKXWaI/AAAAAAAAs3M/2Ep12dVnCck/s1600/elephant_treescape_1_ManaPools_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RMa9ENV7OTM/VdLNVwKXWaI/AAAAAAAAs3M/2Ep12dVnCck/s1600/elephant_treescape_1_ManaPools_2014.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Nikon D800 | Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 | Circular Polariser | f16 | 1/160 SS | ISO-6400</b></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I captured this photo alongside my guests as I hosted a <a href="http://www.wild-eye.co.za/" target="_blank">Wild Eye</a> photographic safari in conjunction with <a href="http://www.mwinilunga.com/" target="_blank">Mwinilunga Safaris</a> in Mana Pools. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You see, as I explained in <a href="http://blog.morkelerasmus.com/2014/09/floodplains-of-fantasy.html" target="_blank">this post</a>, my fascination with Mana Pools goes far deeper than just the wonderful experiences that can be had walking with the elephants, lions, wild dogs etc. It's also the ethereal beauty of these floodplain-forests and the immense and gnawed <i>Faidherbia Albida</i> (Winterthorn) trees that dot the landscape that has me in awe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I was going for with this composition and perspective that actually diminishes the elephant was that encompassing sense of beauty and awe, where the elements themselves combine with the wildlife to create a sense of what I was experiencing myself in this moment as I was crouching behind the base of the tree with the termite mound around it - closer to the elephant than I was to the perceived safety of our Land Rover...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's not primarily about the elephant. It's about the tree(s), the mood and the moment my guests and I experienced.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd like to think I achieved that.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd also like to know what YOU think...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Drop me a comment, tell me what this photo does for you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next time,</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Morkel Erasmus</i></span></b>Morkel Erasmushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03532653808817857230noreply@blogger.com5Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe-15.9371586 29.456993799999964-44.0714081 -11.851600200000036 12.1970909 70.765587799999963