Trust your Histogram

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?

Yes.

The important thing to remember is that you need to look at the HISTOGRAM specifically.
The actual graph plotted for the data contained in your actual image.

DON'T trust the version of the image you see on the LCD screen, though.
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.

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.

Consider this image - RAW, straight conversion, no processing applied.

If, at first glance, you thought that I had way underexposed this photo, you were correct.
Yet, I had done it on purpose!

The setting was a glorious misty sunrise on the last morning of the +Wild Eye Mana Pools photo safari I hosted in July (read the TRIP REPORT). 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:

Nikon D800 with Nikkor 300mm f2.8 VR-II Aperture: f5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/1000
ISO: 250
Exposure bias: -2/3

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.

The resultant histogram:

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.

A couple of delicate processing steps later:

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. 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.

It's easy to overcook this as well and make it look garishly unrealistic! 

The histogram now:

The brightest spots of the sun can be blown out - it's the sun after all.
The darkest shadows are not preventing me from enjoying the image for what is ought to be - a moody dawn in the forest.

The lesson?
Know your gear well enough to shoot on instinct. 
Know well enough what you want to capture to shoot on instinct.
If necessary, read the histogram and interpret what you need to change to bring you as close as possible to a USABLE image.

I hope this post has been of help to you.

Morkel Erasmus

Under the Winterthorns

If you have been following my work for a while you would know at least two things.

1. I love Mana Pools in Zimbabwe.
2. I love showing the bigger picture in my wildlife photos.

Well, I want to show you a photo taken IN Mana Pools showing the BIG picture.
It's an elephant photo, but it's not really in principle just about an elephant - got it?

First, have a look, and then I will discuss it...

Nikon D800  |  Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8  |  Circular Polariser  |  f16  |  1/160 SS  |  ISO-6400

I captured this photo alongside my guests as I hosted a Wild Eye photographic safari in conjunction with Mwinilunga Safaris in Mana Pools. 

You see, as I explained in this post, 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 Faidherbia Albida (Winterthorn) trees that dot the landscape that has me in awe.

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...

It's not primarily about the elephant. It's about the tree(s), the mood and the moment my guests and I experienced.

I'd like to think I achieved that.
I'd also like to know what YOU think...
Drop me a comment, tell me what this photo does for you!

Until next time,

Morkel Erasmus

Elephant in the Mara

Hello everyone. I've been a bit flooded of late so blog posts have been sparse.

In the beginning of the month, I published a collection of images from my 2014 "photographic year". Though I always do this and view it as a useful way to assess my growth and artistic voice, I purposefully posted only images taken at 100mm focal length or less. You can read the entire post HERE.

The image I am sharing today NEARLY made the cut in that post.
During our +Wild Eye photographic safari to experience the Great Migration in the Mara Triangle in September 2014, we spent some time with a gentle yet impressive African Elephant bull who was leisurely grazing on the long red oat grass along the Mara river. He was right next to our vehicle so I was able to inspire my guests to really work the scene with their wide angle lenses. I am a sucker for an "animalscape" and having a circular polariser in front of my lens helped bring out more detail in the sky and tame some of the harsh late morning light.

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 24mm
Kenko Pro Circular Polariser
f4.0  |  1/400 SS  |  ISO-100

Do you enjoy seeing photos like this? Or do you prefer the animal to be larger in the frame?
Let me know - drop me a comment on this post and let's discuss...

Morkel Erasmus

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

A sense of Mana

I have just returned from hosting a Wild Eye photographic safari to a place that is cemented more and more firmly as my favourite piece of African wilderness after every visit. I thought of calling this photo "a sense of place", but it could actually only be one place, and that's Mana Pools...hence "a sense of Mana" felt more apt. 

I don't often get to use my wide-angle lenses in a wildlife context. You have to get really close to the animals, and you have to be able to shift your perspective and composition almost without barriers...and photographing from a vehicle just restricts you in those terms. Being on foot with the wildlife of Mana Pools is a totally different story, though. Many of the elephants are very relaxed around humans if you behave in the appropriate way and approach them in the right way (a qualified guide is recommended).

On this afternoon as the sun set in a hazy sky over the Zambezi river, our group was able to get close to a young male as he fed from the pods that are falling from the albida trees at this time of year. I let the landscape photographer in me dictate what I was doing here - working with the starburst of the sun peeping around the edge of the closest tree, and framing wide to provide a sense of context and place. For me, these images speak louder than full-frame portraits of your subject. I like the idea of reducing the animal from the main subject to just one of the elements in a scene that is all about the essence of the place you are visiting...where the sum of the parts is greater than the whole.

This image is a single exposure, captured while crouching to obtain a lower perspective relative to the earth and the trees, without losing the sense of the Zambezi river in the background. The elephant was quite close, but the focal length belies that in the distortion/perspective.  What do you think?

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 
f22 | 1/160 SS | ISO-4000

click on the image to view at optimal resolution and sharpness

I cannot more highly recommend this destination for the serious African wilderness aficionado and wildlife photographer. No other place feels quite the same after a visit to Mana! I absolutely loved seeing my guests on this past safari being infused with this same awe and love for this piece of unique wilderness.Our 2015 safaris to Mana Pools have now been extended to 5 nights, and return charter flights between Harare and Mana Pools are also included, as getting there by road from Harare just takes too much time that could rather be spent in the field (it's an all day affair if you have to be driven to Mana). Check out all the dates and details HERE...

Thanks for reading! Have a pleasant day, friends.

Morkel Erasmus

Sabi Sands: February 2010 (Part 2)

This is the second episode of my long overdue trip report for this safari I enjoyed with my wife. If you need to catch up on part 1, click HERE first.

We were up early on the 2nd day of our stay in Leopard Hills, and the anticipation was high was we headed out on our morning game drive. Our first proper sighting was a small breeding herd of African Elephants. They allowed us quite close, which resulted in some interesting photographic opportunities.

We hit the road again after getting confirmation on the radio that a male leopard called Tekwaan male had been found moving in a drainage line. Every part of Africa has its own appeal - the wide open savanna of East Africa is awesome, but there's something equally special to the dense bushveld of the South African Lowveld region.

The Tekwaan male leopard was proving quite elusive, after getting moving again the vehicles that were in the sighting lost him in the drainage line, and we had to do some searching of our own. Through some clever prediction of the heading of the leopard as he was patrolling, our friend and guide Marius Coetzee stopped the vehicle in a dry riverbed and we waited in silence as he and his tracker scanned around. Moments later, our quarry popped his head up immediately to our right, not 20 meters from our position.

We waited patiently, and Tekwaan moved down the embankment and into the riverbed.

Unfortunately for us, he proceeded to walk in front of our vehicle as we slowly followed along the sandy riverbed. Overtaking him would disturb him and we let him carry on his patrol. He stopped for a drink in a puddle in the river - which would have made for awesome photos from the front!! I had to settle for some tail shots...

He finished his drink, turned around, and strolled into the thickets. The end of a riveting sighting, albeit not the best position for us in terms of photography...

We returned to the lodge for a scrumptious brunch on the deck overlooking the magnificently green bushveld...

I hope you enjoyed this post. Stay tuned for part 3, coming soon!

Morkel Erasmus

Beach Elephants

I can't believe I haven't posted this photo on my blog before - but oh well, here it is. It looks like a pristine beach with idyllic white sand, but it is in fact the riverbed of the mighty Zambezi river flowing between Zimbabwe and Zambia at this point. I was sitting on the bank of the river in Mana Pools National Park (Zimbabwe), and you can see the escarpment of the Lower Zambezi Valley in Zambia rising up across the river.

The late afternoon light, combined with the hazy skies due to winter veld fires burning on the Zambian side, gave an otherworldly blissful feel to this, and this certainly echoes what I felt on this first afternoon of my first trip to this magical piece of wilderness.

I am returning on 29 August 2014 hosting a 4-night photographic safari with Wild Eye and Mwinilunga Safaris, and I can't wait. There is still a spot or two open for those keen to experience and photograph the magic of Mana Pools - you can find all the details you need HERE.

Techs:
Nikon D7000
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 120mm
f5.6  |  1/500 SS  |  ISO-640
Exposure Bias +0.7 

please click on the photo to view at the proper resolution and sharpness

Thanks for taking the time to have a look!

Morkel Erasmus

Standing Proud

Tall and proud he stands. Bathed in golden light as the sun sinks to the horizon.
He wants a drink, and he will get it, as he doesn't have enemies at this waterhole.

Elephants are special creatures. During my time at a research bunker in Namibia last year, I was fascinated by their various rumblings and communication techniques with the other elephants of the area. There is a recent publication on the National Geographic website where you can listen to some of these rumblings and noises, and see a diagram on how it works and what each sound and gesture signals. Check it out HERE.

Elephants are, however, under threat from daily poaching all over Africa. They are sometimes poached for meat, but mostly it's all about their ivory tusks. Nations around the world are trying to crack down on ivory smuggling rings and are burning their own confiscated ivory stockpiles, while banning local legal trade in ivory. Let's hope all these efforts will help, because an elephant is illegally killed in Africa every 15 minutes! On 4 October 2014 there will be a "Global march for Elephants and Rhinos" - and you can find more info HERE.

I hope you like this image!

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm
f8.0  |  1/400 SS  |  ISO-220

click on the photo to view at optimal sharpness and resolution against a dark background

I hope you have a wonderful week ahead!

Morkel Erasmus

Crazy Eyes

I wanted to share a quick image from my recent Chobe safari with you. I wonder how many of you have seen this kind of expression from an elephant before?

This young bull was enjoying a good frolic in the water, and came out head swishing and eyes all crazy. Captured from our specialised photographic boat, I was sitting on the floor with my lens resting over the side. In hindsight I should have gone to f8 for more DOF, but I'm happy with the sequence I got.

I was amazed to see how much the Chobe elephants really enjoy goofing off in the river...

Techs:

Nikon D3s

Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II

f5.6 | 1/1600 SS | ISO-1100

Full frame except for slight crop due to rotation (to get water level in front of elephant level)

click on the photo to view at optimal sharpness and resolution

Morkel Erasmus

Excited Elephant

Well, to call this elephant "excited" would be to apply gross euphemism to the situation. This cow was AN-GHU-RYYYY...and we were just standing in the road minding our own business. My wife and I were taking a leisurely afternoon drive close to Punda Maria in the Kruger National Park, when this herd of elephants appeared from the bushes next to the road, and the matriarch gave us a piece of her ear, I mean mind.

Whenever you do find yourself up close and personal with a breeding her of African Elephants - give them space...they are extremely protective of their young ones!

Techs:
Nikon D7000
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 110mm
f4.0  |  1/400 SS  |  ISO-800

click on the photo to view it properly

Keep it real!

Morkel Erasmus

 

Ungainly Runner

Hello there! It's Monday - so why don't we just gallop into the week ahead full force, even if we might look a bit ungainly after the weekend's activities? This lone giraffe was running past a herd of elephants at a remote waterhole in Etosha late one afternoon. In about 5 weeks I will be heading back there with my family - can't wait! I love using other animals in the background to add context to a scene.

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 70mm
f8.0  |  1/800 SS  |  ISO-400

click on the photo to display properly

Chat soon!

Morkel Erasmus

Playing with Food

By now you should realise that I am crazy about a little stretch of Africa known as Mana Pools. Not only is it a place of immense beauty and a real sense of wilderness, but the fact that you are allowed to traverse the floodplains on foot at will (and at own risk, I might add) brings a whole new dimension to your safari experience as well as the kinds of photos you can capture.

We spent some time with a trio of elephant bulls one afternoon, during which the oldest one would regularly get up on his hind legs to break off a branch from the highest albida trees around (see more of that behaviour here). The other two would then come closer and feast with him. This photo shows one of the guys snapping the branch after they'd stripped the leaves from it. On the high resolution photo you can see the bark splintering as well. Shooting with a 500mm lens meant that I had to keep enough distance between myself and the big boys to be able to compose the frames properly.

Techs:

Nikon D3s

Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II

f5.6  |  1/800 SS  |  ISO-2800

Exposure Bias +0.3

CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO DISPLAY AT OPTIMUM RESOLUTION AND SHARPNESS

If you enjoy my posts, feel free to subscribe to the blog, and do leave a comment here...

Morkel Erasmus

Kruger: December 2009 (Part 6)

Okay, so it was starting to drizzle again...

As we got to around the next bend in the road - we were faced with this sight!

We got to spend more than an hour all alone with these wet kitties in the lush green bush as the rain fell softly all around...magic!

Suddenly, presumably hearing something (potential prey?), the whole pride shot up like a bullet from a gun and ran into the bushes. We stuck around for about 15 minutes but couldn't see far enough into the bushes to ascertain which direction they were taking. We moved on...and found this cute Common Duiker.

Our drive would be completed by spending time with some of Kruger's famous big elephant bulls...

The weather was getting even more gloomy as we crossed the Shingwedzi river and headed back to camp for some lazy time...

...to be continued...

Elephants Love Monochrome

Hi everyone.
Don't you just love seeing a photo of an African Elephant in and old-school black-and-white style? I do. I think elephants kind of prefer being photographed in that medium...

For more of my thoughts on this issue (and some nice images), check out my post on the Wild Eye blog a while ago HERE.

PhotoShare: Close to Calves

If you follow me on social media you would have seen that I was fortunate to spend some time recently at a secluded research waterhole in Etosha National Park, Namibia.

I have a bunch of photos to process, but wanted to share a quick image here from the experience. One of the things I was amazed by (and relished) was spending time in an underground bunker hide right by the edge of a waterhole frequented by hordes of elephants.

This should give you an idea - the image below was photographed at a focal length of 135mm...and is only very slightly cropped for compositional aesthetics, taken with a "full frame" sensor camera.

Nikon D800  |  Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VR-II @ 135mm  |  f8.0  |  1/800 SS  |  ISO-640

I will try and share some more images as time permits. Be sure to follow along on my Facebook page or Google+ profile as I share images with more regularity there.

Morkel Erasmus

PhotoShare: Mana Dreaming

I can't believe how time has flied. It's now almost a year since I made the epic journey up to Mana Pools in Zimbabwe with Marlon du Toit. 

I am still working through some images captured there last year. Here's one I thought you would enjoy. It was taken at sunset on our first afternoon in the Zambezi riverbed. I was sitting on the river bank photographing some elephants foraging in the sandy riverbed. There are few things that compare to the light of an African hazy sunset combined with dust and an iconic animal. 

Enjoy!

Morkel Erasmus

Published in the Daily Mail Online (UK)

I was pleased yesterday to see a story being run in the Daily Mail Online (UK Newspaper) about a morning I spent (along with Marlon du Toit of course) photographing the iconic elephants of Mana Pools.

I was particularly pleased that they included a bit about the current threat of mining exploration to the area, even if it's just a mention of it. I specifically requested this be included because I would hate for these images to get exposure just for my own personal gain - this area is so special to me I want to be able to use my images to raise awareness of its fragility and the threats it faces.

You can read the article and view the accompanying images

HERE

To learn more about the issues concerning Mana Pools, a UNESCO World Heritage site, link up with the Save Mana Pools Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/SaveMana).

Thanks for reading this blog!! I appreciate every view, click and comment.

Cheers!

Morkel Erasmus

PhotoShare: Thirsty Elephants

I am busy with a new mono-and-duotone series of African Wildlife and will post some of theme here over the next few weeks.

This is a herd of elephants drinking from a waterhole in the Kruger National Park in South Africa.

Enjoy your day, folks!

Morkel Erasmus

The Magic of Mana Pools

Wow, has it been a while since I wrote a proper blog post! I'm afraid this one will also be short-ish. I still want to do a proper write-up or trip report as it were about my recent maiden trip to the magical piece of Africa that is Mana Pools, but I thought for now let me just share some images with you that might give you an idea of why I am so enamoured with the place after this visit.

Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe is a recognised UNESCO World Heritage site. It's a place of amazing beauty...with ancient forests filled with Ana and Acacia trees, floodplains with huge termite mounds, iconic wildlife and of course, the Zambezi river coursing along its northern border.

The place has a primal feel to it...it really made me feel like I was walking in a piece of Africa that time had forgotten, something reminiscent of the Africa described by legends like Livingstone and Hemingway. I was awe-struck and inspired by every moment of my 4-day stay.

One big advantage for photography here is that you are allowed to leave your vehicle and explore on foot. This obviously creates the opportunity for some very unique images and angle on your photos...but this is not something to be done without the presence of someone who knows African wildlife behaviour and how to react to potentially dangerous situations. We had amazing encounters with African Elephants, African Wild Dogs, a large male Lion and many more.

Here are a few images to try and convey what I experienced...

My photographic companion on this trip was Marlon du Toit, who plies his trade as a FGASA Level 3 Guide/Ranger in the Singita group (currently at Singita Sabi Sands). Our host and guide was Will Jansen, whom I can highly recommend for his knowledge of the area, his hospitality, his personality and just about everything he did to get us there, in the right spots for the best shots, and safely back again.

Unfortunately, there are a number of severe threats to this pristine location...the most notable being the granting of mining exploration rights (in classical dubious African fashion) for heavy mineral deposits in two tributary rivers along the Park's borders. Read more here at the official Avaaz petition, and please do sign your name, as this will go some way towards creating awareness and a call to action from the various role-players. This place deserves to be protected for future generations, and it deserves to be left in this primal pristine condition!

CLICK HERE

Until next time...keep those cameras ready!

Morkel Erasmus