I went on a Kenyan Safari with _eug, ellamay, cpanaioti and a few other non-DPC people, great experience! One very very important detail, the less people there are in the van the easier it is to take photos, 4 is the maximum I would recommend.
I agree with Kavey too, samburu is really worth the trip as are amboseli and nakuru.
I did go to mombasa and it is beautiful beach but it is much like beach resorts anywhere. If I was to go back to mombasa it would be for a short time.
I think I would go to Lamu instead of mombasa if looking for something different than safari time.
I also agree with nick 4 is the max in the vehicles. Does make the trip cost a bit more, but worth the space for taking pix
Pete and I were in one of these for the Tanzania segment of our recent trip. Ours was customised with just 4 seats (apart from driver/ driver passenger) and that gave us plenty of room inside. Two more people would have been OK, still space to have our camera bags at our feet, move about a bit and so on.
We saw the same vehicle configured with 6 seats more commonly. A LOT more crowded, little space for camera bags to be accessible. A lot more crowded when standing up viewing through the hatch. AND not all internal windows open so not great viewing for everyone when sitting down inside.
We even saw the same vehicle configured with 8 seats, horrific.
I see. I like that first, open vehicle you posted. By your post, it sounds like the law prohibits driving those outside a park. I wonder if I could get Far to switch vehicles? Obviously the price is set according to having six people. I wonder if four is a possibility. :-/
Definitely try to get a max of 4 per vehicle. Essentially, on the trip I took with Lynn, Nick and Eug (and a few non-dpcers) we had 3 photogs per vehicle. The vehicle I was in had four people but the 4th was only there to view the animals and the third really only for snapshots.
It was great. We had the poptop vw like vehicle and with a max of four per vehicle there was plenty of room.
I would definitely recommend AGAINST using this type of vehicle //www.luminous-landscape.com/images7/sr2.jpg You will be stuck to one side only and have no access to the front or back or the other side. The best is the pop-top van where you can stand inside and have a 360 degree view of your surroundings. And definitely not more than 4 shooters per van.
I was imagining a safari as spending most time on foot, outside the vehicle, though nearby. If I saw some wildlife, I'd want to get out. Unless it was a carnivore very close by. My preference is to be outside on foot. This is starting to sound like my arse will be married to a car seat for two weeks.
I state the above hoping someone will tell me I'm very wrong...
My first thought, after seeing that open vehicle, was about dust. I've spent a month or so doing geology in the Arizona and Utah desert, and we couldn't even keep the windows rolled down because of all the dust. Even then, it was dusty as heck. My second thought was that we'd be easier pickings for hungry animals. ;-)
No that si not right there Strike, my arse is larger than yours, so you will have to stand for the two weeks.
I kinda had a different idea as to what it would be like. More along the lines of a jeep, even with only 4 people in the mini van, it looked crowded and you can only take photos from that angle.
I am not saying I was to dance with a pack of lions any time there, but shooting through a glass window is something I can do at the zoo and pretend i am there.
This is my thought on this, I know that there has to be companies that cater to just photographers. If not, then there are guided jeep tours and you make your own tour up with a little research etc. With the cost of about 7 to 8 grand, I think we should be able to make a package up
Never once did we shoot through the glass. The windows open for perfect shooting and no you're not restricted to just one angle. There is a lot of room in the van with the pop top. Only seating for one on each side and bench across the back. You get the chance to shoot from all angles.
In most national reserves, walking safaris are not permitted, so if you're envisaging a lot of walking, you need to look for places that allow that, such as conservancies and private game reserves. For example, on our last trip to Masai Mara we stayed in the Koiyak Conservancy, just outside the National Reserve, which meant we could go off-road in the vehicle, we could walk if we wanted, we could do night-drives. None of these are permitted in the National Reserve.
As for the vehicles, never had a dust problem in the open vehicles (am careful not to change lens when moving and to take care generally) and open vehicles like that are absolutely the first choice for most safari-nuts I know. Contrary to not getting a view, you have a full view even when sitting down. I don't like standing up jammed in the hatchway the entire time, it's exhausting, and whilst seated, the view isn't half as good. In any case, generally speaking, East Africa tends to offer the closed vehicles more, Southern Africa the open ones. Of the closed ones, the choice is usually between a mini van (no no no) and a landcruiser (better).
Depending on the kind of trip you book you will either be in the same vehicle(s) and with the same guide the entire time, even when you stay at the various camps, you'll book a non-activities package, and your own guide will do the game drives for you. OR you'll simply transfer from camp to camp and then use the camp's own vehicles and guides for the drives. Personally, I prefer that, camp vehicles tend more often to be the fully open type AND the camp guides spend every day in the same area, so they know it much better than the moving guides.
Dr Nick, I'm confused.
Looking at your photos, many seem to be taken from a low perspective, not looking down from a pop-top hatch?
What kind of vehicle were you in for the leopard on the ground?
If you want to do a walking safari (or at least parts of it walking)
You can do one with a woman guide (and a local guide with a gun) that are excellent in Zambia.
It is an amazing experience, tho to be honest you can (obviously) get closer in the vehicles.
I was about 50 ft. from a small herd of elephants.
There are some options for walking safaris in kenya email me and I will tell you where to find them
oh yeah, the drag about zambia is it is more expensive and a bit further to get there. Depending of course on where you live the trip can be very daunting.
But worth the time and money if you have it.
You can do a small walk in nairobi national park tho the animal population there is decreasing drastically there and I am not sure how much is there now.
Dr Nick, I'm confused.
Looking at your photos, many seem to be taken from a low perspective, not looking down from a pop-top hatch?
What kind of vehicle were you in for the leopard on the ground?
Sorry to answer for Nick, but probably shooting at window level. The windows do open so there's always a lower perspective.
Ohhh, shameless self plug for Africa pics
Africa pics
I spent a lot of time on enormous trucks that could seat 20 odd people. However Ngorongoro wouldn't allow them so we rented Landcruisers or something. There's a pic of one of them here and this one had no roof. For the one day, with a hat and sunscreen, I didn't mind it at all.
I know it's not on the itinerary, but Uganda has some wonderful parks as well and unique wildlife.
One other thing, if you have any birders, it's wise to put them in their own truck as they will stop much more often than those only interested in the larger animals.
Dr Nick, I'm confused.
Looking at your photos, many seem to be taken from a low perspective, not looking down from a pop-top hatch?
What kind of vehicle were you in for the leopard on the ground?
Sorry to answer for Nick, but probably shooting at window level. The windows do open so there's always a lower perspective.
That's what I assumed, it seems many of his (FANTASTIC) shots are taken from a low perspective. That makes sense as shooting DOWN on the animals from the pop-top doesn't give a great perspective. I find that, unless animals are up on a hill or in a tree, shooting from as low as possible gives the best image.
BUT if one is going to shoot from as low as possible, then actually, one gets a better 360 degree view from the open vehicles than the closed ones, surely? Although we could open windows in our closed landcruiser (in Tanzania) only some windows opened and we were restricted in the angles we could get because of that. There were only two of us in the vehicle so at least we could both be on one side or the other of the vehicle, but had there been 4 or 6 of us, at least 3 people would not have been able to see/ shoot at all! In the open vehicles, we could get down on the floor, we could sit in the seats, we could kneel on the seats, we could stand, and as there were no windows at all, our views were open.
Excellent point from Pidge on separating birders. Then again, I am not a birder but do love photographing some of the colourful African birds! Much more interesting than the many brown and grey birds of home. Though my interest in birds at home has grown as a result of African safaris!
Some _really_ serious birders won't even leave a bird sighting for a rare mammal sighting such as leopard!
So what month of the year were these photos taken and what part of the country? Thanks
Originally posted by doctornick:
I went on a Kenyan Safari with _eug, ellamay, cpanaioti and a few other non-DPC people, great experience! One very very important detail, the less people there are in the van the easier it is to take photos, 4 is the maximum I would recommend.
So what month of the year were these photos taken and what part of the country? Thanks
Originally posted by doctornick:
I went on a Kenyan Safari with _eug, ellamay, cpanaioti and a few other non-DPC people, great experience! One very very important detail, the less people there are in the van the easier it is to take photos, 4 is the maximum I would recommend.
