Shake it Off

All is quiet, except for the sound of doves and guinea fowl in the distance.
The sky is bright blue on a winter's morning.
I am sitting in an underground research bunker in +Etosha National Park in Namibia.
He approaches from the southeast, ambling like they usually do. His footfalls are quiet, eerily quiet, like they usually are for these giants.

I see the secretion from his temples and down the inside of his hind legs - he is in musth, an aggravated hormonal state which makes elephant bulls particularly agitated.

The bunker provides protection but you still feel small and powerless when an African Elephant bull gets this close. As he approaches the waterhole he inevitably passes by our bunker.

He sees us, smells us, whatever but he notices us.
An indignant shake of the head, and the dust puffs off him.
A deliberate trip of my shutter.
I have my image.

By the way, I chose the title of this photo long before Taylor Swift had a hit song with that name...

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 36mm
Kenko PRO Circular Polariser
f11  |  1/200 SS  |  ISO-900

This photo is Copyrighted © Morkel Erasmus.  
click on the photo to view at proper resolution and sharpness

I hope you have a fabulous day!

Morkel Erasmus

Lying down with a Cheetah

I often extol the virtues of being able to photograph wildlife subjects at eye level.

There are a couple of ways to achieve this, and the most obvious question that comes up is what to do about cases where you are in reserves or national parks that restrict you to being in a vehicle at all times...

Through careful vehicle positioning, reading the lay of the land and predicting the positioning of the animal relative to that can go a long way to achieving that high-impact eye-level image. Good use of telephoto lenses and their compression factor can also aid you here (parking a bit further so the relative perspective to your subject appears lower).

The use of special underground bunkers are also a recent development that have ensured that photographers are able to get close to their subjects and shoot from a ground-level perspective.

The most special and electrifying way to do this, though, in my humble opinion, is to be on foot with the animals. There are a couple of places that allow you to be out and about, and with the right guide present you can have a magnificent wildlife experience (regardless of the photos you bring home). You've seen me post photos from Mana Pools in Zimbabwe, where walking safaris is a big drawing card...but there's a reserve that recently opened up in South Africa that boasts painted dogs and cheetahs that are quite habituated to humans on foot, and they are still fully wild and hunt for themselves. This place is called Zimanga Private Game Reserve, and the owner, Charl Senekal, has gone to great lengths over a long period of time to habituate his wild born free ranging predators to human movement and presence.

I captured this photo of one of the male cheetahs of Zimanga late one afternoon earlier this year. I was lying flat on my belly in the bush, a mere 15 meters from him. He was totally relaxed - until an elephant bull stumbled upon us, smelled him, and chased him up (as Charl and I made a careful retreat back to the vehicle, haha). These experiences always mean so much more to me than the actual photos.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f4.0  |  1/320 SS  |  ISO-800

click on the photo to view at optimal resolution and sharpness

Here's a photo Charl took of me in action...

Those of you who are attending the PHOTO & FILM EXPO at the Dome in Northgate, Johannesburg this coming weekend, be sure to check out my talk at 16h00 on Friday afternoon (31 October 2014) where I will discuss the concept of context and creativity in wildlife photography. Come say hello!

Morkel Erasmus

The Handshake

Secret societies have it. 
Mob bosses have it. 
Elephants have it. 
Secret Handshakes...

My time spent in this research bunker at a very remote waterhole in +Etosha National Park will always bring back fond memories of really seeing and experiencing the daily lives of elephants up close and personal. 

Elephants are highly social creatures, and even though many of the bulls frequenting this waterhole arrived and left on their own, they never failed to interact with the other bulls around the waterhole, often spending long periods just standing close to others, making contact and rumbling off their tummies or drinking water. 

These two bulls were greeting each other and gently touching trunks. The giraffes across on the other side of the waterhole caught my eye and I tried to work them into the composition by shooting vertically. I just love the perspective here.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 200mm
f11  |  1/800 SS  |  ISO-640

click on the photo to view at best resolution and sharpness

I wanted to share this image today as the day of announcing the winners of the BBC Veolia Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2014 draws closer. This photo of mine was a finalist in the "Black and White" category, and I had high hopes for it. Alas, it was not included in the final selection of winning images. It was a good year for me as far as the "final round" of the BBC WPY goes as I had 3 single images and a portfolio of 6 images through to the final round (none of which made it to the awarded images, unfortunately). I am looking forward to seeing the actual awarded images and seeing who walks away with the big honours this year after my friend and countryman, the legend Greg du Toit scooped up the grand title last year. I will try again next year, as it's always fun to enter images into this most prestigious competition in nature photography.

Thanks for viewing! What do YOU think of this photo? Let me know in the comments section below.

Morkel Erasmus

The Dogs of Mana Pools

On Friday morning I depart for my favourite part of Africa - Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe. I am hosting a Wild Eye photographic safari to this pristine and ethereal wilderness area, and I am quite excited to return there...

During our maiden voyage to Mana, my buddy Marlon du Toit and I were fortunate to spend some quality time with one of the local packs of African Wild Dogs (also called Cape Hunting Dogs or Painted Wolves). Mana Pools is a stronghold for this species, the most endangered of Africa's predators (fewer than 4000 remain in the wild).

We located the pack again on our last afternoon of the trip, sunning themselves in a dry riverbed. We decided to venture a bit closer, and to do so meant we had to physically leopard-crawl over the coarse river sand for about 40 painstaking meters, with bare elbows and knees, carrying our cameras equipped with super telephoto lenses in one hand and our beanbags in the other hand. Progress was slow, as the going was tough and we also didn't want to cause the canines distress. When we were in a good position, still not too close to cause distress, we settled in and spent some time photographing their lazy antics.

Eventually, the alpha male got a whiff of us as the wind direction shifted. He immediately came closer to investigate. It was thrilling to look through the viewfinder as he bore down on us slowly, checking us out. 

Nikon D3s  |  Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II  |  1.4x teleconverter  |  f6.3  |  1/320 SS  |  ISO-4000

When he was too close for my lens to focus, I looked up, and looked him in the eye. 

Nikon D3s  |  Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II  |  1.4x teleconverter  |  f6.3  |  1/320 SS  |  ISO-7200

He walked around us, taking in our scent, and after ascertaining that we were not a threat to his pack, he did the unthinkable - he flopped down a mere 15 meters from where we were still lying motionless.

It was epic. 
It was a moment that forever changed the way I see wildlife photography (well, that whole Mana Pools trip changed the way I see wildlife photography, to be honest). 

Nikon D3s  |  Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II  |  f5.6  |  1/400 SS  |  ISO-2500

To make such a direct connection with our subject was a revelation to myself and to Marlon.
We came back and vowed to share the "Mana Magic" with others.
On Friday I am going back to do just that...and hopefully the Dogs will be obliging again!

If you want to join us on our adventures in Mana Pools in 2015, then check out the details HERE.

Thanks, as always, for reading my ramblings. I'll catch you on the flipside!

Morkel Erasmus

An Elephantine Moment

Wildlife photography, to me, is about telling the stories of nature and conveying a sense of the wonder of God's creation to my viewers. As a photographer, you need to be able to use all the tools at your disposal to do this. Besides the obvious - your camera and lens and the right settings for the shot you envision - you need to sometimes resort to cropping and post-processing techniques to "bring out" the story in the photo.

This photo of elephants drinking life-giving water was taken from an underground research bunker in Etosha National Park, Namibia. 

I was using a Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 lens, but even after capturing the tender moment of the young calf drinking between his protective mother's legs, I felt that it needed an extra touch. 

I cropped to eliminate distracting elements - in this case the sky, the other elephants (as much as possible) and some of the foreground. Mom wasn't as important to me as the young one, so it wasn't necessary for me to have "all of her" in the frame. Not much I can do about the giraffe you see through her legs in the background, though. I also wanted to convert this to monochrome to avoid the brighter colours drawing your eye from the cute calf who was in the shade.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 200mm
f8.0  |  1/250 SS  |  ISO-900

Let me know what you think!
Thanks for looking, and have a blessed week my friends.

Morkel Erasmus

Big Splash

I hope you're not tired of me posting about my awesome trip to Zimanga Private Game Reserve yet? Indulge me one more...

I absolutely love being able to shoot at eye level with my subjects. It makes the photo come alive in a way that shooting from the normally elevated position of a vehicle just cannot do. Given, you can get some nice eye-level shots through clever vehicle positioning and using the lay of the land to your advantage. Often, however, the only way to achieve this is to get out and get dirty by lying on the ground (if the reserve you are in allows this). 

I was able to do just that at Zimanga last weekend as we photographed their dominant Hippo bull thrashing about in the Hlambanyathi dam in sweet golden afternoon light. This spot was next to their new "Lagoon Hide" which is currently under construction and which would definitely warrant a return visit! I wanted to focus on the facial expressions of the Hippo and on the resultant splashes, so I fitted the 1.4x teleconverter to my lens for this session. The one concern with these shots is that the camera autofocus will lock onto some of the bigger water splashes that fly towards you, rendering your actual subject out of focus behind the splash.

I think this one came out alright, don't you? This is pretty much full frame from the camera.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
1.4x teleconverter
f9.0  |  1/1000 SS  |  ISO-1600

click on the photo to display at optimal sharpness and resolution

As always, I appreciate your time and attention. Have a superb day!

Morkel Erasmus

Zimanga Wolfpack

Sticking with my recent trip to Zimanga Private Game Reserve...

The majority of photos coming from people who were fortunate to visit Zimanga leading up to their official opening in July 2014 have shown the fabulous photos obtainable from the bird hides currently in operation on the reserve. If you follow the reserve's Facebook Page, though, you would have seen that there's more to Zimanga than just birds. Charl Senekal has built up a gem of a reserve over the years where there's a wonderful immersive bush experience to be had. For me - a wildlife nut who enjoys to photograph birds now and again - being on foot with the resident Cheetahs and local pack of African Wild Dogs was an even better prospect.

I captured this photo one morning after we were relentlessly tracking the pack of "Painted Wolves" as they were hunting in the thickets and valleys of the reserve. These animals are the most endangered of Africa's predators. We eventually caught up with them as they finished a small kill. We approached them on foot, and as they came out onto the road I was able to lie flat down on my side and capture an image that framed them with the natural dense foliage of the area they were in, complemented by the morning light filtering through the tree canopy as well as the very low angle I was able to achieve. I can't wait to get back there and spend more time with this pack of impressive canines!

I left the collar on the one on the left...easy to clone out though if that's your thing. This pack is monitored by the reserve management and the Wildlife ACT volunteers - adults from this pack have been used to successfully repopulate various reserves across South Africa at no cost, also adding valuable genetic variation to regions with limited genetic variation - a good beacon of hope for Africa's most endangered predator. I have tremendous respect and appreciation for the way in which Charl is managing his wild dogs and using them to aid in bolstering the genetic pool of Wild Dogs in other reserves in South Africa.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f4.0  |  1/640 SS  |  ISO-400

click on the photo to display at optimal resolution and sharpness

Thanks for your time! I hope you enjoyed this image.

Morkel Erasmus

Lady of the Dunes

It's almost Kalahari time for me and my family again. By now you already know that I love the place. The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park takes a bit of your heart every time you visit - and you return to try and get it back, but you leave even more behind every time. Where else can you see a lion in this setting, right beside your vehicle?

Getting a low angle perspective is critical to increase the impact of your wildlife photos. So much of wildlife photography is done shooting "down" from your position in a vehicle, and in most places getting out isn't really allowed, so being able to position yourself to get this kind of perspective on your subject is first prize!

Techs:

Canon 7D

Canon 100-400mm L IS USM @ 340mm

f5.6  |  1/1000 SS  |  ISO-1600

click on the photo to display properly

To find out more about booking your own trip to the Kgalagadi one day, check out these links:
South African National Parks
Ta Shebube Lodges

Until I write again - keep clicking!

Morkel Erasmus

Kalahari Kinky

Wildlife behaviour is a treat to observe and photograph. Yes, there are many many mundane moments where you just have to sit and wait it out. Take sleeping lions, for example...boring...until they suddenly get up and stalk something that ambles by. If you really want to capture some interesting - almost anthropomorphic behaviour - you need to pay attention to the smaller critters of the bush. The primates and the squirrels are good examples.

This photo shows a trio of Ground Squirrels in the Kalahari desert (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park) engaged in mutual social grooming...at least that's what the textbook tells us is happening...but what's the first thing that comes to mind when you see this frame? LOL

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
f8.0  |  1/1000 SS  |  ISO-450

click on the photo to display properly

Until next time...keep - uhm - grooming!

Morkel Erasmus

Pastel Lion

This young male lion was photographed from an underground bunker hide in the Etosha National Park, Namibia. I got up at the crack of dawn to see two young males approaching the waterhole. I grabbed my cameras and ran to the bunker. What followed was a beautiful sighting in beautiful light! At this point, a few minutes later, one of the young males walked right up to the opening where I was shooting from. 

I was able to capture this frame using a 140mm focal length, and it's pretty much uncropped. In order to get those lovely colours in the sky on the horizon, I needed to blend back a darker exposure of the same RAW file using luminosity masks. I hope you like it!

Techs:

Nikon D800

Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 140mm

f4.0 | 1/200 SS | ISO-560

Do click on the photo to view it properly.

Morkel Erasmus