Hi Everyone,

Thanks to Pete for taking the time to write this piece. Every time I go through it, I find that I enjoy it more. I do have a question though...using a full frame DSLR like the 1ds, how close were you to some of these critters?

"It was useful when I was in the hide, but the game viewing was so intimate I needed the 70-200 f2.8 more often. I also suffered with the dust as I only had one body (I can't afford a second 1DS Mk2). "

James

Hi James

Thanks for your kind words! I hope it is enjoyable (although short!) In answer to your question;

On safari we had a guide who drove the 4x4 - he was responsible for finding the game to view, the commentary on all the stupid questions we ask as tourists (how old is it, how much do they eat etc etc) and getting us the best view possible. To help him he has a tracker - usually a young apprentice that sits on the back of the 4x4 on a seat next to the spare wheel - he is given the job of trying to spot things that the guide misses as he is concentrating on driving. He has a vary tenuous position as he is sat outback with no protection. Our guide "Bashi" was one of the most experienced guides I have met. He left no question unanswered and knew the area so well he could always find what you wanted (no mean feet in 20,000 acres!) Now our tracker was fairly new and he was frightened of leopard and lion. We sat watching a lioness and her cubs one afternoon when the lioness moved on - she walked past our 4x4 into the bush but wasn't followed by her 3 cubs so she ended up coming back for them right past our tracker. As she got level she stopped and called them by which time her head was probably less than 12 inches away from my trackers rear end - I had stopped taking pictures as I didn't want to startle her and as I glanced at our tracker he had gone so pale I though he might pass out. The picture of one her naughty cubs is in the article (the one pulling the funny face - they had found something that smelt bad and didn't want to leave it) You obviously need to have a certain amount of common sense in when and where to take pictures.

The following day we were following a leopard and just as I was setting myself up for a beautiful shot of it drinking - it took exception to us and charged the 4x4. We were side on to it and it ran straight towards the back of the truck towards our tracker who went deathly pale again. He allowed himself a nervous grin only once he was sure that he had both arms and legs. This time I could have stroked it if I had put my hand out. Unfortunatley this time events were quicker than I and I didn't get the shot.

The final time of note was when we were watching a herd of elephants in the river. When they had finished drinking they all walked past the 4x4 but started to edge closer. We had been allowed out of the vehicle to get a better view but when the matriarch came towards us, Bashi asked that we quietly returned to the truck. It slowly ambered up and then stopped its enormous body almost leaning alongside us. It then sniffed all four of us slowly and deliberatley its trunk flicking around our heads. Whether it was his aftershave or not this grand matriarch seemed to prefer the smell of our poor tracker who had to sit perfectly still with his body almost next to two huge tusks. Quite incredible! I think he was pleased when Jane and I left the country!

This pictures show us with one of our many flat tyres. Just to the right of Jane (on the right hand side of the picture) you can see a small seat and cushion - this is the trackers seat - totally exposed! You can also see that with no doors you get fabulous views but are open to the elements (ie dust) and also to wayward elephants!



So if you bear in mind I struggled with the 300mm lens as it was too long for most shots you can get an idea that I was really close. None of the pictures I have submitted are cropped - they are all full frame. The only time I needed a longer lens was for some of the shots of birds (although all the ones I have included in the article are on the 300mm).

If anyone is interested in going to Mashatu I will happily forward details - it is quite honestly the best game viewing I have ever had. Its going to be very hard to beat that.

"As she got level she stopped and called them by which time her head was probably less than 12 inches away from my trackers rear end -"

This is a pretty impressive account. I am surprised that there are not more injuries while on Safari. Your poor guide sounds like he was one step short of ending his career on a couple of occasions.

James

Hi from a new member,
I have been on a few safaris, (Ruaha, Tanzania, South Africa and have just come back to the UK after a week in Etosha, Namibia). I generally love the experience, apart from one thing, I absolutely hate seeing a kill. I know its natural etc. etc. but everytime I see lions when they are in their hunting mode, I just think about the potential victim's and what they will experience if caught. I love the beauty of Giraffe's and Zebras and the fear of seeing one caught and eaten ruins the experience and enjoyment of the trip often. I had a bad experience in Ruaha. I was syaying at Mwaguisi Sand River camp and the Lodge owner was always out looking for Lions 'interacting' with the Buffalo. It just upset's me and I was always hoping that nothing would happen!

Hey Wingnut,

I totally agree with you - although once I am looking through the lens I do feel a certain emotional detachment as I concentrate on technique to try and get "the shot". My wife is very sensitive to it - we could hear her shout "oh no" 20 metres underwater when we were diving in the Maldives when she saw a fish get eaten!

Howdy Everyone (Another newbie)
Great article Pete!
I have been on a few safaris now and while I have never seen an 'actual' kill I have have been there shortly after. I agree that its not a pleasant thing to watch, but I can also sympathise with the detachment aspect when viewing from the lens. I have some shots from my first experience but I am in no hurry to add to them. Having said this though there is certainly something to seeing lions do what they do best; Hunt. The best example being one day we were in an open land rover in Mala Mala (South Africa) and were in a dry creek bed in a slight ravine. Moments later 2 lioness came charging through the bush very close to us. We were the last straw for them and they gave up the chase but you could almost see their adrenalin pumping. The intense gazes, twitching nose, muscles rippling. It made a stark contrast to the usual languid daytime lions we had been viewing. It was a very primal moment. This then brings up the other side of the argument. In this case the lioness looked in good condition but what about the energy levels expended by Cheetah to capture their prey. A female with cubs misses a few missed meals and they can be in serious trouble. There are 2 sides to every story, both with tragic, unsettling endings. Its a personal decision as to whether you take the shot though.

Hi

I'm glad you liked the article. It was like being back at school trying to put words together! I am currently trying to persuade my wife to go back to Botswana (up to the Okavango Delta) but she is not keen on safari by mokoro (dugout canoe) as someone I know was killed in a hippo attack/accident a couple of years ago. (Mind you - I also want to go cage diving off South Africa to see Great Whites and she is not keen on that either!)

In defence of people who watch any predator hunt I guess that its the only time where you see a raw animal instinct take over. As Cain said its the time when all the adrenalin takes over and they are totally pumped up. I once watched a solitary lioness kill a zebra on the shore of Lake Nakuru in Kenya she then had to drag it in the midday sun to her three cubs who were hiding almost a mile away. She was exhausted after a long chase and although she had disembowelled it to make it lighter she could only go about 10 metres before collapsing. It took a long time to make it "home". It wasn't the kill that enthralled me it was the determination in her face to get back to her family.