Generally, the more common the animal, the less sought after by safari goers on the trips we lead to Africa. Everyone wants to see the cats and other more difficult to track down species. But there are a few notable exceptions. Zebras being one of them. And they tend to be really common. At least the plains zebras. Enjoy this quick video of some of the zebra action on our trip to Kenya in April. Nikon Z8 at 4K.
This hyena with her cub was one of my favorite sightings on our trip to Kenya in April. I previously posted a different image of them. Here’s another look, just outside their burrow. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/800th of a second.
Two male Thomson’s gazelles spar over territory. Photographed in the Masai Mara of Kenya. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 5000, f/5.6 at 1/640th of a second.
Once thought to be the same species as the red-collared widowbird, the red-cowled widowbird was given its own designation due to the longer length of the male’s tail and brilliant red plumage around the head during breeding season. It was fun photographing and filming these birds as they flew back and forth trying to impress the ladies with their aforementioned tails and plumage. Taken in the Masai Mara of Kenya.Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 1400, f/5.6 at 1/2500th of a second.
A backlit puma rests in front of the massive face of a mountain in Torres Del Paine National Park in Patagonian Chile. Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/640th of a second.
Here’s one from the backyard camera trap. Deer are plentiful in the woods behind our house and regularly trip the shutter, often late at night. The time stamp on my camera tells me this was at 2:38 AM. Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 19mm) ISO 500, f/14 at 1/200th of a second, Cognysis camera box, trail monitor and remote flash units.
An elephant and her calf forage on the plentiful grasses and other foliage of Ol Pajeta Conservancy in central Kenya. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 180, f/4 at 1/640th of a second.
While in Botswana years ago, my guide predicted the daily rounds of a particular honey badger near a local village. We quickly created a makeshift blind out of cardboard boxes and I crawled inside. It didn’t take long for the honey badger (also known as a ratel) to show up and start sniffing around. Here’s one of the many portraits I captured that day. Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 300mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/320th of a second.
Dik diks are the smallest of all the antelope species in Kenya. I’ve mentioned it in several previous posts — it’s hard to imagine their size without a frame of reference. To me, they resemble a jackrabbit (in stature not looks) when running across the savanna. This is a Kirk’s dik dik, taking a moment to look back at our safari vehicle and granting me a close up portrait. Of note, that nice flip of hair that looks like it’s been gelled. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 500mm PF lens, ISO 9000, f/5.6 at 1/200th of a second.
I guess this is the week for large African mammals. Yesterday it was the hippo, the third largest land animal in Africa by weight. Today it’s the white rhinoceros, the second largest. Only the elephant is bigger. These three were grazing while I carefully set the camera on the ground for a bottom up perspective. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor 24-70mm lens (at 24mm) ISO 450, f/5.6 at 1/1000th of a second.
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