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10/30/2024

October 30.. Aardwolf, Botswana.
I'd bet a lot of folks won't recognize this mammal, which isn't a wolf at all, but instead is the smallest member of a group that includes the second largest predator in Africa, the Spotted Hyena. BTW, Hyenas get a bad rep as cowardly scavengers, but they are very efficient predators that often have their kills stolen by Lions. Thank you, Disney's Lion King!
Enough on that for now ...
Aardwolves feed on termites, lapping them up as they emerge to feed at night. The Aardwolf is rarely seen during the day -- we've had a half-dozen sightings then -- so we were quite surprised to find this one relaxing outside its den. We visited it several times ... it was not shy ... although this one never left the den area while we were there. Incredibly, Aardwolves may eat 10,000 termites a night -- tiny little meals that add up!
Aardwolf, Botswana
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400mm lens at 180mm
1/200 f5.6 ISO 3200 - shot very late in the day!

10/28/2024

October 25. In editing today I came across the shots from the off-road drivers surrounding the Leopard. You can see the leopard beside the tree, and the small lenses that were being used. Two of the vehicles, based upon the tarps, appear to be on a camping safari, and not all of the three a logo on the door. However, one did, and I'll assume the others were with the same company - The other vehicle belongs to Avocet while another, driving away as I photographed it, belonged to Travel Wise Safari. Perhaps that one should be called We Don't Care Safaris. Perhaps someone in the Tanzania parks system will see this and take action.

10/28/2024

October 27. African Leopard cub.
On our last full day in the Serengeti we returned, early, to the Leopard where, last evening, we'd watched as several vehicles ignored the rules and surrounded the tree, off-track, where the adult was resting. We hoped that these uncaring drivers and tourists were aware that the cub was in the area, and their heedless driving hadn't run over the cub. This certainly happens with Cheetah cubs, hidden and well-camouflaged in high grasses.
Fortunately that didn't happen, and we had the adult and cub. While many vehicles -- and there were many! -- simply followed the mother Leopard and her cub, we were proactive, driving to a spot where we suspected the adult would go. They did!
While this cub is running, it certainly wasn't afraid. A few minutes later the mother climbed onto a tree right in front of us, joined just a few minutes later by her cub.
The key, I believe, to successful shooting is often to be Proactive, anticipating action or behavior, and not being simply reactive -- which is often too late. Doing so, you'll get shots, and if part of being Proactive involves getting into position early, there's a lot less chance of you disturbing the subject by simply following it.
African Leopard cub, Serengeti, Tanzania
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400 lens
1/1600 f5.6 ISO 1600

10/25/2024

October 25. Big day tomorrow, as we do a one-hour talk on the Best Settings and Techniques for Wildlife Photography with the OM SYSTEM. You must register for this, and there'll be programs throughout the day. Check it out!

Join us for this celebration of the 3rd Anniversary of OM SYSTEM! This online summit features several OM SYSTEM ambassadors

10/25/2024

October 24. Serval, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania
Most everyone knows the big, iconic predatory cats of Africa - lions, leopards, cheetahs, but there are several that are less well-known and equally exciting. One of this several is the Serval, a bobcat-sized, long-legged, huge eared, spotted cat that stalks the grasslands for rodents, birds, and whatever else it can capture. Years ago, while leading a photo tour, I encountered a cooperative Serval that offered incredible opportunities, but an impatient participant wanted to find something else and we left, pleasing the guy at leat temporarily until he saw images that our photographers in another vehicle obtained -- great shots of a Serval leaping high! Over the years since I've photographed many Servals, but never had a good opportunity to photograph a Serval actively hunting ... until now.
In the Ngorongoro Crater we found what had to be the most cooperative Serval I've ever seen, and we spent over 2 hours following the cat as the cat often stalked close to the road, or, moving out to hunt further, turned back to walk directly to us. It was an incredible opportunity and we had multiple chances to catch the leaps -- although we were more successful than the cat, who was successful about 30% of the time.
I used ProCapture, ensuring that I'd catch the jump and not fire too late, reacting as a jump occurred. With ProCapture, I fired as the Serval jumped, and with ProCapture I caught the entire sequence.
Serval, Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400mm lens
1/5000 f5.6 ISO 3200 with ProCapture

10/23/2024

October 23. Eland, Serengeti, Tanzania
The largest antelope in Africa, standing at least five foot tall at the shoulder, is a world-class jumper. When disturbed, a herd may run like any other antelope, but sometimes will leap high in the air. Its said that an Eland could leap over a vehicle -- I'd hate to be inside one if it didn't make it -- or a high fence. I've seen many leaping, and I'm convinced that they do so at times purely for the fun of it. This display, however, may also indicate fitness, to demonstrate this to herd members and perhaps to distant predators that might be tempted for a tasty meal.
Mary's vehicle was ahead of mine, driving on the game track which was going to pass by the herd. Sometimes, despite their size, Eland are surprisingly shy and run off, and anticipating that I put the camera on ProCapture so that I could follow with AF and also capture the peak action in the leap. Without ProCapture, I'd likely have missed the shot since, when you 'see it' and react, you're likely to be too late. The last time I was able to successfully photograph an Eland leaping was back in film days ... so this shot was a long time coming.
Eland, Serengeti, Tanzania
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400mm at 400mm
1/2500 f5.6 ISO 1600 with ProCapture

10/22/2024

October 22. While Mary did two Photo Tours in Brazil's Pantanal I was home, frustrated that I couldn't go but motivated by the images she was making. So, going through my files, I painted this Jaguar, an 18x24 acrylic on a canvas panel. To do the yellowish ground cover I had to paint over the spots, which then required repainting the spots, again and again as I did color washes on the Jaguar's body. This one was tough! And for sale, of course.

10/19/2024

October 19, and finally got the date correct.
In Botswana, at one of our camps, we had a wonderful time with young lions playing. A large waterhole graced the landscape, although it wa too far away from the viewing areas of the lodge to offer any productive shooting. However, what I didn't know at the time was that our vehicle could drive there, where in the first light of morning, a pride of lions played. Which included climbing onto the porches and stealing the pillows off couches of the various tents, and marooning some people inside as a lion lounged on the porch just outside their door.
Although there were other guests, we had this lion experience to ourselves as the other photographers drove off to find ... what? A bird, or lion, in hand beats two in the bush, and I seriously doubt if their game drive offered the productivity they'd have had staying at the waterhole until the cats tired and retreated into the brush. A lesson here: stick with the action, especially if it seems promising, and be patient, because there are often lulls.
Although these shots might imply the cats are chasing prey, this lioness is mid-way in a charge as it prepares to tackle a sibling. As they wrestled, no matter how serious it might seem, the cats nearly always kept their claws retracted, and boxes harmlessly and in play.
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400 lens
1/8000 f4.5 ISO 3200

10/18/2024

October 19, I think! Days are still foggy after jetlag! Anyway ...
Two Giants ... for their Class, as a five foot long Nile Monitor walks the bank of the Chobe River with the almost ever-present African Elephants in the background. Monitors eat just about any animal they can cram into their jaws, from carrion (I've seen them eating at a rotting gnu carcass on a shoreline of the Mara River) to Nile Crocodile eggs, bird eggs or nestlings, frogs ... you name it. This one was walking towards a Water Dikkop (Thickknee) that was nesting on the path the lizard was walking, and we expected to see a defensive, wing-raising display as the bird tried to protect its nest. Fortunately for the bird, it was late afternoon and the lizard went to bed, crawling into a bank-side burrow to spend the night. What would happen the next day, when the lizard emerged, is unknown.
I shot this from the Pangolin safaris photo boat, that has Wimberley style gimbal camera mounts on rotating posts and chairs, which provided for really comfortable shooting as we cruised the river.
Nile Monitor, Chobe River, Botswana
1/1600 f4.5 ISO 320 - these settings were not purposely set ... had I noticed them, or had time, I'd consider raising the ISO and stopping down for more depth of field ... at least for some shots ... but the opportunity was fleeting.

10/17/2024

October 18. White-fronted Bee-eater, Botswana. Our month-long trip including a scouting trip to Botswana where we visited three locations, and Tanzania where we did our photo tour. Along the Chobe River we were told about a Bee-eater colony and with a bit of persuasion, our guide reluctantly consented to taking us there, saying that the nesting season was over. It was not, and although we could only get there in the morning, when the light was challenging, we shot hundreds of frames.
I was using ProCapture most of the time and prefocusing on where I hoped the birds would pass, while Mary, I think, usually used SH2 and AF to try to keep birds in focus. These birds fly fast and erratically, and we had to frame loosely, so this image is cropped. I'll be discussing this type of shooting in that upcoming Summit.
White-chinned Bee-eater, Chobe River, Botswana
OM-1 Mark 2, 150-400mm lens at 250mm
1/5000 f5.6 ISO 1600

10/16/2024

I forgot to mention that Mary and I will be participating in the OM SYSTEM Summit 2024 on October 26. I'll be talking about the best settings for Wildlife Photography .... something that was really needed for a few photographers on our recent trips. Check out this link:

OM SYSTEM Summit to celebrate the 3rd Anniversary of OM SYSTEM Join us for this celebration of the 3rd Anniversary of OM SYSTEM!This online summit features several OM SYSTEM ambassadors October 26th 2024 (11:00am ET to 6:40pm ET, Zoom opens 10:30am). All times are Eastern time. Register here: https:...

10/16/2024

October 17. Home from Tanzania and editing has begun! We had incredible luck with a mother Leopard and cub, here with mom carrying the remains of a Topi. But this post deals with something more important.
At the airport, as we were leaving TZ, we got to talking with a couple who had just completed their safari and they were raving about it. On our trip, Cheetahs eluded us (we saw 1) so I asked the couple if they'd had any luck. Yes! And they boasted on how they were at one point just a few yards away as the Cheetah stood on a mound. They'd followed the cat for hours. So I asked them
Did you stay on the game tracks?
No, they didn't, and their 'wonderful' guide/driver went off track and drove wherever he needed to go to follow the Cheetah. Rules, that should be strictly enforced, meant nothing to that guide or to the tourists he was driving. And they were tourists, not photographers, so I don't know if that makes their behavior more or less offensive. Nonetheless, they thought their guide was just fantastic, and breaking the rules was fine with them.
I was disgusted, with them and with their attitude. I concluded my conversation after pointing out that that behavior was illegal, could result in the guide being banned, and was, ultimately, potentially dangerous for the animal or its babies. Cheetah cubs, when small, huddle in tall grasses with a pattern and coloration that makes spotting one difficult. Driving off road could result in inadvertently running over a hidden cub. I've seen that almost happen with a Leopard cub years ago by guides/drivers racing cross-country to follow the mother.
The Leopard shown here was extremely habituated, and walked right by vehicles. However, when it was resting in a tree several drivers drove off-track and surrounded the cat's tree. Again, blatantly breaking the rules. as their tourists held their cellphones high.
While keeping on-track can be frustrating, the rules are meant for everyone, and breaking those rules just encourage more chaos, and rule-breaking, which often results in more rules or stricter enforcement.
While we had a great experience with our Leopard, all of us had a bad taste as we watched those vehicles surrounding the tree as we headed back to camp.

10/03/2024

October 3. Northern Serengeti. Too busy to post, which I guess is a good thing but our success, with 'target' objectives as a focus, has been 100% - starting with a 4,000 or so Gnu River Crossing that lasted almost 2 hours. We were in a prime position - quite a feat concerning the number of vehicles that gathered-- and the crossing was dynamic, shifting constantly to provide a variety of different angles, poses, and opportunities. Sometimes Nile Crocodiles pick off Gnus, but none were bothered since the crocs have had a good year, and simply were not hungry.
Gnus crossing the Mara River
OM-1 Mark 2 150-400mm lens

09/26/2024

September 26. Chobe National Park, Botswana. The song, I've got the whole world in my hand, came to mind when I made this image, although here we're talking about the sun and an elephant's trunk. But you get the idea.
Capturing a clean silhouette can be tricky, as the legs of an animal, if not clear of the horizon, will merge, black on black, creating an image of very short-legged Elephants, or whatever animal that's involved. Our guide here, Walter, did a good job getting us, via our boat, to a spot where the ground in this vast river delta was high enough to obtain a clean outline, provided the Elephants cooperated. They did.
Internet has been slow enough, and my energy level low enough, that I've just not had the motivation to try dealing with slow speeds daily. However, this Botswana trip has been productive, and in addition to the Lions previously posted, at our last location, Dinaka, produced incredible play/wrestling Lion action. Here, on the Chobe, the birds have been great. More to come.
African Elephant sunset
OM-1 Mark II, 150-400mm at 250mm
1/640 f20 ISO 1600

09/23/2024

September 23. Botswana. Probably the best opportunity we've ever had in Africa to photograph male Lions drinking, in warm light, close. We were deep in the brush when we learned that the Lions were at the waterhole in Camp, and miraculously we reached the pool while the cats drank, and drank, and drank.
Yesterday I had no connection with the internet so I missed posting one of the multiple shots we did when the lions were in camp. Imagine waking up, and looking out onto your front porch, and there's a Lion!
OM-1 camera, 150-400mm lens

09/20/2024

September 20. Our 2nd full day, and an incredible morning. With over 1,000 images (ok, I over-shot) of this Leopard, it was hard to pick one ... in the tree, climbing down, climbing up another, on termite mounds, yawning, grooming, scratching, walking right to us, etc. Anyway, a great day -- maybe the best ever -- with a Leopard, with over 2 hours with the cat, by ourselves.
African Leopard, Botswana
OM-1 camera, 150-400mm lens

09/19/2024

September19.Botswana. Two game drives in and the shooting has been great- best ever Aardwolf and Side-striped Jackal, and multiple Lions. More to come.