Opportunities to get up close

and personal with wildlife

are abundant

 

 

Lions have a well developed

sense of smell which aids

them in finding their marked

territories and kills made by

other predators enabling them

to obtain an easy meal

 

 

A beautiful sunset in

Kubu Island


Photography

PHOTOGRAPHY: This area of the world is among the world's premier scenery and wildlife photography locations. Travel and photography here is truly unique. Due to Botswana's demographics - it's one of the most sparsely populated nations in the world - the country is very wild and starkly beautiful. Keep your cameras in a dust and most importantly, sand, resistant, padded case and out of the midday sun. A 200-400mm (or longer) telephoto lens will prove very useful on safari. Remember that wildlife behave most naturally if they forget human presence, so try to whisper. The best scenes result from patience. Please refrain from taking any photographs at airports, harbors, or government buildings, considered illegal in many African countries. If you want to photograph any local people, you must ask permission, and expect to tip them. It is best to check with your ranger first.

Many photo opportunities arise while you are in a vehicle. The slightest vibration may blur the image, so ask the driver if it is possible to kill the engine for a moment. You may also find a bean bag useful as a "tripod" camera rest. You can pack a little canvas bag or ziplock plastic and fill it with coffee beans for use as a lens pillow, then empty it to pack flat when you leave. We recommend a 100-400mm telephoto zoom. For landscapes or herds, we recommend a wide angle, 28 or 70mm lens. Remember that wildlife behave most naturally if they forget human presence, so try to whisper. The best scenes result from patience.

Be sure to take along plenty of film or video stock tape and buy it beforehand. Although film is for sale in Africa, it can be expensive and limited. For color slides, many professional wildlife photographers use Fuji Velvia, 50 for bright scenes, and 100 and 200 for low light. Also for color slides, Kodachrome 64 and high-speed Ektachrome 400 is dependable. For color prints, we recommend Kodacolor 100 and 400. Take along extra batteries for the light meter, and a waterproof pouch, such as a zip lock bag, to protect your camera from moisture and dust. Heat can affect the emulsion and color quality, so keep your film supply in the shade. Use an aluminum bag to shield it from the x-ray screeners at airport security, or ask for a hand check. Take extra batteries and adapters if you plan to use a video camera. Batteries are charged by the camp during the day when guests are on game drives. Electricity produced by generators at some lodges and camps may not be powerful enough to recharge your batteries, so you may want to take a recharging unit that works off the cigarette lighter in a vehicle, or larger batteries.

GOING DIGITAL: Many travelers are choosing digital photography over film photography with the big advantage being that you can view your pictures immediately on your camera’s monitor and delete any unwanted shots. Most digital cameras take some form of 'memory stick' or 'Flashcard'. These come in various sizes from 8Mb up to 2GB. You may want to upgrade to a 1 GB flashcard which holds around 400-500 pictures, on the "fine" setting on the camera, depending on how complicated the picture is. When on safari, where you must pack light and be able to carry everything you take, photographers must address the issues of charging batteries, storage and editing of photos. Be aware that digital cameras consume a large amount of battery power. Rechargeable batteries are a good answer, but require planning ahead for charging time (not yet always available) – and remembering to do it! While charging facilities are available in most lodges and camps, you must remember to bring your own adapters.

Keep in mind that the number of your camera’s mega pixels largely determines the quality of your photos (and the cost of the camera.) The more pixels, the better the photo. Quality is seldom a problem unless you want to significantly enlarge your images. Generally speaking, a 2.1 mega pixel camera will produce a good 8x10 print, IF you don't crop your picture to make your subject bigger. A camera with a large optical zoom allows you to do the cropping at the time of taking the picture. You may want to choose to upgrade to a 5 mega pixel camera for safari photography.

VIDEO AND DIGITAL CAMERAS: Charging facilities for video AND digital cameras should be available in every camp or lodge on the safari, as long as you have a standard charger that will plug into 220 volts. Please bring along enough batteries to last you at least three days of filming.