WIN!!! With Getaway Magazine and C4 Photo Safari's

Getaway Gallery has for a number of years brought the limelight to some of South Africa’s most talented rising photographers. The gallery show cases Africa’s travel photography at its finest, each month the finalist are published in the Getaway magazine and highly commend entries on the Getaway website. Part of the first prize for the overall winner for 2015 will be treated to a week-long photographic safari in the Masaai Mara worth R45 000, sponsored by C4 Photo Safari’s. On top of this, your trip will see you kitted out with some of the latest photographic equipment on the market.

C4 Photo Safari’s has hosted photographic workshops in the Mara for seven years running; the workshops are hosted by some of South Africa’s finest professional photographers. On this trip you will not only have the privilege of witnessing one of nature’s wonders, the wildebeest migration, you will also have the opportunity to experience the freedom and vast wilderness of one of Africa’s greatest ecosystems.

Enter you images now to Getaway Photography and stand a chance to win with Getaway and C4 Photo Safari's. Closing date for entries is 1 April 2015, winner to be announced in the July edition of the magazine.

Good Luck!

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Antarctica Photo Gallery 2014 - By Peter Scheulfer

As our travellers from our recent trip to Antarctica eventually start settling back into milder climates and the going on’s of everyday life in the city, the reams of images snapped during the expedition start making an appearance on social networks and some in publications.

C4 traveller Peter Scheufler managed to snap a mere 20 000 images on the trip, this number being a tribute to the sheer beauty we were exposed to during our weeks at sea.  Here are a few photographs from Peter’s gallery that serve as an indication to the beauty of which we speak. Well done Peter, we look forward to seeing more of your work!

 

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Brandy the Leopard

Brandy the much publicised female leopard has been the subject of research by the North West Province’s conservation department’s ecologist, John Power, for the last two years. Brandy remains one of the few free roaming leopards in South Africa’s Magaliesberg Mountains, hence the reason for the department’s endeavour to keep her monitored and protected. The findings from such a study can have significant impact on the success of free roaming leopard in other more developed parts of Africa too. Although the project has been predominantly state funded, some aspects have required private funding, owing to a constrained fiscus. C4 Photo Safaris has been a proud sponsor of the leopard project collars, and this has allowed the department to monitor the progress and movement of Brandy on a day to day basis.

In September 2014 John noticed that Brandy’s signal had remained static for a few days, so he and his team set off to investigate why this was so – mindful that this was concerning. Sadly they found that Brandy had been captured in a snare and was severely injured. John and his team snapped straight into action, and found that due to the rugged terrain they could not drive up to her, and it was also too dangerous to approach her on foot, so they opted to dart her from the air via a hovering helicopter. Afterwards, while immobilised, her wounds were flushed, and she was subsequently airlifted to Johannesburg from whence she was stabilised for a fortnight. It is thanks to the satellite collar that this was all possible. After extensive medical attention from at least three veterinarians at the Joburg Zoo, she was released back into the Magaliesberg in a much improved physical condition. This was such that she could have the chance to rear her cubs – as X-rays revealed three cubs!

For a few months afterwards there was no sign of denning behaviour, until the middle of November 2014, when camera traps were placed at a suspected den – and a few days later – one cub was revealed! This was great success in that considering the ordeal that she had been through, she was still able to reproduce, which is the gauge of success for any conservation efforts. The department’s conservation efforts are visible through Brandy’s remarkable comeback. This is a significant addition of genetic material as well as valuable scientific data that is being received firm Brandy and for the somewhat dwindling free roaming leopard population in parts of South Africa. This is one step towards saving the leopards of the Magaliesberg and maintaining the populations of free roaming leopards in Africa as a whole. Well done to the department and the team for their positive impact n wildlife conservation as a whole. C4 Photo Safaris is very happy to help with initiatives that have such a positive conservation result. Since C4 Photo Safaris ultimately benefits from the photographic appeal of leopards in many of Africa’s game reserves, we see his as an opportunity to give back to leopards that are in trouble in the more disturbed parts of the continent – such as the outskirts of the metropolis of Johannesburg, which is where the Magaliesberg is situated.

We look forward to watching the developments of Brandy and her cub over the months and years and also look forward to further sponsoring of more collars for this and other projects.

Magaliesberg Biosphere, blue dots indicate Brandy's location

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Maasai Mara Photo Trips 2015

This year marks C4’s 7th consecutive year with Entim Camp in the Maasai Mara. The Mara never comes with disappointment, hence our successive photo trips to this wilderness region of Kenya over the past years.

 

Not only does the Mara provide photographers with an unlimited supply of phenomenal wildlife sightings and suburb lighting conditions, we are also fortunate enough to be guided by some of the Mara’s finest field rangers. Over the years C4’s professional wildlife photographers have provided the field rangers at Entim Camp with photographic training and tutoring, to ensure that our clients are provided with the best possible photographic experience.

 

C4 run two types of safaris to Entim Camp in the Mara, the Classic Photo Safaris and the Premier Photo Safaris. On both safaris, unless designated, you will have a personal, qualified guide that will conduct you through your safari with information and knowledge on the ecology of the habitat. The Classic Safaris can host up to 12 guests per trip with two photographic guide’s hosting the trip. The Premier Safaris are designed to give you the highest possible photographic safari experience; hence we have minimized the group size to no more than 6 guests per trip accompanied by three highly experienced photo guides.

 

Between our professional photographic guides Shem Compion, Greg du Toit, Isak Pretorius, Albie Ventre and Andre Cloete over 20 seasons have been spent in the Mara, giving the guides ample time to map out their favourite spots as well as the most productive game viewing areas on the reserve. Over this period strong working relationships have been built with the local field guides at Entim Camp, making our guided experience seamless.

C4 will be hosting 7 trips to Entim Camp in the Maasai Mara this year, to read more on these trips take a look at our photo calendar for the year here:

http://www.c4images-safaris.co.za/photo-safari-calendar-dates.asp

 

Here are some images taken during our 2014 Maasai Mara photo trips, we look forward to having you join us in this wilderness paradise soon!

 

 

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