12/19/2012

Various Options For An African Photo Safari

By Brandi Little


Africa is an enormous continent that is world famous for its abundance of incredible wildlife at its many nature reserves. It is easy to arrange your dream African photo safari at any of the superb nation parks on the continent. If you want to get involved in wildlife photography, Africa has some of the best locations in the world.

Africa presents a lot of choice when it comes to photo safaris. The most famous locations are: The Serengeti in Tanzania, Masai Mara in Kenya, and Okavango in Botswana. There are hundreds of other parks in Africa with an abundance of wildlife, they are mainly confined to east and south Africa.

East Africa has the most established safaris that are enjoyed by thousands of visitors each year, the most well known are in Kenya and Tanzania. These are not always the best choice for a photo safari as they are often crowded with many other tourists jostling for position to get the best pictures.

Southern Africa is also fantastic for photographing wildlife. The best reserves are in South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. These reserves are less well known so they see fewer visitors, which makes it easier to get those incredible shots you dream of.

Botswana is a particularly excellent destination for wildlife shooting as the animal herds, such as Elephants tend to be smaller so you can capture pictures of individual animals easier, but you don't get to enjoy the mass movements of animals like you can in other parks. It is also less crowded as authorities limit the number of visitors at any one time.

The nature reserves are also a fair distance away from areas of population. So it is easy to go for days without seeing anyone other than the people on your safari. Botswana also rivals the East African reserves for species of wildlife.

Safaris usually use 4X$ vehicles with an open top so you can easily move around when you take pictures. A Land Cruise or Land Rover is usually best.

In terms of photographic equipment a good SLR is a must, with a reasonably fast frame rate so you can stop action. You will also want a camera that offers good image quality at high ISOs. You will need at least a 500mm lens that is reasonably fast so it can gather light, it can become very dark if you are not on the plains and in forested areas.

A good photo safari will spend an appropriate amount of time at the same location, returning to tent camps when the light goes. This makes it possible to observe the animals and get the best shots. The vehicle should stop and the engine turned off when shooting to minimize vibrations, improving image quality. Some pro photographers do their own African photo safari, which are a great way to learn or improve your photography. Take a look on the internet at photo safaris in Africa or for suitable safaris where photography would be possible.




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