Love Hurts

Nikon D3s, Nikon 200-400mm VRII @ 200mm, 1/160, f/5.6, ISO 400

Masai Mara, Kenya

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

In five days I am off to the Masai Mara, leading a group of photographers to go and photograph the Great Migration.

Short version?

I’m pretty psyched!!

While preparing for this trip I have been in contact with a lot of the photographers coming along answering questions ranging from choice of equipment to what the weather is going to be.

With any trip you take the weather will play a part but on a photographic expedition it becomes just a little bit more important

Obviously there is nothing we can do about the weather but knowing your gear and being prepared for, well, pretty much anything will play a great part in not only the type of image you will bring home but also expectations being met.

So, the question is this…

When you head out with your camera to do some wildlife photography – what are your expectations?

I gave this some thought and it is actually quite a difficult question to answer.

Do you head out with the idea of getting an image of a specific subject?

A specific scene?

The reality is that in wildlife photography nothing is guaranteed.  Nothing.

So, does this mean you can never head out with the idea of creating strong images?  Hell no!

Know your equipment.

Shoot what you see.

Shoot for yourself.

By doing this you will create images that are uniquely you.

But whatever you do not shoot for other people or what they are going to say about your images.  Do this and you will create images that look just like everybody else’ images.

This image is a perfect example.

When we head out in this particular morning it was so misty that we almost did not even bother going out.  I mean, what kind of images can you possible create in this kind of weather?

Well, apart from a fantastic experience of being able to try different things, both technically and creatively, I ended up with some of my personal favorite image this being one of them.

Just before I started writing this blog post I popped in to a wildlife photography forum where people can post their images.  I have not checked it out for quite some time and you know what I found?

Nothing!

Well, nothing new.  Nothing different.  It’s all the same.

I think the problem is that too many people shoot according to other people’s expectations and the comments they are going to get but gonna leave that topic there for now.

When you head out into the field what are your expectations?

A few days out from hitting the Masai Mara I know what mine are – I plan to photograph my experience.

Too vague?

Maybe not.

By doing this I will not be disappointed, I will have a fantastic time doing it and, who knows, I might just get a few great images in between!

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

Threesome

Nikon D3s, Nikon 70-200m VR II @ 200mm,  1/1250, f/4, ISO 320

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

I have said it before – one of the best ways to improve your own photography is to go and shoot with other, like minded photographers.

So, this morning I had the pleasure of heading out with a private client to assist him in taking his photography to the next level.  We spent the entire morning with a pride of 5 lions on a private concession to the east of the Madikwe Game Reserve and we had a fantastic time!

We found the 5 cats just before sunrise and even though a thick bank of clouds came in the way of some golden light, the diffused light gave us a lot to work with.

Challenging a client to up there photographic game is not only rewarding for them but for me as well.

It is just so easy to fall into a rut but having to try and stay two steps ahead of someone keeps you on your feet.  Photography is amazing in that there are so many variables you can play with in order to change your approach and having to think of different approaches to the same subject inevitably leads to knew ideas and new images.

Whether you decide to focus on new and different technical settings or just on the artistic side of things, I strongly believe that anybody willing to take the time to learn and spend time on their photography will improve and grow as a photographer.

Yeah, it’s as simple as that.

So, after a great morning of photographing lions playing, walking and hunting we returned to the lodge with a bunch of great images and many lessons learnt.

There are still quite a bit of clouds around but this afternoon we will head out again to work the sunset in whatever shape or form we get it.  You see, one of the discussions we had was how there are always, always, more options when you are out in the field with your camera.

Clouds, rain or the sun setting is no reason to pack up your gear.  I you know your equipment and you are keen to photograph nature you will find something to photograph.  The options really are endless!

Time to go and play around in Lightroom during our post processing chat and then off on our afternoon photographic excursion!

Will be posting more images during the week but if you are on Twitter you can follow along as we go!

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

Double Yawn

Nikon D700, Nikon 300mm, 1/200, f/2.8, ISO 6400

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt 

* * *

Wildlife photography is awesome!

Not only do you get to photograph wild subjects in their natural environment but you also get to geek out on programs like Lightroom and Photoshop to process your images and complete the whole digital process.

Creativity.

Technical.

The only problem is that I think sometimes we get so carried away with the whole gadget / gear / technical side of things that we actually loose the impulse side of photography.

The impulse to grab your camera.

The impulse to click the shutter.

Why?

Well, let’s face it.  Cameras and computers (and anything else with lights and buttons) are pretty cool so it’s easy to get carried away on a tech-buzz but I think the problem is elsewhere.

Critique from others.

That is the reason why we are too harsh on ourselves.

That is the reason we are scared to try new things.

That is the reason we do not grow as photographers.

Take this image for example.

Nikon D3s, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/30, f/8, ISO 200

The image is blurred, the horizon is (very) skew and I have cut the lion’s butt off.

Does it really matter?

I don’t think so.

The image is my own reminder of a great sighting.

The image shows a lioness, in her natural environment, running after something.

With that in mind, does it really matter?

Shoot for yourself, don’t worry about what other people are going to say and just enjoy the photographic journey!

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

In wildlife photography you often find moments that you just could not predict.

This was one of them.

Nikon D7000, Nikon 300mm VR II, 1/160, f/4.5, ISO 800

Now, apart from the fact that it is completely despicable that anyone would just toss a beer bottle out into the bush, this image did bring a smile to my face.

What would call this image?

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

PS:  No lions were harmed in the making of this image and bottle was safely recovered.

* * *

Was looking for a specific lion image when I found this one.

Nikon D3s, Nikon 300mm VR II, 1/160, f/2.8, ISO 2500

We were driving home after an afternoon game drive when we came around the corner the lioness and her two youngsters walked on the road straight towards us and then disappeared off into the bush.

Made a few quick settings and fired off one frame as they past through the vehicle’s headlights.

Yes, this image is all about the female but you cannot deny that the little guy in the top right corner makes the image!

Forgot all about this one, as it was just one frame, so it as great to find it.  Almost like finding R100 in your pocket after your jacket has been washed!

Until next time.

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

The best wildlife possibilities seem to happen around suck and dawn as this is when all the most sought after subjects are out and about.

So that bring us to, yeah you guessed it, low light ability and noise.

Having equipment that allows you to shoot during these challenging times and still produce quality results is truly priceless.

At the risk of this digressing to another Nikon vs Canon debate, the Nikon D3s has surely got to be the outright leader when it comes to photographing in low light.  In the past I have done a few post showing what kind of quality is possible as ISO settings of as high as 102,400!  Check out this and this post to see some of the results.

I have also done a similar post where I show the result of photographing a lion cub with a Canon 1D Mark IV at an ISO of 6,400.  Check it out here.

So now, yesterday we found the exact same cubs as in the above posts at the exact same place at more or less the exact same time.  Perfect!  A chance to give the Canon 1D Mark IV another go a low light shooting.

Check this out.

Canon 1D Mark IV, Canon 70-200mm IS II @ 200mm, 1/200, f/2.8, ISO 12,800

So, at an ISO of 12,800 the 1DMV did a pretty good job of photographing the little guy in fading light conditions.  As with the D3s shot, the sun was already down when I photographed this lion.

Before you ask, yes.  This is the final version which has undergone a little bit of noise reduction, sharpening and other adjustments in Lightroom so for a fair comparison here is a close crop of the original RAW file.

Still not bad at all right?

The next step is going to be to test the D3s and 1DMIV on the same subject with the same settings and see how they perform, in a real wildlife photographic situation.

Final thoughts?  The1DMIV does a pretty damn good job in low light conditions but I reckon, based on what I have seen so far, the D3s still takes it.  Let’s see what happens in the next post.

Any thoughts or comments?

Until next time!

Gerry van der Walt

* * *

Yesterday evening I needed to clean my head so I head out with my camera.

My goal was, apart from some me-time, to photograph the Milky Way and the African winter sky did not disappoint.

Nikon D700, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 25 sec, f/2.8, ISO 2500

Absolutely spectacular!

I am always amazed out how a result like the one above is actually very easy to achieve.  Seriously, it is one of the easiest images to create but more on that, in detail, in a future post.

After a few of these images I decided to test-drive a shot I am going to hopefully get later this week.  A star trail of the scene above.

So, I checked that my camera was pointing South, dropped my ISO and set my shutter speed to bulb.  Why?

• Pointing South – The earth rotates around it’s North-South axis so by pointing your camera South (or North) you get the circular trails.
• ISO – With a long exposure a high ISO will allow too much light into the camera and blow out the scene.
• Shutter Speed – To create trails you need a long shutter speed so by using a bulb setting you can keep the shutter open as long as you like.

So for my 10 minute test-drive image I got this.

Nikon D700, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 601 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200

It’s a start right?

You can clearly see the stars staring to rotate around the South point.  This was a 10 minute exposure so as soon as I get a chance I will be setting out to do the hour plus exposures.  Watch this space!

Now, as I was happily photographing the sky I was blissfully unaware of a male lion laying, literally, 10 meters from my vehicle.

I was busy with one of the long exposures when I heard the big guy yawn.

And it’s at that point when inspiration hit…

I just have to try this!!

I immediately thought of an image that Hannes Lochner shot quite some time ago so I repositioned my vehicle to try and get the Milky Way and lion in a single image.  Tough one as he was in the process of waking up and I did not have an external flash with me.

I quickly tried to frame the scene, quite difficult in the dark, and fired away.

With a 25 second exposure I was hoping the big guy would hold still so that I could just paint / flash him with the little torch I had with me.

Tough one and this is the only shot I got before he started moving off.

Nikon D700, Nikon 14-24mm @ 20mm, 25 sec, f/2.8, ISO 2500

So close.  Just not enough time to play with exposures and light!

If only I had noticed he was their sooner I could have played with this more.  Everything just happened so quickly!

I started a second exposure, trying to include the dead tree as well, but the big cat got up and started walking away.  Damn!

If only I had an external flash I could have popped it so I did the best I can and flashed over him with my flashlight.

Just made it before he walked out of my frame.

Nikon D700, Nikon 14-24mm @ 18mm 25 sec, f/2.8, ISO 2500

If… only… he… stayed… still… a… little… longer!

Oh well, at least I had a go at it with some interesting results.

Later this week I am heading out to try a few different things again but I am not holding my breathe for another lion in the scene!

Until next time.

Gerry  van der Walt

* * *