C4 Photo Tour - Antarctica 2014 (Part 2)

How does one show a destination that's gives the viewer an overall impression of what life is like in a true wildlife heaven? Do you go in close and make your images intimate? Or do you go wide and give the overall impression of the scene, but then remove yourself a bit from the scene?

South Georgia island was part of our recent Antarctica safari and it is the most overwhelming scene a naturalist can ever encounter. Having master photographers art Wolfe and Frans Lanting travelling with us ensured that we were adequately prepared for what the islands were to offer us. They even covered how to use your tripod to defend yourself against the aggressive fur seals as you walk by them!

South Georgia is definitely quite overwhelming but because we were well prepared for what to expect, we were ready to capture the magical scenes in all their glory, and more importantly, we knew what areas to head to.

 

This resulted in images that give an intimate, yet a wonderful overall impression of what life is like on South Georgia island.

 

I can assure you that it is the greatest wildlife experience in the world. Enjoy the images.

 

 

Read more...

Photographic Workshops at Mashatu.

Photographic workshops at Mashatu never fail to deliver great experiences and heart stopping photographic opportunities for our clients. We recently hosted a Workshop at Mashatu (24-28 July) with Heinrich and Trevor as the guides and had some great feedback from our clients.

Dewald van Brenda had this to say: 

"I was on the latest trip at Mashatu and I want to thank C4 Images & Safaris for most likely the best trip to the bush I have ever had. What made it so great was Heinrich and Trevor's willingness to help and answer all our questions with their extensive knowledge. C4 Images & Safaris can be proud of the work they do..."

Here are some images taken by Trevor Kleyn and please visit our website for additional information on the Photographic Workshops.

Read more...

Mashatu Winter Bliss - By Isak Pretorius

The dry season in Mashatu usually means good game sightings. The dry conditions force animals to congregate at the last remaining waterholes. Our recent photographic workshop to Mashatu in June always had the prospect of good sightings, but nothing could have prepared us for what we were about to see. The sightings and photographic opportunities were not just good, they were phenomenal!





One of the highlights on our first afternoon drive was to try different lighting techniques on a pair of lions with the vehicles' spotlights. Everyone had fun mastering backlit/rim, side and front lighting. The next morning we were out early and found a hyena den close to camp - a big clan with lots of youngsters that were playing outside the den each morning until late. Mashatu also delivered the usual specials with large breeding herds of elephants, including a day-old baby still with a piece of its umbilical cord attached, good bird photographic opportunities and the normal plains game.





One afternoon we stumbled upon a small pan with about 30 foraging glossy ibises. These usually bland subjects looked spectacular in the late afternoon sun. That was exactly the type of photography that gets my heart racing - making ordinary subjects look spectacular. They were surprisingly accommodating and allowed us to get very close to them - out of the vehicle and onto the ground for that low angle perspective.





You know that a trip is going well when a sighting of lions fighting with hyenas are not even considered the highlight of the weekend. On the second morning's drive we followed the same male and female lion we saw on our first game drive and observed how they wandered too close to the hyena den. The whole clan of eight adult hyenas grouped together and started harassing the trespassers. The young male's temper flared up in a number of sequences that offered first class action photography opportunities as he defended himself.





A female leopard with three cubs have been in the area for our entire stay and we were dying to get a good look at them. Small gaps through the thicket allowed us to get some record shots at various stages, but with such young cubs we knew our chances were slim of getting good leopard cub shots. On our fifth drive our patience were rewarded when the leopard and her cubs walked in a dry riverbed an even allowed us to observe them while drinking water. This was a special moment for us all. At the time we did not know however, that this was just an appetizer for things to come. That night she made a kill and dragged it into a nearby tree. We returned to this sighting on each of our last three game drives and felt privileged to observe and photograph an episode of these leopards' lives!

Once again Mashatu revealed to us some of its unique and spectacular treasures. We can not wait to return there soon.

Isak Pretorius Photography Blog.




Read more...

All Hail To Them l’ill Critturs - by Christine Lamberth

The question begs! Does anyone go on Safari to see the little guys. I have yet to hear someone alighting a Safari vehicle asking to see a shrew mouse, a dung beetle or a striped mongoose. Standard answers expected by Game Rangers are either of the large feline variety or perhaps those lumbering giants of the African Plains. Yet any guide to the animals of the world reveals an overwhelming number of little mammals that inhabit the earth.



How many Safari goers will have seen a honeybadger, a bat-eared fox, an African wildcat or even a hedgehog? Is there any tangible excitement when the opportunity to spend some time with a colony of ants presents itself?
On a recent photographic workshop with C4 Images at Mashatu Reserve in the Tuli Block in Botswana it is hide-and-seek time with the big boys and the challenges are laid down at every turn. Amazing results are testament to the sheer magic of the African bush.



The first opportunity presents itself with a family of banded mongoose (mungos mungo) whose focused intent to find food overwhelms the urge to run and hide in the presence of a vehicle. However, the challenge remains with the right position close enough to produce images free of foliage in front of eyes and ears. Essential to the exercise is a Game Ranger with the patience of Job and a starter that will put up with being turned on and off at short intervals. Both of these are present with Jake (aka Job) patiently checking that the distance and position are correct and a trusty old African stalwart the Toyota Landcruiser playing along.

After repeated starts and stops the images of curious eyes and frantic agitation in the vegetation are banked on the flash card as the sleek silvery troop disappears into the wooded area where we can’t follow.

A short drive a little further down through the woodland on the riverbank takes us to a once mighty tree that has fallen victim to the power of Mashatu’s largest inhabitants. As we approach a small family of ground squirrels (Xerus inauris) momentarily stop their activities to inspect the intruders. The vehicle rolls silently towards the prone stump now hollowed out to provide shelter and a home to one of the smallest inhabitants of the African Savannah.



We settle into quiet observation and the squirrels relax. As they become accustomed to our presence they continue with their antics that include eating, playing and grooming and the opportunities that present themselves to a photographer are quite breathtaking in their diversity. With the light remaining a soft glow in the normally harsh African skies the camera records a whole host of images that gently reveal the beauty and complexity of nature.



Another of Africa's more shy inhabitants becomes very visible. The blackback jackal (Canis mesomelas) appears from behind every possible bush. Their gritty determination to survive is apparent at a sighting where a dead giraffe is slowly being consumed by just about every scavenger in the reserve. They bravely stand up to their big brothers the spotted hyena, ignore the hissing of a hundred or more vultures to ensure that their allocation of the spoils is not wasted. Each day we see one or more of these brave little prairie dogs their gorgeous black flecked coats dotting the plains as they scuttle from one opportunity to the next. Even on our last drive where we head into the bush to see some more indolent, sleeping lions we find yet another couple of blackback jackals patiently waiting for the lions to leave so that they can move in for the scraps of the kill. We get so close that the lens of the camera almost seems too long.



In the absence of the adrenalin pumping action that a visit to the African bush can reveal the little critter has saved the day. In a world where time has become the master it is only when we set aside these modern persuasions and take the time to slow down and patiently become the observer that we are rewarded with wonderful memories and images that are imprinted forever and life is enriched by the experience.

Christine Lamberth Blog



Read more...

Changing Angles at Mashatu - Trip report December 2010 by Isak Pretorius

"Changing your angle" is one of the techniques we teach during our photographic workshops. It means photographing from a different angle than normal, usually from a lower angle, close to the ground, capturing the subject eye-level with a soft background to create more striking photographs. With the right subject and conditions, this technique can help you make a good photo, GREAT!





During C4 Images' last Mashatu workshop for 2010, in early December, we focussed on applying this technique - with great success I might add. It's not just the freedom that a place like Mashatu Game Reserve gives us to get out the vehicles and try different techniques, but also the number of photographic opportunities that makes Mashatu such a productive photographic destination. It always delivers unique and spectacular subjects and environments.





During the photographic workshop, our clients thoroughly enjoyed exploring all genres of photography. It was not only the striking images we got from changing our angle and photographing laying flat on the ground on numerous occasions, but also one afternoon's spectacular thunderstorm with photographs of lightning and landscapes that had everybody very excited. A great sighting of a leopard on a log and lions with very small playful cubs rounded off a very successful five days spent in the bush.





Mashatu always deliver spectacular subjects in unique environments. C4 Images are looking forward to 2011 and our workshops to this wonderful place!

16 - 20 March 2011








Read more...

Not just about the Puku - Isak Pretorius

The Puku is an antelope found in wet grasslands in southern Democratic Republic of Congo and in Zambia. It stands about 80cm tall at the shoulders and weigh between 70 to 80kg. Puku are sandy brown in colour with the underbelly a few shades lighter. Males have around 50cm long ridge structured horns. Both territorial and alarm calls are a repeated shrill whistle sound. They are beautiful animals! The recent C4 Images and Safaris Workshop took our guests to Puku Ridge Camp in the South Luangwa National Park in Zambia. There are a lot of puku in the park, but we didn't specifically go there to photograph them! Our objective was to find plenty of game and other photographic opportunities. Not only did we find exactly what we were looking for, but we were also blown away by the incredible beauty and variety that the park had to offer!





The South Luangwa National Park is a photographer's dream - wild and remote it's one of Africa's most unspoiled places with enormous spaces, a wide variety of habitats and a high density of game. It is one of Zambia's largest National Parks, covering an area of over 9,000 square kilometers in the Luangwa Valley. The survival of the valley depends on the winding Luangwa River, crowded with hippos, crocodiles and waterfowl, and its numerous tributaries that course through the park. Just before the big summer rains the bushes have wilted and the earth becomes bone dry, so animals assemble along the river and at the remaining waterholes. This is the best time for game viewing.





The Photographic Workshop was held at Puku Ridge Camp, located in a remote area of the National Park overlooking a floodplain close to the Luangwa River. To reach this camp requires a two-hour flight from Johannesburg to Lusaka and then a chartered transfer to Mfuwe Aiport. It's a small intimate camp with seven luxury tents and a communal area with a lounge, bar, dining area and deck, all overlooking a waterhole on the floodplain. As at all Sanctuary Lodges, the food and service are exceptional and we were especially impressed by the quality of the guides. At the waterhole in front of camp there is a constant flow of animals coming to drink during the day, making it an attractive option to skip the afternoon drive to photograph at the waterhole instead, and this from the comfort of the lounge. When we saw a leopard drinking at this waterhole during dinner on our first night, we knew this workshop was going to be special.





As a photographic workshop our guests were not just keen to visit one of Africa's world-renowned wildlife havens, but also keen to learn all the genres and techniques of nature photography. Our workshops always attract people that have an appreciation for nature and a passion for photography, which by default guarantees the workshop to be a great success. We had great fun teaching everything from light and composition, portrait, action, landscape, slow-shutter panning blur, flash, spotlight-at-night, and HDR photography, to processing photos and managing a large photo library. The theory is put into practice during the morning and afternoon game drives where the photography guides are close by to lend a helping hand.

We were spoiled with excellent sightings of predators and general game, birds and spectacular landscapes. Highlights included three leopards trying to break through the tough skin of a dead young hippo. The cause of death was unsure, but the leopards struggled for hours to get to the meat without success and became very agitated with the whole situation. Later that night we returned to see how four lions eventually chased the leopards off the carcass. Other highlights included photographing at a carmine bee-eater colony, ebony forests, mating lions, elephants walking through the river, pools with hundreds of hippos, and spectacular sunsets and sunrises on the Luangwa River.

A big thank you to camp managers Don and Suku, our guides Joseph and Malemia, and the staff of Puku Ridge Camp who made this such an awesome experience for us all!

South Luangwa Photo Workshops September 2011
South Luangwa Photo Workshop October 2011

Read more...

Experience Wilderness - By Isak Pretorius

Chiefs Island in the heart of the Okavango Delta is pure wilderness and a land of incredible beauty. Vast open seasonal floodplains with palm tree islands. Herds of animals roaming free and wild exactly like they have for thousands of years. Unspoiled scenic beauty that stretches as far as the eye can see. To experience this and to have it all to yourself to enjoy is pure magic! The recent C4 photographic workshop to Chiefs Camp offered our guests exactly that. This is my favorite destination in Africa.





Our photographic workshop was a great success, especially because we're such like-minded people, having a lot of laughs together, and enjoying the good photography and nature experience that this wilderness had to offer. Game viewing was fantastic with great sightings of the general Delta game, the big five, and a rare glimpse of a leopard carrying a week old cub. This leopard is close to camp and very accommodating towards photographers, a beautiful poser. We are looking forward to seeing her more during the upcoming safaris to Chiefs Island. Although we didn't do serious birding, we unofficially tallied more than 130 species for the trip. This included numerous lifers for most of the guests.



Chiefs Camp is tucked between beautiful big Jackalberry, Sausage and Apple-leaf trees on the edge of the actual island, overlooking a seasonal floodplain. The camp has recently been renovated and the accommodation, food and comfort that the camp offers are exceptional. It's easy to see why this camp has been voted the best lodge in Botswana for three years in a row now!



As a photographic safari our objective was to get top wildlife photos as much as it was to experience this untamed wilderness. Chiefs Island delivered superbly in both categories. Apart from the good photography, we also extended our experience into the air with a flip in a helicopter over the Delta, and an afternoon's mokoro experience on one of the main channels in the Delta.



Thanks to all our guests, my co-host Albie Venter, our drivers Ishmael and Sky, and all the staff at the camp who made this such a memorable experience for all of us!



Albie Venter's Report
Mark Dumbleton's Report
Chiefs Island 2011


Read more...

Mashatu Workshop, April 2010

By Albie Venter

After crossing the Limpopo in a cable car at Pont Drift border post you head into the 70 odd thousand Tuli wilderness in south east Botswana. Here, Isak Pretorius and I (Albie Venter) were to be hosting a photographic workshop for C4 Images over the next five days at Mashatu Tented camp. I admit that I had some preconceived ideas about Tuli. Fears that it may be a drought stricken region devoid of significant wildlife densities were soon put to rest on our first Game drive.

The first bouts of camera fever were soon treated with some portraits of a lioness in the riverbed. When sundowners followed everyone thought it a fitting end to a first day. However, as we were getting ready to leave the distinctive rasping call of a leopard came from the nearby woodland. No sooner had we dumped the drinks in the vehicle and dashed off in the direction of the sound when we bumped into this incredibly relaxed young male leopard and followed him into the riverbed. What could possibly beat this? In the meantime though the lioness of earlier caught wind of the intruding predator and unbeknown to us had snuck up on the unsuspecting leopard in the meantime. In an explosion of growls the two cats clashed behind dense riverine bush. Fortunately the lithe spotted cat made good its escape and dashed up a Nyala berry tree out of the eager lionesses reach. And finally that brought an end to our first day.













































Within the next 24 hours two more top predators in the form of Spotted Hyena and Cheetah with three cubs were ticked off from our photographic wish lists. The photographic opportunities didn’t stop there though and great shots of a pair of Giant (Verraux’s) Eagle owls, a variety of herbivores and landscapes were covered.













































Tuli of course is elephant territory and one is guaranteed of their presence throughout your stay. I do find them quite a challenging subject to portray in a new way but the sheer numbers present every conceivable opportunity to hone one’s skills.




And then the rains came! Although the area is known to be a dry region during our stay more than 160mm fell changing the face of the placid little stream in front of camp. Not to be cheated out of any photographic opportunities we all set about photographing this dramatic event through everything from wide angles to macro shots of the now prolific frogs and the dramatic lightning in the skies! And this is where the spirit of the group came to the fore. I cannot recall a single objection, not even when the stream turned into a raging torrent that came crashing through our tents and dumping the veranda furniture some way off.





No trip can ever be a success without great guests and I would personally like to thank Piet, Tanya, Paul, Christine, Peter, Jane, Wessel and Wentsel for your contribution, whether an impromptu geology lesson or a quick joke that made this such a truly memorable trip for me. Thanks also to Isak for presenting such a great workshop where everyone, including myself learnt so much about photography. I am looking forward catching up with you all again.






Read more...