Taking Safari Pictures: Expert Advice (2/3) – For the Serious Amateur

SA Logue asked the University of the Witwatersrand’s Prof. David Bunn – one of the country’s top experts on the Kruger National Park – for some advice on which camera to pack when going to a game park. We’ve illustrated his response with pics from the kinds of cameras he refers to. This is part 2 of 3 – see the Expert Photo Advice tag for more.

Level 2. For quite serious amateur photography, an old-style 35mm camera with interchangeable lenses – or its digital equivalent – is a must.

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These cameras are called “single lens reflexes”, or SLRs – you have the same view of the subject as the lens does. Nikon and Canon make the best systems, and they have the best lenses for wildlife photography (within reasonable price parameters). A very versatile combination would be something like this:

• A 35mm or similar digital CCD camera body.
• A short zoom lens, roughly in the range 28-70mm, with a low aperture rating of at least 2.8. This enables you to take good wide-angle landscape shots and excellent portraits. It’s the lens that you will keep on the camera and use most of the time.

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• A long zoom lens in the range of, say, 80-200mm. This enables very dramatic landscape shots, unobtrusive portraits, and a range of good wildlife work. If you wanted to focus even more on wildlife, I would recommend the addition of a good teleconverter (1.4 X or even 2X). Tamron make excellent – and inexpensive – lenses and converters in this range. If you can afford it, though, the Nikon 80-200 F2.8 is magnificent, and I use this plus 1.4 and 2X converters for quite good wildlife shots.
• Avoid the temptation of buying “mirror lenses”, which appeal because of their high magnification. They have some very irritating features, including breaking up the background of photos into roundels of light.

Other equipment:

• A good tripod is useful, but can be a real pain if you are travelling. Bogen makes the best, though there are many others, including Slik. Invest in a good ball head for the tripod, with a quick release plate system. If you are set on taking a tripod, get advice on one that is sturdy and compact. Use of a tripod also entails use of cable releases. In general, though, I strongly recommend that you not bring a tripod, because of the weight.

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• All detachable lenses MUST have protective UV filters attached to them at all times, especially in gritty environments like game parks.
• Camera bags are good, but attractive to thieves in public places. Before you get to the game park, carry your camera in a day pack.
• For film cameras, in average photographic conditions in South Africa and Kruger, use 100ASA (ISO) Kodacolor or Fuji 100. It’s cheapest at supermarkets like Pick & Pay, Clicks, and so on, but can also be purchased at all pharmacies and in most rest camps in the Kruger Park. For digital cameras, buy your memory cards at home rather than in South Africa, where they will probably be much more expensive, and use the camera’s own automatic ISO settings.

Prof. Bunn is head of the Wits School of Arts.