safari soon

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Sam
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:D well im off to kenya in 3 weeks for a safari, the kit im taking with me is:
nikon d90
nikon d50
nikon 70-200 vr
1.7 and 1.4x
tokina 12-24
lots of batteries cards etc
beanbag and monopod

can anybody suggest if im missing anything, or has any tips for shooting out in the wild

sam
 
I would leave the monopod at home, don't forget a pillow case to change the lenses in as can be quite dusty above all enjoy this experience of a lifetime.

I did it last year and hope again in September,.

Do look at the animals through the naked eye and don't be to taken in by the camera as you must enjoy it.

Have a great trip. :D:D
 
some sort of back up device. Laptop, external hard drive, something like that

And I picked the stitching of the Lowepro logo so I could remove it from my bag. But then I did go to South Africa which is a little unsafe
 
having lived ther for over 10 years...
1/the vehicles get quite close. so your 70-200 should do fine.
2/keep your wide on one camera and you tele on the other, this prevent the dist getting in from lens changes and you are ready to go at a moments notice. The dust is really fine when it gets kicked up in the air!
3/for morning drives i suggest a decent fleece - yes a decent fleece.
4/ i have forgotton the migration times but if you are lucky which i think you will be iirc, then there will be great vistas.
5/ avoid taking fruit in the vehicle as attracts the monkeys/baboons and when it happened to me, elephants.
6/ if you can, do a walking safari - agreat experience and you tend not to be in much of a rush....
7/ there are some great insect speices out there and if you are so inclined then a macro lens for the lazy afternoons.
8/ tripod.. the sunsets are amazing and if you are down at the coast when you go on your trip the sunrises can be amzing...

finally i think i have some shots taken on my last trip in my gallery, oh and remember to put the camera down once in a while if you are going with family. - have fun!
 
... maybe a Nikon 35 mm f1.8 DX for those scenes when f4 won't hack it?

Also a good sensor blower - I was very glad that my colleague had one when I went to Africa! Plus:
  • microfibre cloth & cleaning fluid
  • CPL filters for sky and clouds
But perhaps those came under 'etc' in your post.
 
I went on Safari last October, and I can confirm it really does get cold in Africa!

Also you will be shooting early morning and late evening, very little light!

If you haven't booked the safari already, it's worth spending a little extra money to make sure there's just a few of you in a car, rather than hundreds bundled in a bus.

Make sure you have a good broad-brimmed hat with a chin-strap - I lost a hat on one ride and we had to go back for it, very embarassing.
 
We are going in August and have booked a safari with a company over there called JT Safaris they are very reasonable and it will only be the 3 of us in the safari van with our own guide it was cheaper than booking it through Cosmos as well :D
 
LizardMan said:
... to make sure there's just a few of you in a car, rather than hundreds bundled in a bus. ...
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Good point, but there is another view in that a bus gives you a higher view point (I wondered how families in cars managed to spot anything through the scrub) and all those pairs of eyes are on the lookout all around the vehicle. Then it depends upon how firm you can be to establish fair shares for the best postions for taking your photographs.
 
you wont be in anything less than a 4WD and thats ample to be fair...
 
Rocket blower and maybe a half inch paintbrush for the exterior of body and lenses.
 
33L said:
you wont be in anything less than a 4WD and thats ample to be fair...
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If it's Mombasa I think you'll find it'll be a 2WD Toyota type van converted into a mini bus with an elevating roof.
 
I was refering to the game drives on safari.. having saying that most of the 'big' resorts use the minibus type for the game drive... theres not much off roading to be done in Mombasa... well if you dont count the potholed riddled roads.
 
We were at Sabi Sands in a 4wd with elevated seats, we were plenty high enough in fact I wouldn't want to have been any higher otherwise you'd lose the eye-level shot.

Time of year is also a crucial factor, we decided to go when there was less greenery to make spotting easier. However that also meant the animals weren't in such good condition.

I had a fantastic time and I'm sure you will too! I got some great shots, but this is one of my favourites as it's a bit different. We'd just finished watching a leopard eating an impala in a tree (in gruesome detail) and then it came down and stood on the crest of a small hill. In this shot it's being lit by a spotlight from our car and a spotlight from behind on another car - not quite studio lighting but an interesting affect.

4092273371_5828bcbc43.jpg
 
Went last september, just amazing!
Best piece of kit?
BEANBAG!!

I'd love to go again now I have better kit and general knowledge, just great. Most of all ENJOY YOURSELF!!
 
Seems you are pretty much sorted!

Personally, I would also throw in a tripod, if your baggage limits allow - the sunsets are spectacular, and also for any night shots of stars (if there isn't too much artificial light about), or macro / landscape type shots during lazy afternoons, also some ND grads if you have them may come in handy too.

One thing to mention, don't get disappointed if you don't get to see all the big 5, take your time and enjoy what you do see - think of it this way, if you don't see something, it gives you an excuse to go back again!!

You will have a great time!
 
33L said:
I was refering to the game drives on safari.. having saying that most of the 'big' resorts use the minibus type for the game drive... theres not much off roading to be done in Mombasa... well if you dont count the potholed riddled roads.
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lol yeah and me, when I say Mombasa I meant using it as a base, we did Tsavo East & Tsavo West in a mini bus type van. You don't actually go off road much on the game drives in the Reserves the driver tends to stop on the trails, although a couple of times we could have done with a 4WD as some of the trails were not passable due to flooding the previous week.
 
33L said:
I was refering to the game drives on safari.. having saying that most of the 'big' resorts use the minibus type for the game drive... theres not much off roading to be done in Mombasa... well if you dont count the potholed riddled roads.
Click to expand...

Them pot holes dont half hurt, lucky we had the nice pool back at the hotel too go back to relax in. But was a awesome experience!!
 
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