Giraffe Sunburst

I've been making a point of sharing some photos of ungulates on my blog and Facebook page recently. It's so easy to share the photos of the iconic big cats, other predators, elephants and rhinos...but many people have more appreciation for the lesser-known forms of life in the bush and actually enjoy seeing photos of them just as much.

Giraffes are certainly an iconic African species, and frequently turn up on the lists of "have-to-see" animals for new safari tourists to the continent. They can be tricky to photograph, though, as their awkward lanky stature makes it hard to compose your photos in such a way to do them justice. This old bull was feeding on a tree by the roadside around sunset in the Kalahari desert one afternoon back in November 2012. Giraffes were reintroduced to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park a couple of years ago after being hunted out many many years before that - and they are doing very well, particularly in the northern reaches of the Auob river valley where this photo was taken.

I used the late afternoon mood and position of the sun here to add interest to the photo (after careful positioning of my vehicle). Stopping down my aperture to f22 helped me make the most of the sun's rays creeping over the back of the giraffe - creating the "sunburst" or "sunstar" effect. The incredible dynamic range of the Nikon D800's sensor allowed me to have immense detail to work with, even with shooting directly into the sun. 

Does it work for you?

Techs:
Nikon D800
Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 @ 100mm
f22  |  1/400 SS  |  ISO-900
Exposure bias -1.3

click on the photo to view at optimal resolution and sharpness

Morkel Erasmus

Foxtrot Fun

The Cape Fox (Vulpes chama) is the only true fox genus in Southern Africa. They are nocturnal animals for the most part, but in places like the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park you often get to see them early in the morning or at dusk. Towards the end of the year they start denning, and this is when photographing them can be at its most productive: the kits are playful and boisterous, eager and curious to learn more about the big world they suddenly find themselves in. This creates some problems for their mothers who are tasked to raise them alone...protection and vigilance.

This photo shows two remaining kits of a litter of 3 playing in the cool of an overcast morning in the Nossob riverbed, with mom dutifully keeping an eye out for danger in the background. Cape Fox kits have high mortality rates, as there are many predators, raptors and snakes eager for a quick morsel.

Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II
1.4x teleconverter
f7.1  |  1/640 SS  |  ISO-800

click on the photo to view at optimal sharpness and resolution

I hope you have a wonderful day!

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

PhotoShare: Kissed by the Sun

It's been a while since I shared a photo outright on my blog for the sake of just sharing a photo. Here's one I processed last night from a 2012 trip to the Kalahari. The first rays of sunlight were just enveloping this lone giraffe and I loved the mood. What do you think??

The key to a good rim-light photo is proper exposure. If you have time, play around until the histogram looks good and you have good shadow and highlight detail...

Until next time!

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

PhotoShare: Kruger Kuduscape

Things are buzzing by my head now at a pace so frantic it's hard to keep up. I am heading off to Mana Pools in Zimbabwe next week, a dream destination for me. Afterwards I shall have plenty of time to wind down and catch up on things like regular blogging, etc.


In the meantime - here is an image to make you think. How often do you just wish for a longer lens? We always tend to want to get the tightest, most detailed shots of our subjects...and we forget to think about shooting "wider", and placing the animal in the context of its environment.


This was an occasion where I didn't have "enough glass", but it didn't bother me. I have many close-up portraits of the graceful Kudu antelope. In this instance I had parked in the middle of a road going through a dry river in the Kruger National Park. It was quiet, and I was taking in the morning sounds and smells with my window open. All of a sudden, a herd of Kudu came out of the dense riverine foliage and into the wide open riverbed. Kudus have a knack of surprising you, being able to stay perfectly still and hidden. Hunters have long been calling them the "African Grey Ghost".


This cow paused and noticed me. I snapped a picture. This picture tells the story much better than a closer photo would have. Don't you agree??

(Nikon D3s, Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II)  f5.6  |  1/1000 SS  |  ISO-640

Morkel Erasmus

PhotoShare: Gemsbok Symmetry

We have just returned from one of my favourite places on earth - the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. Many of the shots you would have seen from my portfolio were taken there. We had an amazing time and saw cheetahs and lions every day. Obviously some sightings were better than others, but that's the way it goes.

While I dive into the mountain of images I brought back, here's a shot I took during our trip there in June 2010. I just love the symmetrical poses in this herd of Gemsbok (Oryx), and of course the sweet morning light.

Chat soon!

Morkel Erasmus

PhotoShare: Impala Leap

Hi everyone! We are back from a wonderful trip to the Kruger National Park. I am so far behind on working through images of previous trips, but I have managed to work through some images from this recent trip already since there were quite a few special sightings. I will do a lengthy blog post about an awesome leopard sighting we had soon...but for now, here's an image for you to enjoy.

This young impala male was leaping very gracefully at the start of its run, and I was happy to be able to fit him into the frame and also to be at quite a low vantage point relative to the buck's position.

(Nikon D3s  |  Nikkor 500mm f4 VR-II)  f5.6  |  1/1600 SS  |  ISO-800

See you soon with a more lengthy post!

Morkel Erasmus