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WILDLIFE BLOG
Wildlife: Not checking in rear-view mirror before reversing
This warthog appears not to have checked inside its burrow before reversing in for the night! Perhaps it was startled and rushed to seek refuge in its hole, but found that the hole was still being used by a porcupine avoiding the heat of the day! These spines had been driven deep into the flesh, suggesting that the pig was moving quite fast when it came into contact with the spiky rodent! Porcupines, civets, genets, aardvarks, [...]
Photo Safari Skills: Photographing after Sunset
I was out in the bush last night and enjoyed a lovely sunset. After marveling the view, I headed towards home. On the way out, I kept looking around for photo opportunities as that soft glow of post-sunset is actually a great time to take photographs because the indirect light gives a special quality to images. A troop of baboons were playing around the base of some Ebony trees, enjoying the last of the light before [...]
Wildlife: A Puffback Display
I love going back over old images because I always find some gems I'd completely forgotten about. This image is far from one of my best (in fact, I look forward to some abuse from fellow photographers in the comments about the background and the unfortunate leaf) but it shows some wonderful behaviour. This little bird is a Southern Puffback, or Puffback Shrike. It's a noisy and abundant resident across woodland in Southern Africa, most easily [...]
Photo Safari Skills: Making the best of the light
Sometimes wildlife photography can be frustrating. Animals don't behave with us in mind, they just do what nature programmed them to do. Most wildlife enthusiasts understand that, and simply smile when a creature drops its head and walks in the opposite direction from where the photographer wanted! But when the wildlife is performing, and the light is not, it's easy to become frustrated! So what options do we have? If the light is poor, I tend [...]
Photo Safari Report: Namit & Usha | Nkhonzi Camp | 20 – 23 Oct 2015
I can't believe it's come along already...but the end of the season is here and we have had our first massive rain storm which has left the ground sodden and the roads very slippery! What follows is a collection of images from a 3-day photo-safari with 2 guests from India, Namit and Usha, who joined me at Nkhonzi Camp for the last few days of the season. As the end of the season always is, it [...]
Photo Safari Skills: Night Photos
Over the coming months, as well as bush updates, I will be posting blogs about how to take photos in some of the more challenging situations. These include backlit subjects, night photos, birds in flight, low light photography, sunsets and several others. Watch out for the "Photo Safari Skills" tagline. First up - NIGHT PHOTOS The opportunity to conduct night-drives is a major draw for many of South Luangwa's visitors. Certainly it is an added bonus [...]
Photo Safari Report: Remote Nsefu Sector with AGT | Zikomo Safaris | 12 – 17 Oct 2015
I am very pleased to offer the write up of the first Edward Selfe safari in association with Africa Geographic Travel, based out of Zikomo Safaris Camp on the edge of the Nsefu Sector of the South Luangwa National Park. This area was made (more) famous in recent years by the BBC documentary "Countdown to the Rains" which was presented by Kate Humble and Simon King and explored the behaviour of various characters in the bush [...]
Photo Safari Report: Ken & Sandra | Flatdogs Camp | 5 – 9 Oct 2015
Here are the images from my recent safari with Ken and Sandra. We had a spectacular week and enjoyed extraordinary sightings on almost every day. Ken and Sandra wrote some very kind feedback about being on safari with me. I thought I would copy it here on the trip report: "We have been on many trips to various wildlife destinations - however, our recent trip to Zambia is the first time we have been back to [...]
Photo Safari Report: Roger & Vicky | Flatdogs Camp | 1 – 4 Oct 2015
I am catching up with the sorting of all my images from the last 12 days! It has been an amazing couple of weeks in the bush and it's taking time to select the best images to share here. For now, here are the best from my time with Roger and Vicky, now on their 4th safari with me in Luangwa!! We enjoyed some really interesting hyaena behaviour on our first evening. Sniffing of genitals is [...]
Photo Safari Report: Hermann | Marula Lodge | 27 Sep – 2 Oct 2015
I have taken several bookings this year for individual photographers wanting a private safari where they can concentrate on their own photography with my assistance. Since I have good links to many camps, I can arrange safaris for single photographers at very competitive rates - if you are interested in this, please get in touch for rates. You might well be surprised! I finished a safari with Hermann on 2nd October. Even if September is always [...]
Wildlife: Luangwa sightings | September
September is a stunning time in the Luangwa. The lagoons are all dry, the river is the only source of water and the game is abundant along the remaining waterways. Dusty conditions filter the light leaving soft golden sunshine in the morning and evening, and the nights are still cool enough to sleep. Next month, the temperatures really build up and become uncomfortable sometimes, but September is a good compromise between great sightings and tolerable temperatures. [...]
Photo Safari: Serge & Juliette | Nkhonzi Camp | August 2015
Our first evening drive appeared to be a leopard-based event! Always good for photographers who always go weak at the knees at the opportunity to take shots of these spotty beauties. And it's not hard to see why when we get sightings such as this. After seeing him in the early evening, we returned to the area after dark to see if he had any luck hunting...he hadn't but we were lucky to see him stalking [...]
EDWARD SELFE
I organise & run photographic safaris in the finest wildlife areas on Earth.
