HarveyG

I occasionally enter a few images over at DPChallenge.com
Quite a big caring community of photographers there and a a recent challenge to help lift the spirits of one of the members’ 5 year old sons who suffered 33% 2nd and 3rd degree burns over his body. Poor kid. The idea being that the images would be printed off and given to Dallas in a scrapbook. Lots of thoughtful images were submitted.The challenge allowed Expert Editing so a lot of Photo Shop fun was allowed.

Here is my entry of an African Stone Chat titled “Hang in there Dallas!” but with minimal editing.

Hang in there Dallas!

And one from my friend Leo in Arizona titled “AH!… a giant “taco eating dog”!”

AH!... a giant "taco eating dog"! © Leo Koach (Focuspoint)

Naturally the winner was Cristophe (gyaban) with his fantasy masterpiece “The Hero”

Check out all the shots here: “For Dallas” and Dallas’ Hospital Support Website

Lunch Lizard © HarveyG Photography (published on SigmaPhoto.com)

I lay flat on my stomach for an hour watching this guy catch his lunch during a workshop/getaway in and around Hoedspruit, Limpopo, South Africa. Used a Sigma 100-300mm f/4 APO EX DG APO HSM full-frame non-stabilised lens on the D90 (Sadly it is discontinued by Sigma as they have replaced it with a 120-300mm f/2.8 and I’m counting pennies ;p ) This gives me the effective range of 150-450mm on the DX small-frame sensor of the D90 (remember the D90 has exactly the same sensor as the D300s). Distance to subject about 180 cm / 70.9″ right at the cusp of closest focus. A “kit” 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 would also work as long as it’s the DG (full frame) that has that extra reach, and not the DC 18-250mm version. I shot a lot of my early work with 70-300mm f/slows and they are very versatile. A 55-200mm VR or any equivalent new 70-300mm VR DX/OS DC lens will work, but you have to get closer and often these subjects have a personal space of a few meters.

Note the low POV. Critical in getting more powerful images. I wished more people would do that with their pet images on Facebook!

The lizard polished off at least half a dozen insects and larvae in one hour. They are so fast that by the time he’s scampered to catch the fallen insect he’s half swallowed it already before you get a shot. You have to be spot on with focus and constantly alert. Shutter priority is the way to go and once you have mastered that go aperture priority but keep an eye on the shutter speed. At least double the speed of the maximum focal length of your lens to get a sharp unblurred image. In my case that would be 1/1000th (300mm full frame lens x 1.5x crop factor = 450mm x 2 = 900). A bean bag is handy as this big lens weighs 1480 g / 52.2 oz, and gets harder to hold as time goes by, however the POV is then slightly higher and perhaps not as powerful a shot.

ETA 2012/01/19: ID just in! Thanks to to Trevor from Hardaker.co.za Common Flat Lizard (Platysaurus intermedius) Possibly male.

Watching him snack bugs reminded me of The Crunchy Frog sketch by Monty Python:

Well it’s back to the grindstone for most of us. Hope you all feel refreshed like these little guys and have a fabulous 2012!

Splish Splash - Crowned Lapwings aka Kiewiet (c) H Grohmann photographed during a Workshop at Rietvlei NR

and all those togs that can afford the new Nikon D4 should have a blast at the Olympics with it this year.

Photographic Workshops:

Rietvlei is a hidden gem in close proximity to Pretoria (18km’s) and Johannesburg (38 km’s from OR Tambo Int. Airport). The reserve covers an area of almost 3800 hectares (38km²) and can support between 1500-2000 head of game. Currently some 1,600 head of game, including blesbuck, black wildebeest, red hartebeest, eland, Burchell’s zebra, waterbuck, reedbuck, springbuck, mountain reedbuck, steenbuck and grey duiker can be viewed here. There are other species but visit and find them for yourself From your own vehicle it is easy to spot these animals on the open endangered Bankenveld grassland plains. It is a relatively quiet unhurried reserve and well worth a full days visit. Rates are very reasonable.

Long-tailed Widowbird (Euplectes progne) (c) HarveyG Photography

The 60 km’s of tar and dirt roads in the reserve are fairly well maintained and serve for game viewing, park maintenance and for fire breaks in winter. Whilst a normal sedan can easily be driven around on the tar and most of the sand roads, there are some sections that require a vehicle with higher ground clearance. In the wet summer months I found that a double cab / bakkie with 4×4 or difflock capabilities allowed me to get into the odd area that I would not have gone with a family sedan due deep muddy ruts or washaways for fear of getting stuck. This is however the exception rather than the rule. Roads divide the reserve into 31 blocks and are well marked. A map, bird list and rules of the park are given to you when booking in. Rotation grazing is practised on the reserve by routinely burning blocks and using licks as supplementary feeding.

White-throated Swallow (Hirundo albigularis) (c) HarveyG Photography

4 well located Bird-hides (2 on Rietvlei Dam and 1 on Marais Dam with the 4th one centrally located on marshland) and 2 main picnic areas with braai facilities are situated along these roads. There is also a very special river crossing called Otter Bridge with some wonderful wildlife (I won’t spoil it for you, go and check it out). (continue reading…)

To watch the mothers and children initially playing in the mud was so much fun. Then the old bull emerged from the bush, where he was hidden from our view feeding. With a flick of his trunk and a subtle move of his body the entire herd stopped playing, as if chided by him, and then proceeded to regroup and leave the water sports in the dam to go dry off. It was inspiring to witness the interaction and intelligence of these massive creatures, and yet not a sound was made by any one of them. Read on to see an edited image and decide what impact that has overall.

Elephant Dust Bath, Nsemani Dam, H7 near Satara © HarveyG Photography

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Photographic Workshops:

I’ve had the good fortune to travel around Africa on my photo tours/workshops and see many camps, lodges, parks, hotels, conference centres and the like. There are only a handful that are memorable and make you want to return time and again. Not just the scenery, wildlife, facilities and peacefulness but what really makes the difference is the people. Seokama is one of those rare places where you can relax with family and friends and truly feel at home.

At the beginning of, and throughout the summer I visit Dave, Monika, Peter, Ryan, John and Tepa. The Waterberg is one of my favourite bush-veld getaways. Whilst there are dozens of lodge choices in the area, I occasionally need some escape from the pressure of only chasing the Big 5 for clients and not focussing on the other wild and birdlife, scenery that Africa has to offer.

Seokama Private Lodge is this escape.

Lodge Building. Seokama Private Lodge.

Sunrise

Vista

African Sunsets

Within walking distance from the lodge, 4 luxury canvas tents sleeping 8 on very comfy beds, each one with a covered verandah and an en-suite bathroom where the shower overlooks the bush at the back (just your head is visible!). A well appointed lodge with kitchen, lounge, bar and pool deck with views of the bush-veld savannah tucked amongst some beautiful mountains and landscape, a boma with Bush-Baby’s calling at night, has all one really needs to wind down. There is also a conference centre for hire, with facilities. Seokama has an abundance of bird life, especially around the summer rainfalls, as well as a good variety of game..

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